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Message: [QUOTE="FfldCntyFan, post: 4964121, member: 71"] One major problem with comparing this team with past teams is they are evaluation quite a bit of the past teams based on both collegiate and NBA accomplishments of the players from those teams. Another is the change in rules and environment. The great UCLA squads (Hazzard/Goodrich/Erickson; Alcindor/Warren/Allen/Shackleford; Rowe/Wicks/Bibby; Walton/Meyers/Wilkes/Lee) all played when freshmen weren't eligible and all but the Walton team were required to remain all four years (although it wasn't until shortly after that squad exhausted eligibility before any player other than Spencer Haywood left school early for professional ball). The tournament didn't have multiple schools from any one conference until 1976, a shot clock until 1986 and a three point line until 1987. Player for player (although time may eventually alter people's perception) there were quite a few teams that had more talent, better individual scorers. I posted in a different thread that not only was this team as a whole, far better than the sum of its parts, it was further greater than the sum of its parts than any team I've ever seen. Just because a different team had better individual players doesn't mean that team would beat this one. A few other points to put things into perspective (more to how to value overall number of titles): From the first tournament (1939 ) through 1950, only eight schools participated each year. One win and you're in the national semi-final. In 1951 & 1953 sixteen schools participated, starting everyone in the sweet sixteen. In 1953 twenty two schools participated and from 1954 through 1974 either twenty three, twenty four or twenty five schools participated, many schools started in the sweet sixteen and only needed to play other school in geographic proximity until the final four. For the record, Walton's last year at UCLA was 1974. The expansion then went as such: 1975 - 32 1979 - 40 1980 - 48 1982 - 52 1984 - 53 1985 - 64 [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach