Rating College Coaches

[NYC Duke Fan]

The following are probably considered the best college coaches presently coaching. How would you rank them as a game day coach ?

Jim Calhoun
Tom Izzo
Roy Williams
Coach K
Bill Self
Rick Pitino
Billy Donovan

[Welcome2DaSlopes]

K
Tom Izzo
Bill Self
Roy Williams
Rick Pitino
Billy D
Jimmy C

[CameronDuke]

The following are probably considered the best college coaches presently coaching. How would you rank them as a game day coach ?

Jim Calhoun
Tom Izzo
Roy Williams
Coach K
Bill Self
Rick Pitino
Billy Donovan

Game day coaches:

1. Coach K
2. Roy Williams
3. Billy Donovan
4. Jim Calhoun
5. Rick Pitino
6. Tom Izzo
7. Bill Self
8. John Calipari

[Welcome2DaSlopes]

Game day coaches:

1. Coach K
2. Roy Williams
3. Billy Donovan
4. Jim Calhoun
5. Rick Pitino
6. Tom Izzo
7. Bill Self
8. John Calipari

Funny how you added an 8th coach and put John Calipari in there.

[ipatent]

I'd put Beilein and Bo Ryan in the game coaches list.

[Welcome2DaSlopes]

No Jeff Capel

[CameronDuke]

I had to throw him a bone and include him because he is an up and coming coach that will win a national championship sometime at UK. I would also put Ben Howland from UCLA in there too, he seems like he coaches in the Final Four almost every year.

[dukemsu]

Ben Howland has to be on that list somewhere.

If Majerus had any players, he would be too. He was the king of X and O when he was at Utah.

dukemsu

[NYC Duke Fan]

Game day coaches:

1. Coach K
2. Roy Williams
3. Billy Donovan
4. Jim Calhoun
5. Rick Pitino
6. Tom Izzo
7. Bill Self
8. John Calipari

Just curiosity, aside from being a big Duke fan, why do you think that Coach K is the best game dat coach ?

[NYC Duke Fan]

K
Tom Izzo
Bill Self
Roy Williams
Rick Pitino
Billy D
Jimmy C

Just my curiosity, aside from being a big Duke fan, why do you think that Coach K is the best game day coach ?

[dukieinhebron]

Tom Izzo has to be on top of this list, and Gary Williams is a pretty good game day coach himself.

[NYC Duke Fan]

Tom Izzo has to be on top of this list, and Gary Williams is a pretty good game day coach himself.

Agree on Izzo and I think that Pitino should also be on top also.

That said ,all of the 7 are excellent game day coaches and it is probably splitting hairs in rating them. I was just curious the sentiment on the Board and I knew that Coach K would be on top, but I still would like to know why some think that he is the best.

[Reisen]

I would put Mark Few above half the names on that list, if the criteria is "Game Day Coach".

[CameronDuke]

Just curiosity, aside from being a big Duke fan, why do you think that Coach K is the best game dat coach ?

His win totals speak for themselves, he will probably go down as the coach with the most all time wins when it is all said and done. His NCAA Tournament win totals are the most of all time. He's been to more Final Fours than anyone on that list I believe (correct me if I'm wrong), he knows how to win tournaments (I think he has won 8 of the past 11 ACC Tournaments), he can coach on game day with the best of them. His winning percentage is also right up there with those other coaches. I also think he is a superb motivator in addition to a guy that can utilize the strengths of his team better than anyone in college basketball.

[brevity]

How would you rank them as a game day coach?

What does that mean, exactly? All of the names you mentioned are equals in their abilities to show up on the day of the game, and consistently appear on the sidelines for both the first and second halves. Some of them even dress well.

Are you talking about preparing for a particular opponent? Making significant adjustments as the game demands? Settling down and refocusing an underperforming team at halftime? Working the officials? Controlling the tempo? Preserving a high level of team energy for the finish?

Based on your frequent responses in your thread, you seem to want to provoke and shape a very specific discussion, but have picked a ridiculously general way to go about it. You're going to see Coach K at the top of the most of these lists for the same reason you'd see a lot of Tom Izzo if you posted this at a Michigan State board. You may want to consider setting aside Coach K and forcing participants to state what they admire in another team's coach.

I'm not sure I'll be able to contribute much... should you choose to elaborate. I see good qualities in a lot of coaches -- even the ones I don't generally like. But I have the feeling this is going to be about guts, leadership, and other intangibles, so count me out. I think that the comparison of basketball coaches to architects or military leaders is overstated, and at the very least silly.

[superdave]

X's & O's
1. Coach K
2. Izzo
3. Boeheim
4. Gary Williams

Recruiting
1. Calipari
2. Huckleberry Hound
3. Coach K
4. Donovan

Running/Building a Program
1. Coach K
2. Huckleberry/Izzo
4. Calhoun

Ethically Challenged
1. Calipari
2. Calhoun

I'm not sure Pitino has adapted/improved since leaving Kentucky. Also, Jeff Capel will be in the middle of all this if he gets a little better. And if Ben Howland can re-build and return to the FF, then he will be right there as well.

[Reddevil]

I would put Mark Few above half the names on that list, if the criteria is "Game Day Coach".

Thank you! Wright, Howland, and Dixon are right there also. Capel is a just dash of salt away which is meant as a compliment for such a relatively young coach.

There are probably several coaches like Mckillop and Larranaga just to name a couple that could match wits with the best of them, but aren't in the limelight. Dick Terrant types that got a later start, or just like it where they are rise up and knock off some of the big boys every year.

As I see it, there are generally two types of coaches, those who concentrate mostly on their team, and want to make it the best it can be, and make adjustments within the framework of what they do (K), and those that really try to taylor the upcoming game based on what the opponent does (Valvano). Of course they all do a bit of both, but those are the two tendacies I have seen over the years.

[eightyearoldsdude]

X's & O's
1. Coach K
2. Izzo
3. Boeheim
4. Gary Williams

Recruiting
1. Calipari
2. Huckleberry Hound
3. Coach K
4. Donovan

Running/Building a Program
1. Coach K
2. Huckleberry/Izzo
4. Calhoun

Ethically Challenged
1. Calipari
2. Calhoun

I'm not sure Pitino has adapted/improved since leaving Kentucky. Also, Jeff Capel will be in the middle of all this if he gets a little better. And if Ben Howland can re-build and return to the FF, then he will be right there as well.

I think Roy is underestimated as a game-day coach because he's got a system and he sticks to it...but it's a damn good system, and it means that his game-day twists are especially effective. I think having our bigs switch men on defense against you guys last year was pretty critical for our victory. That said, I don't think he's on K's level for game-day coaching because too many times I have seen our players come out flat and have seen them give up big leads without roy calling a frickin' timeout.

BTW, how cool would it be to have a coaches tournament, where the teams are the same but the coaches rotate? Could be a charity event in the summer or something.

On the recruiting side, I think Roy and That Matta are tied for the top spot, and considering that Roy is selling a superior product, Matta might edge him out purely in terms of salesmanship. Calipari is great at using unethical tactics to get unethical kids who will play for him for one year. I don't think that's recruiting, really.

If it was the 80's or early 90's, I'd give K the top spot for developing a program. But now I think Roy is at the top. He has a style of play that people love to watch and recruits love to play, he's winning titles, and he's showing no signs of slowing. I also think he's doing a fantastic job with player development: 4-star guys like Deon Thompson and Danny Green have done really well at UNC, which is pretty surprising considering the competition for PT. But the fast offense means a deeper rotation. Now I'm even starting to think practice guys like Watts and Graves will be meaningful contributors next year.

But again, I think K is at the top in terms of game-day Xs & Os.

[superdave]

If it was the 80's or early 90's, I'd give K the top spot for developing a program. But now I think Roy is at the top. He has a style of play that people love to watch and recruits love to play, he's winning titles, and he's showing no signs of slowing. I also think he's doing a fantastic job with player development: 4-star guys like Deon Thompson and Danny Green have done really well at UNC, which is pretty surprising considering the competition for PT.

Roy didnt build a program - he tweaked what Dean built for 35 years. And he won his 1st title with Doherty's guys.

As far as X's and O's, Roy's flameouts with Paul Pierce and Co. still stick out in my mind. Not that I remember all the details surrounding their lack of tourney success, but those teams were loaded.

I do wish Duke ran half as much as unc though. That would be fun to watch. Shoot - we dont even run much of a secondary break.

I think you are selling Roy short on recruiting though. Matta has gotten Oden, Conlee and Evan Turner. Anyone else? Dwyane Wade at Marquette - was he a Matta guy? Roy is having a run like K did from 1998 to 2003. If only a few of K's recruits had panned out (we got 1 year out of Deng, Humphries, Kivingston), K could be considered the best recruiter.

