IT ISN'T ALWAYS SMOOTH SAILING.

Byline: KAREN CROUSE

DURHAM, N.C. - ``I don't think we've been on any free rides here,'' the young coach said, smiling ever so slightly. Reporters and fans were calling for his job, but the 36-year-old was unbowed.

``I'm at ease with myself because I'm doing things the right way,'' the young coach said, and to be sure, 17 years later nobody is questioning Mike Krzyzewski's methods.

In January of 1984, two months before he guided the first of 17 Duke teams into the NCAA Tournament, Krzyzewski was weathering a storm similar to the one that UCLA coach Steve Lavin has endured this year.

Leafing through news clippings from that 1983-84 season, we noticed that Krzyzewski came under attack for failing to land a couple of prominent blue-chip recruits, for jawing too vociferously at the officials, for unceremoniously yanking his players from a game the moment they made a mistake.

It all sounds so silly now, what with the Devils' two national titles and four runner-up finishes providing the last word about Krzyzewski's competence. Will the same scenario play out for the 36-year-old Lavin, who has navigated roiling waves of adversity to skipper the Bruins to four Sweet 16 appearances in his first five years as head coach?

Bud Presley, a former coach at Menlo College, believes Lavin has all the tools to ride out the rough seas and enjoy years of smooth sailing, just as Krzyzewski has. Presley knows well of what he speaks; he is the strongest link that Lavin and Krzyzewski share, having been a beacon of light for both men.

He met Krzyzewski, 54, in the late 1970s, at a coaching clinic at Stetson (Fla.) University. His first year at Duke, Krzyzewski made the trek to Menlo Park to watch a couple of Presley's practices and pick the brain of the man he fondly regards as ``a defensive genius.'' Presley goes all the way back to the cradle with Lavin. Lavin's father Cap has been a dear friend of Presley for more than 40 years.

``Steve is going to be a great coach if they give him time,'' Presley said Monday night by telephone from Palo Alto.

Presley said it takes a head coach a minimum of seven years to settle into the position. ``It takes that long to learn to teach, to develop devices of teaching things efficiently and effectively,'' Presley said.

Krzyzewski was blessed to have a boss who understood as much, who put his patience where his pocketbook was, who didn't effectively put his coach on a clock by kibitzing with Rick Pitino and telling.

In late January of 1984, Duke athletic director Tom Butters tacked on five years to Krzyzewski's contract. The Blue Devils were 52-52 at the time under Krzyzewski, who came to Duke after five years as the head coach at Army.

They since have gone 477-112 under his command. Duke brings a 31-4 record into its NCAA Tournament East Regional semifinal game against UCLA (23-8) on Thursday in Philadelphia.

Krzyzewski's success, which Butters had the good sense not to try to sabotage after granting him the initial extension, has left him so secure, he can afford to be smug. Asked for his reaction to the ticking time bomb UCLA athletic director Pete Dalis dropped in Lavin's lap when he made public in January his private conversations with Pitino, Krzyzewski smirked and said, ``If my A.D. talked to Rick Pitino, I'd talk to (NBA commissioner) David Stern. If they wanted to get into a little bit of that.''

Lavin and Krzyzewski aren't especially close, though you'd never know it by the tight shot of the two that appears on page six of the UCLA media guide.

``I've known Steve for a long time,'' Krzyzewski said. ``Because he hasn't worked for me, I don't know if I'm like a mentor, but I've been a friend and I've talked a lot of basketball with him.''

When Krzyzewski looks at game tape of the Bruins, he said he doesn't see a team lacking leadership or direction. ``I've read some of the quotes (pertaining to Lavin) during the season,'' Krzyzewski said. ``All I know is if those rumors and that are going on, you have to be pretty tough to keep your team focused, to keep yourself focused.

``Apparently Steve's done that. That's what I see from the tape. No matter what's going on, they've made a positive out of whatever negatives were going on there. He has used (the adversity he's faced) to band his group together. They play hard and really well together.''

This year, Presley has watched a handful of UCLA games on television. This is what he sees: ``I think they're very athletic. The problem is they don't have good shot discipline. If they were patient with their shots, they'd be one of the top three teams in the country.''

Presley wishes Lavin would have as quick a hook as Krzyzewski did in his early years at Duke.

``You can sit guys down when they take bad shots,'' he said, adding that as far as teaching patience goes, that's always a pretty powerful lesson.

``Steve's a little soft'' when it comes to that, Presley ventured. ``He's too nice.''

Presley is confident Lavin will figure everything out. All he needs is time. ``I really think he will,'' Presley said. ``You know he got that job a little too early. He wasn't ready.''

Yes, but that's another story. In time, it could become a mere footnote.

Duke (31-4) vs. UCLA (23-8)

NCAA East Semifinal

Where: Philadelphia

When: Thursday, 7 p.m.

TV: Ch. 2

TALE OF THE TAPE

LAVIN

Seasons at UCLA: Five

Career record: 114-46 (.713)

NCAA Tournament record: 9-4 (.692)

NCAA highlights: Three apprearances in Sweet 16 ('98, '00, '01); one appearance in Elite Eight ('97)

Etc: One of only three coaches to have teams in Sweet 16 three of the past four years (others are Mike Krzyzewski of Duke, Tom Izzo of Michigan State and Gene Keady of Purdue)

KRYZEWSKI

Overall seasons: 26

Seasons at Duke: 21

Overall record: 597-223 (.728)

Record at Duke: 524-164 (.761)

NCAA Tournament record: 50-14 .781; 50 wins second-most all-time

NCAA highlights: Two national championships ('91, '92); eight appearances in Final Four

Etc.: This is Krzyzewski's 16th NCAA appearance with Duke in the past 17 seasons, and he has taken his teams to the postseason in 17 of his 20 years in Durham.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, box

Photo: (1 -- color) STEVE LAVIN

(2 -- color) MIKE KRZYZEWSKI

Box: TALE OF THE TAPE (see text)