if u need a good laugh (athlon top cbb coaches)

[upstater]

1. Izzo is 57
2. K is 65
3. Calipari is 53
4. Self is 49
5. Boeheim is 67
6. Pitino is 59
7. Williams is 61
8. Donovan is 47
9. Ryan is 64
10. Stevens is 35
11. Montgomery is 65
12. Smart is 35
13. Dixon is 46
14. Matta is 45
15. Miller is 43
16. Huggins is 58
17. Crean is 46
18. Beilein is 59
19. Few is 49
20. Williams is 39
21. Brey is 53
22. Howland is 55
23. Painter is 41
24. Stallings is 51

Only 5 of the coaches listed in the top 25 (Calhoun excluded) are within 10 years of Calhoun. Only 3 are within 5 years and only one is within 3 (Boeheim). None of the 5 coaches have had Calhoun's health issues (yet). Those are significant differences in age (especially when you factor in health). You also have to factor in that this year is almost a wasted year for Calhoun and the next year he will have a shot at a championship will be when he is 71.

Let's look at those 5 coaches:

1. K is probably the only active coach whose past accomplishments are on par (if not exceed) Calhoun's accomplishments. He is 5 years younger. I like his chances to coach 5 more years more than I like Calhoun's chances to coach 3.
2. Boeheim is a darn good coach and though his record doesn't match Calhoun's, he is 3 years younger and doesn't have a missed season coming up. Again I like the odds of him coaching to 72 more than I like Calhoun's coaching past 72. He may retire beforehand, but Calhoun may not make it more than a season (and a relatively wasted one at that).
3. Williams is the youngest of the 60+ YO's and he has a juggernaut at UNC. I think Calhoun could coach circles around him, but he has 9 years to get 1 more title to match Calhoun.
4. Ryan is only 65 and a very good coach. I think he is a bit high on this list when you factor in age, but not a lot. #9 is fair.
5. Montgomery is very high on this list when you factor in age. I'm not sure how he is above Calhoun, let alone 11th. I think he is the worst ranking of them all.

If you factor in Calhoun's age and the NCAA issues of this coming season, it's really not outrageous to have Calhoun this low.

I was referring to retirement. Two of those coaches are on record. Pitino is 60 and he practically sunk his son's chances at a head coaching position when he announced he's only doing it until age 64.

Boeheim too discussed ending things soon.

 

[caw]

I was referring to retirement. Two of those coaches are on record. Pitino is 60 and he practically sunk his son's chances at a head coaching position when he announced he's only doing it until age 64.

Boeheim too discussed ending things soon.

Do you trust Pitino?

Boeheim, I could see retiring but there is still speculation on whether Calhoun will coach this season. I don't think Boeheim is planning on retiring that soon.

 

[CL82]

Wow. Pretty hideous job of ranking. Calhoun may not be on top of the list (head to head notwithstanding, I think that you've got to give that to Ratface) but it is pretty difficult to rank him outside the top 5 by any reasonable measure.

 

[CL82]

That's only 1 of more than 10 criteria.

and a pretty arbitrary one at that.

 

[freescooter]

Come on...I mean this is just silly. I could see maybe Izzo and given the hype machine, I could see most people ranking K and Ol' Roy ahead of him,just because they hear so much about those guys but Tom Crean? Jamie Dixon? You can't be serious. I guess Pitino is still getting credit for the job he did at Kentucky 15 years ago. by that standard, I guess maybe they ought to rank Rollie right up there, too...so what if he is retired...And somebody please explain to me how Boeheim always ends up on these lists? If they wanted to list the biggest choke artists, maybe he's 2nd behind Dixon...or does everyone forget how his teams have choked up hairballs against powerhouses like Vermont...Mike Brey? Utterly laughable.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

I get that Calhoun's old, has had health issues, etc. However, he could outcoach many of the guys ahead of him from a nursing home.

Never mind how much he gave Stevens a coaching clinic in the title game. Or when he ran circles around K in '99 and '04. At least Hewitt isn't above him because that '04 title game was a laugher.

All of that said, it makes complete sense that a coach with 82 career wins is ahead of him.

 

[upstater]

Do you trust Pitino?

Boeheim, I could see retiring but there is still speculation on whether Calhoun will coach this season. I don't think Boeheim is planning on retiring that soon.

Pitino sunk his son's chances by saying that. If he kept his mouth shut, it would have been better for his son.

 

[mauconnfan]

I'm not giving you the "AD wasn't close to being ready for the big stage". He got all the PT he could possibly get, doesn't that go against the "you perform, you play" mantra we've heard for 25+ years? And I think the "poison" you mention could have been mitigated.

When I was in college our dorm had a scrappy softball team that was the last team to make it into the playoffs. Once we got in we beat everyone, especially Shakespeare who had a powerhouse that year. That was the best, they were so pissed and such bad sports it was great. We even clobbered the team that won the 1st half league in an unofficial championship.

The next year we returned most of the team, but we had some new flashier players that pretty much insisted they get all the PT because they were “better” than the guys from the year before. The coach sided with the new guys. The guys that ended up sitting got resentful, “Why should I sit? We won the whole thing when I played last year.” Morale suffered, the team never came together and we lost more than we won. Didn’t make the playoffs.

I know that intramural is light-years from intercollegiate, but I think the team dynamic is the same. Kill AO all you want for being human, doesn’t mean JC did a good job handling the situation

Team Dynamic is not the same.........softball intramurals vs UConn mens hoops........nice try Waq..............and maybe you were the guy in the 2nd year who suddenly sucked and had another AD come in and deserve your time and more innings at your position..........ah I get it now.........you were snubbed because you underachieved in intramurals and feel for AO because you both blew!! ..........I'm sorry!

Oh and by the way there can't be a "team" dynamic when your returning big man/captain isn't on board, instead whining about undeserved time!!

 

[Waquoit]

Team Dynamic is not the same.........softball intramurals vs UConn mens hoops........nice try Waq..............and maybe you were the guy in the 2nd year who suddenly sucked and had another AD come in and deserve your time and more innings at your position..........ah I get it now.........you were snubbed because you underachieved in intramurals and feel for AO because you both blew!! ..........I'm sorry!

Oh and by the way there can't be a "team" dynamic when your returning big man/captain isn't on board, instead whining about undeserved time!!

You're gonna make me say it, OK, I was the best hitter I wasn't sitting. But AD didn't get all that PT because of production, he got it because of potential. And he also didn't get near the normal rookie share of the quick hook. And AO didn't come in to the season disgruntled, it developed. The point is, people act against their own interests when they perceive thay are treated unfairly, JC didn't handle it any better than AO. He's a Hall of Famer, I expected more from him.

 

[CL82]

You're gonna make me say it, OK, I was the best hitter I wasn't sitting. But AD didn't get all that PT because of production, he got it because of potential. And he also didn't get near the normal rookie share of the quick hook. And AO didn't come in to the season disgruntled, it developed. The point is, people act against their own interests when they perceive thay are treated unfairly, JC didn't handle it any better than AO. He's a Hall of Famer, I expected more from him.

1) It didn't take a whole lot of am twisting to get to the 'best hitter' part
2) I don't disagree that Calhoun gets a piece of the blame for chemistry issues. I suspect that his back played a role in that. Tought to deal with everyone's issues when you are in pain - but it is a part of his job. That said, we'll never know if this team could have together under the best of circumstances. Sometimes that just the way it is. For better or worse Alex was a mecurial kid. When things were going well, it didn't show up but when times were tough he had a tendancy to gripe and get down on himself and to look for someone to blame. That persoanlity type is always tough to manage.