[eightyearoldsdude]

Roy didnt build a program - he tweaked what Dean built for 35 years. And he won his 1st title with Doherty's guys.

As far as X's and O's, Roy's flameouts with Paul Pierce and Co. still stick out in my mind. Not that I remember all the details surrounding their lack of tourney success, but those teams were loaded.

I do wish Duke ran half as much as unc though. That would be fun to watch. Shoot - we dont even run much of a secondary break.

I think you are selling Roy short on recruiting though. Matta has gotten Oden, Conlee and Evan Turner. Anyone else? Dwyane Wade at Marquette - was he a Matta guy? Roy is having a run like K did from 1998 to 2003. If only a few of K's recruits had panned out (we got 1 year out of Deng, Humphries, Kivingston), K could be considered the best recruiter.

did Roy coach somewhere else before taking the UNC job? I have no recollection of that. :) Dean built the program, but it was in shambles when Roy took over. Sure, Doh had that great class, but they were threatening to leave. Furthermore, Roy has put his stamp on the UNC brand--we are now known as the fastest, highest scoring program in the nation (even if that won't be true this year). That's entirely Roy's doing.

Point taken about Matta, but it's more than just those guys. He's got a top class lined up again, and he doesn't have MJ, tradition, titles, or much in the way of tournament success to point to. Heck, basketball is always going to be second fiddle to the gridiron at tOSU. Roy has a much better product to sell. But whatever--they're both among the best in the biz. It would be interesting to see them go head to head for a recruit...

[airowe]

Superdave,

I have a couple questions about your post. By Kivingston I'm assuming you meant Livingston. We didn't get a year out of him or Humphries. What did you mean by that? And no, Wade was a product of Crean, not Matta.

[uh_no]

His win totals speak for themselves, he will probably go down as the coach with the most all time wins when it is all said and done. His NCAA Tournament win totals are the most of all time. He's been to more Final Fours than anyone on that list I believe (correct me if I'm wrong), he knows how to win tournaments (I think he has won 8 of the past 11 ACC Tournaments), he can coach on game day with the best of them. His winning percentage is also right up there with those other coaches. I also think he is a superb motivator in addition to a guy that can utilize the strengths of his team better than anyone in college basketball.

he also got outcoached in two final fours by none other than jim calhoun....no doubt he had a better team in '99

[superdave]

Yes, I meant Livingston. Deng stayed one year, Livingston and Humphries never showed up and were both top 10 recruits who would have been contributors right away. I dont think anyone really attributes either to recent Duke recruiting successes.

As for Roy building the Kansas program, didnt Phog Allen do that? Also, Roy inherited a program coming off a title (even though they went on probation the following year). So the program was built and successful before he got there. Roy certainly hasnt skipped a beat even though he was born on 3rd base twice.

Guess I got Crean and Matta mixed.

Excellent point about Roy having a really good brand to sell - MJ, 5 titles etc. I think the MJ connection is ultimately what sank us with HB in the long run. All things being equal, I could follow in MJ's footsteps. Or something like that...

[Duvall]

he also got outcoached in two final fours by none other than jim calhoun....no doubt he had a better team in '99

Calhoun didn't outcoach Krzyzewski in 2004; UConn had the two best players on the floor and had to scratch out a win. Nobody expected Duke to win that game.

[airowe]

Calhoun didn't outcoach Krzyzewski in 2004; UConn had the two best players on the floor and had to scratch out a win. Nobody expected Duke to win that game.

And in 1999 he got outreffed, not outcoached.

[Carolina_Blue]

X's & O's
1. Coach K
2. Izzo
3. Boeheim
4. Gary Williams

Recruiting
1. Calipari
2. Huckleberry Hound
3. Coach K
4. Donovan

Running/Building a Program
1. Coach K
2. Huckleberry/Izzo
4. Calhoun

Ethically Challenged
1. Calipari
2. Calhoun

I'm not sure Pitino has adapted/improved since leaving Kentucky. Also, Jeff Capel will be in the middle of all this if he gets a little better. And if Ben Howland can re-build and return to the FF, then he will be right there as well.





hahaha out of shear hate for carolina you left roy williams off the list? The who has dominated ur coach K on the court and recruiting trail in the past few years! I find this comical...Im not sayin roys at the top of the list...but he is certainly in the mix at the top

[airowe]

hahaha out of shear hate for carolina you left roy williams off the list? The who has dominated ur coach K on the court and recruiting trail in the past few years! I find this comical...Im not sayin roys at the top of the list...but he is certainly in the mix at the top

Roy Williams is all over that list. Reference "Huckleberry"

[rsvman]

To me a "game-day coach" is a guy who can make a strategy specifically for a specific opponent, or, even more importantly, change a strategy during the course of game to better attack or defend against an individual opponent. Using that definition, I don't think there are very many guys out there (if any) that do it better than Rick Majerus did.

