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[QUOTE="RuffRuff, post: 5083087, member: 1268"]
[B]1) this year is full of big money rosters within mediocre programs. Which teams will make their coaches look better than they are?[/B]

Calipari's roster, having got some big names in the portal with Davis and Aidu, teamed up with some other older carryover players like Brazille/Mark goes against his common approach.  As mentioned, Mike Woodson made a haul in the portal and could reap the rewards of covering up some of his coaching gaps.

[B]2) which coach will win despite an average roster?[/B]

This day and age, very hard to win the big one without NBA talent on the roster.  Tony Bennett typically wins without stars, but his offense is being seen as a bit stale amongst the new gen and impacts his ability to recruit.  Pope has done pretty well in the regular season despite not having a super talented roster at BYU.  TJ Otzelberger at Iowa St, Kelvin Sampson come to mind.  Both emphasize defense.  Sampson has an above average roster, but elevates the outcome and squeezes every last drop out of what he has.

[B]3) historically, can you point to instances where a coach won a Natty with a mediocre team, or vice versa?[/B]
                
Some of the more notorious runs:  Nova with Rolly, the 2 Uconn runs, NC St 1983.  Sometimes it's just about getting hot at the right time.  All you need to do here is look at the lowest seeded Champs to find.
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First name of men's bb coach