Best Coaches in College Basketball | The Boneyard

Best Coaches in College Basketball

nelsonmuntz

nelsonmuntz

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My ranking:

1) Jay Wright - 2 title wins in 3 years with 2 different starting lineups.

2) Mike Krzyzewski - great resume, but losing his edge

3) Roy Williams - Capable of winning it every year.

4) Squid - He is one Assistant Coach arrest by the FBI from having his entire record vacated.

5) Bill Self - solid coach at a great program. I don't think he would be the same coach if he was at Colorado or Texas Tech though.

6) Tom Izzo - some ugly early exits in recent years, but still one of the best in the game.

7) Jim Boeheim - Lots of Final Fours and has a National Championship, which puts him above the rest.

8) Tony Bennett - He will win a title some day.

9) Mark Few - post season choker, but he does run a really good program in Gonzaga

10) Bob Huggins

Thoughts?
 
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Do you want a list of who we think are the best at coaching the game or best at running a program? There are some excellent coaches who aren't great recruiters. I'd put Beilein in the category.
 
nelsonmuntz said:
My ranking:

1) Jay Wright - 2 title wins in 3 years with 2 different starting lineups.

2) Mike Krzyzewski - great resume, but losing his edge

3) Roy Williams - Capable of winning it every year.

4) Squid - He is one Assistant Coach arrest by the FBI from having his entire record vacated.

5) Bill Self - solid coach at a great program. I don't think he would be the same coach if he was at Colorado or Texas Tech though.

6) Tom Izzo - some ugly early exits in recent years, but still one of the best in the game.

7) Jim Boeheim - Lots of Final Fours and has a National Championship, which puts him above the rest.

8) Tony Bennett - He will win a title some day.

9) Mark Few - post season choker, but he does run a really good program in Gonzaga

10) Bob Huggins

Thoughts?
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asked wrong question. should be about recruiting. great coaching follows great recruiting.
 
4xChamps said:
John Beilein is top 3, maybe number 1
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He should have been above Boeheim. I wouldn't put him Top 5 though. I don't love his gimmick defenses. He gives up too many easy baskets.
 
raf46 said:
asked wrong question. should be about recruiting. great coaching follows great recruiting.
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there should be Three categories. Great recruiters, great in game coaches, great player development coaches, great end game coaches, great coaches who win with less talent, great coaches who win disregarding all the above.
 
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nelsonmuntz said:
) Bill Self - solid coach at a great program. I don't think he would be the same coach if he was at Colorado or Texas Tech though.
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Self took Oral Roberts from 6-21 to 21-7 in four years, Tulsa from 19-12 to 32-5 in three years, went 78-24 in three years at Illinois (they went to the finals the after he left) and his record at Kansas is excellent although some would say he should have more than one title to his credit KU has won the conference regular season 13 years in a row. I think he'd be a winner anywhere.
 
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He went to the NCAAs twice at Tulsa, including going 32-5 his final year. Then proceeded to win over 25 games and go to the NCAA three years in a row at Illinois. Across three schools and leagues he hasn't missed an NCAA tournament since the year before UConn won its first NC. Every year since 1998. The guy can coach anywhere.
 
nelsonmuntz said:
My ranking:

1) Jay Wright - 2 title wins in 3 years with 2 different starting lineups.

2) Mike Krzyzewski - great resume, but losing his edge

3) Roy Williams - Capable of winning it every year.

4) Squid - He is one Assistant Coach arrest by the FBI from having his entire record vacated.

5) Bill Self - solid coach at a great program. I don't think he would be the same coach if he was at Colorado or Texas Tech though.

6) Tom Izzo - some ugly early exits in recent years, but still one of the best in the game.

7) Jim Boeheim - Lots of Final Fours and has a National Championship, which puts him above the rest.

8) Tony Bennett - He will win a title some day.

9) Mark Few - post season choker, but he does run a really good program in Gonzaga

10) Bob Huggins

Thoughts?
Expand ...
Take boeheim out and put in beilien in
 
nelsonmuntz said:
My ranking:

1) Jay Wright - 2 title wins in 3 years with 2 different starting lineups.

2) Mike Krzyzewski - great resume, but losing his edge

3) Roy Williams - Capable of winning it every year.

4) Squid - He is one Assistant Coach arrest by the FBI from having his entire record vacated.

5) Bill Self - solid coach at a great program. I don't think he would be the same coach if he was at Colorado or Texas Tech though.

6) Tom Izzo - some ugly early exits in recent years, but still one of the best in the game.

7) Jim Boeheim - Lots of Final Fours and has a National Championship, which puts him above the rest.

