Fave Five Men's NCAA Div1 Coaches of All Time

So many good ones to pick from. I could easily pick 10 or 20 if I could but then that wouldn't technically be a fave five anymore, so I have to stick with just 5. It was hard for me to not include legends like Jim Boeheim, Tom Izzo, Gary Williams, Rick Majerus, Lute Olson, Billy Donovan, and on and on. Then there are the ones that came before my time, John Wooden, Adolph Rupp, etc...

Also, as you can tell from my fave five, I grew up in the 80s, 90s and this decade so I'm influenced primarily by what I see. These are my fave five Men's NCAA Div1 coaches of all time in no particular order:



Dean Smith
The famous UNC coach for almost 40 years. When you think of UNC, you think of Dean Smith. He won the National Championship in 82 and 93, went to the final four a mind-boggling 11 times and was the winningest coach in Div1 history before Bobby Knight passed him a few years ago. The 82 Championship is legendary of course with Michael Jordan and Sam Perkins. But I remember the 93 Championship mainly because I was older then, watching the likes of George Lynch and Eric Montross. Tactically, Smith was the one that used the 4 corners delay offense that forced the NCAA to introduce the shot clock and also prominently featured the point-zone and scramble defenses that Roy Williams has also adopted.

Bobby Knight
Probably the most controversial and polarizing coaches in the history of basketball. I don't think you can be a coach and not have an opinion about Bobby Knight. Though I personally question most of his motivational methods, there is no doubting his legacy as a winner (3 national championships with Indiana), high graduation rate, and strict follower of NCAA guidelines. Tactically, Bobby Knight's Blocker Mover motion offense and emphasis on hustle and hard-nosed M2M defense are legendary.

Mike Krzyzewski
Coach K as everyone knows him by. I guess I couldn't include Dean Smith without including Coach K but Coach K truly belongs on this list as his record of achievement over the past 20 years is unsurpassed. When you think of Coach K, you think of leadership. Someone who is a leader of men, if he wasn't a head coach, he would be a CEO or the President. The glory years were the back to back championships in 91 and 92 with Hurley and Laettner but the 2001 championship was special with players like Jay Will and Battier. One of the great things I like about Coach K is his willingness to incorporate new tactics, case in point this season with the Phoenix Suns spread offense. One of the better developers of skill sending a long list of players to the NBA.

Jim Calhoun
I've always like Jim Calhoun. If there was a coaching style that I would most want to emulate, it would be Calhoun. Tough but genuinely cared for his players. His coaching record includes 2 national championships, my favorite being the championship in 99' with El-Amin and Hamilton. Calhoun is probably best known for his player development. He has a long history of preparing guys to play in the NBA having coached guys like Rip Hamilton, Ray Allen, Emeka Okafor. Tactically, Calhoun has always been a straight up M2M guy running pro-style sets including PNRs and stagger sets.

Rick Pitino
The only coach to have taking 3 different programs to the final four winning it all in 96 with Kentucky, Rick Pitino stands tall as one of the legends of the college game. Tactically, Pitino is famous for his full-court presses. He uses them to this day at Louisville and his teams have always played fast using pressure defense and 3-point shooting as the primary mode of attack. Perhaps what Pitino will be most remembered for though is large and growing coaching tree of assistants who have gone on to coach in college and the NBA. Guys like Jeff Van Gundy, Reggie Theus, Billy Donovan and Herb Sendek just to name a few.