Coach K strikes me as being more of a "season coach" than a game-day coach; in other words, it sometimes seems to me that he will almost allow the team to tank on any given day in order for them to learn what will be necessary for them to win at a later date. It's almost like he wants the players to "coach themselves" sometimes. Please don't take this as a criticism of Coach K; I think he knows what he wants and he gets outstanding results from his teams because of his style of coaching. But at times it seems to me he's almost the antithesis of a "game-day coach," at least the way I understand the term.

[dukemsu]

To me a "game-day coach" is a guy who can make a strategy specifically for a specific opponent, or, even more importantly, change a strategy during the course of game to better attack or defend against an individual opponent. Using that definition, I don't think there are very many guys out there (if any) that do it better than Rick Majerus did.

Coach K strikes me as being more of a "season coach" than a game-day coach; in other words, it sometimes seems to me that he will almost allow the team to tank on any given day in order for them to learn what will be necessary for them to win at a later date. It's almost like he wants the players to "coach themselves" sometimes. Please don't take this as a criticism of Coach K; I think he knows what he wants and he gets outstanding results from his teams because of his style of coaching. But at times it seems to me he's almost the antithesis of a "game-day coach," at least the way I understand the term.

Some good points here. Duke teams, with the last two years being a bit of an exception, aren't set-heavy. I've always kind of thought K is a bit more Wooden-esque in the respect that he concentrates on Duke being the best they can be at what they do (motion offense, overplay defense) and reserving sets primarily for out of bounds situations.

Compare that to a Majerus, or Howland, or Izzo, who run literally dozens of sets and/or multiple defensive schemes, often tailored to that day's opponent. I think it's really just different schools of thought. K is also at times willing, as noted above, to let his team struggle for moments in order to figure something out. He learned that trait from his mentor, who was perhaps the best ever at this tactic.

dukemsu

[Carolina_Blue]

my apologies I was unaware of the nickname..haha any particular reason for that particular name? just curious

[dukemsu]

my apologies I was unaware of the nickname..haha any particular reason for that particular name? just curious

Google Huckleberry Hound. Note the resemblance.

dukemsu

[eightyearoldsdude]

To me a "game-day coach" is a guy who can make a strategy specifically for a specific opponent, or, even more importantly, change a strategy during the course of game to better attack or defend against an individual opponent. Using that definition, I don't think there are very many guys out there (if any) that do it better than Rick Majerus did.

Coach K strikes me as being more of a "season coach" than a game-day coach; in other words, it sometimes seems to me that he will almost allow the team to tank on any given day in order for them to learn what will be necessary for them to win at a later date. It's almost like he wants the players to "coach themselves" sometimes. Please don't take this as a criticism of Coach K; I think he knows what he wants and he gets outstanding results from his teams because of his style of coaching. But at times it seems to me he's almost the antithesis of a "game-day coach," at least the way I understand the term.

Great point. I think Roy has the same approach--especially in the regular season. But when it comes to tournament time, sticking to your guns when they aren't firing is a recipe for failure.

[Reddevil]

Great point. I think Roy has the same approach--especially in the regular season. But when it comes to tournament time, sticking to your guns when they aren't firing is a recipe for failure.

Maybe, but it sure worked for Duke against Maryland!

[flyingdutchdevil]

Okay, I understand that this is an insanely old thread to bring up. But I figured I'd add to it rather than create a new one.

Eamonn Brennan from ESPN came up with a list of the best tactitions in college ball. He doesn't rank em, but gives us a list of three. The first one listed? I'll give you a hint: his nickname starts with a "K" and ends with a "K" (both capitals).

Check it out: http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/87500/one-game-one-coach-who-you-got

[OldPhiKap]

Okay, I understand that this is an insanely old thread to bring up. But I figured I'd add to it rather than create a new one.

Eamonn Brennan from ESPN came up with a list of the best tactitions in college ball. He doesn't rank em, but gives us a list of three. The first one listed? I'll give you a hint: his nickname starts with a "K" and ends with a "K" (both capitals).

Check it out: http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/87500/one-game-one-coach-who-you-got

"don't overthink it. Dude really is that good."

Hayle yeah.