8) Tony Bennett - He will win a title some day.

9) Mark Few - post season choker, but he does run a really good program in Gonzaga

10) Bob Huggins

Thoughts?
Expand ...
I wouldn’t sell Bill Self short. In his very short stint at Illinois (before Kansas) he had them in with #1 seed and elite 8.
 
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Wright, Few, Marshall, Bennett, and Huggins would be my personal top 5 for in game coaches right now. I really like Beard, Mack, White, Archie and Holtmann too.

It’s hard to rank Izzo, Self, K, Williams, and Calipari with the way they can recruit right now. I don’t think their jobs call for the same level of coaching that they used to. That’s why I left them off my list. Obviously they all have accomplished plenty.
 
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It makes it easier if you compare relative to the talent levels each coach recruits. (of course this will create a whole new debate)

Five * all american
1. Coach K
2. Squid
3. Sean Miller

Five *
1. Self
2. Daggum Roy
3. Izzo

High Four *
1. Jay Wright
2. Bennett
3. Boeheim

Low Four *
1. Beilein
2. Huggy Bear
3. Chris Mack

Three *
1. Few
2. Gregg Marshall
3. Mick
 
I don’t know how you leave Calipari and Pitino out of this, ick factor aside.

I’d also add Matt Painter. Great coach - Purdue had a horrible loss of a key player early in the tournament but still made it to the 16. Had he not lost Haas, he would definitely have met Villanova. He’s usually a contender. Great coach.
 
Beard is going to be a star. I don't know if he can get Texas Tech to a Final Four, but put that guy in a real program that isn't in the middle of nowhere, and he will win a national championship.

I think Painter is a great player development and game coach, but like his mentor Gene Keady, he doesn't get the thoroughbreds.

I think Archie Miller will win a National Championship before his brother Sean.

There will be a ton of retirements in the next few years, and it will be interesting to see who emerges in that next generation.
 
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Everyone made up their mind ten years ago that Jim Boeheim was overrated and it's obscured the amazing work he has done from an x's and o's standpoint, specifically defensively, in the tournament since then. I would put Pitino one, Boeheim two with respect to gameplanning and in game adjustments over the last decade, assuming we're not counting Brad Stevens.

I'd put Roy in the same camp as Boeheim but with offense rather than defense. He figured out how important tempo was before anyone else. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Bo Ryan could sure coach as well.

As far as younger guys, Mack and Marshall have really impressed me. Sometimes it feels like they're from the future with the sets they run. Tim Yankovich from SMU has to prove he can win with his own players, but I'd keep an eye on him.

Self actually strikes me as a guy who'd be better off coaching in the NBA, and I say that as a testament to his sets, especially out of timeouts. Beilein is an obvious one. K can do it all, so his work with the clipboard sometimes gets lost, but make no mistake that he flat out out coaches guys in the tournament (like Izzo). It's not all ammunition with him. As far as Cal is concerned, I'm not sure he's a great x's and o's coach, but I also don't think he's bad like a lot of people believe. You don't come back from as many runs/deficits in the tournament as he does unless you can make adjustments in game. I would say the same about Sean Miller.

A lot of guys I haven't even mentioned like Few/Wright/Bennett (who has to prove he can do it in the tournament). With somebody like Izzo, you wonder if maybe he'll have a harder time than most adjusting to the modern game. Then again, he did one of his best coaching jobs a couple years ago with an offensive minded team and then lost to a 15 seed in the first round, so who knows? I still believe in Kevin Ollie on this front, as well. Problem is he was a disaster in every other area.
 
champs99and04 said:
Everyone made up their mind ten years ago that Jim Boeheim was overrated and it's obscured the amazing work he has done from an x's and o's standpoint, specifically defensively, in the tournament since then. I would put Pitino one, Boeheim two with respect to gameplanning and in game adjustments over the last decade, assuming we're not counting Brad Stevens.
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Interesting Question

I will answer for Stunning Steve

1. Greg Marshall
2. Mick Cronin
3. Kelvin Sampson
4. Fran Dunphy
5. Danny Hurley
6. Tim Jankovich
7. MIke Dunleavy
8. Penny Hardaway
9. Frank Haith
10. Johnny Dawkins
11. Brian Gregory
12. Joe Dooley*

* Edit
 
I thought this exercise was active coaches. So no Pitino, JC, or Ryan. Nor Larry Brown.
 
Let's see what K and Calipari can do with just 2,3, and 4 star players. But they'll never have to. It's kinda like being a chef. Anyone can take a beautifully marbled prime steak and cook it a number of ways to be delicious. Then try doing that with road kill.
 
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