A Look at the Nation's Top Basketball Coaches
I decided to take a look at coaches of the nation’s top teams. I looked at the six BCS conferences and a hand full of mid-major teams that are top-25ish type teams.
I decided to look at how successful coaches were. I made a system to rank them:
Wins = 1 point each
Conference Championship (or division championship) = 20 points each
Tournament = 20 points
Sweet 16 = 20 points
Elite 8 = 25 points
Final Four = 50 points
Runner-Up = 100 points
Champion = 200 points
Notes:
Every NCAA tournament selection equals 20 points, after that a coach only gets point for the highest level they reached (a championship team would get 220 points- 200 for winning, 20 for making the tournament)
The logic behind the point system- I figured start with 1 point per win. Conference championships and tournament bids seem to be a benchmark accomplishment- both of which seem to be a similar level of accomplishment (thus worth equal points). No points are given for winning just one game- since no one talks about how many rounds of 32 to they made. The jump from Sweet 16 to Elite 8 is not too high because most casual fans do not remember Elite 8 runs as much. Points double from Elite 8 to being champion- since fans do remember final fours very well, and who played in the championship game. I imagine many people will dislike my methodology for points- and if you do use my tables and make yourself your own system if you feel so inclined…
I got the info from Wikipedia- some of the info changed as I was making the tables on Friday-Saturday (so some coaches were screwed out of a win, but I am not too worried about that…). This season is counted as a complete seasons (since it seemed silly using fractions for all coached number of seasons), with the exception of first year coaches who I say as having <1 season since their win totals would looked skewed otherwise. Also, if applicable, coaches with wins that were later vacated are still counted for this data. Also I counted non-DI wins for coaches- but they did not get any points for titles or non-DI NCAA tournaments. I included Beilein rankings only counting his D1 figures under the non-BCS coaches if you would like to see his score adjusted (since counting non-DI adds to total points but lowers the point/year average). I included Jim Calhoun since he is an elite coach who just retired, and included Wooden since his success is unparalleled- and I was curious to see where the two would rank- both are included in the others section. Also, NIT’s are counted for nothing, because I have never heard boasts about NIT’s… Lastly, I did not account for conference tournament championships because- A- too much data, and B- if you win you go to the tournament and get those points…
Also- I am sure there are some errors (there is a lot of data...)
Super long chart? Super long chart:
(Note- to the right of win, sweet 16, NCAA's, etc are the number of points earned from that total)
| PREV | YRS | WINS | CONF CHAMPS | NCAA | 16 | 8 | 4 | 2 | CHAMP | TOTAL | PER YEAR | ||||||||||
| ACC | BC- Steve Donahue | Cornell ('00-'10) | 12 | 176 | 176 | 3 | 60 | 3 | 60 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 316 | 26.3 |
| CLEM- Brad Brownell | UNC Wilm ('02-'06), Wright St. ('06-'10) | 11 | 214 | 214 | 3 | 60 | 4 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 354 | 32.2 | |
| DUKE- Mike Krzyzewski | Army (1975-1980) | 38 | 950 | 950 | 12 | 240 | 28 | 560 | 8 | 160 | 1 | 25 | 3 | 150 | 4 | 400 | 4 | 800 | 3285 | 86.4 | |
| FSU- Leonard Hamilton | Okl. St (86-90), Miami ('90-'00), 2 years w/ Wizards before FSU | 24 | 401 | 401 | 1 | 20 | 7 | 140 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 601 | 25 | |
| GA TECH- Brian Gregory | Dayton ('03-'11) | 10 | 185 | 185 | 1 | 20 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 245 | 24.5 | |
| MD- Mark Turgeon | Jacks St ('98-'00), Wichita St ('00-'07), Tex A&M ('07-'11) | 15 | 285 | 285 | 1 | 20 | 5 | 100 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 425 | 28.3 | |
| MIA- Jim Larranaga | American ('77-'79), UVa ass. ('79-'86), Bowl Green ('86-'97), George Mas ('97-'11) | 29 | 512 | 512 | 5 | 100 | 5 | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 762 | 26.3 | |
| UNC- Roy Williams | Kansas ('88-'03) | 26 | 693 | 693 | 15 | 300 | 22 | 440 | 4 | 80 | 4 | 100 | 3 | 150 | 2 | 200 | 2 | 400 | 2363 | 90.9 | |
| NC ST- Mark Gottfried | Murray St ('95-'98), Alabama ('98-'09) | 16 | 320 | 320 | 5 | 100 | 8 | 160 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 625 | 39.1 | |
| UVA- Tony Bennett | Wash St ('06-'09) | 7 | 139 | 139 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 60 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 219 | 31.3 | |
| VT- James Johnson | 1st job | <1 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 11 | |
| WF- Jeff Bzdelik | UMBC ('86-'88), NBA assts/scout ('88-'04), Air Force ('05-'07), Colorado ('07-'10) | 10 | 138 | 138 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 158 | 15.8 | |
| TOTAL | 189 (15.75) | 4024 | 21.3 | 46 | 0.24 | 88 | 0.47 | 18 | 0.10 | 6 | 0.03 | 7 | 0.04 | 6 | 0.03 | 6 | 0.03 | 9364 | 49.54 | ||
| PREV | YRS | WINS | CONF CHAMPS | NCAA | 16 | 8 | 4 | 2 | CHAMP | TOTAL | PER YEAR | ||||||||||
| BIG EAST | CINCI-Mick Cronin | Murray St ('03-'06) | 10 | 193 | 193 | 1 | 20 | 4 | 80 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 313 | 31.3 |
| UCONN- Kevin Ollie | 1st job- NBA player | <1 | 18 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 18 | |
| DEP- Oliver Purnell | Radford ('88-'91), Old Dominion ('91-'94), Dayton '94-'03), Clemson ('04-'10) | 25 | 424 | 424 | 3 | 60 | 6 | 120 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 604 | 24.2 | |
| GTOWN- John Thompson III | Princeton ('00-'04) | 13 | 268 | 268 | 5 | 100 | 8 | 160 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 598 | 46 | |
| L'VILLE- Rick Pitino | Hawaii ('75-'76), BU ('78-'79), Prov. ('85-'87), Kentucky ('89-'97), gaps=NBA | 28 | 640 | 640 | 7 | 140 | 17 | 340 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 100 | 4 | 100 | 1 | 100 | 1 | 200 | 1620 | 57.9 | |
| MARQ- Buzz Williams | New Orleans ('06-'07) | 6 | 128 | 128 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 80 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 248 | 41.3 | |
| ND- Mike Brey | Deleware ('95-'00) | 18 | 379 | 379 | 3 | 60 | 10 | 200 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 659 | 36.6 | |
| PITT- Jamie Dixon | 1st job | 10 | 258 | 258 | 2 | 40 | 8 | 160 | 2 | 40 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 523 | 52.3 | |
| PROV- Ed Cooley | Fairfield ('06-'11) | 7 | 128 | 128 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 148 | 21.1 | |
| RUT- Mike Rice Jr. | Robert Morris ('07-'10) | 6 | 111 | 111 | 3 | 60 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 211 | 35.2 | |
| SH- Kevin Willard | Iona ('07-'10) | 5 | 79 | 79 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 79 | 15.8 | |
| USF- Stan Heath | Kent St ('01-'02), Arkansas ('02-'07) | 12 | 195 | 195 | 1 | 20 | 4 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 320 | 26.7 | |
| STJ- Steve Lavin | UCLA ('96-'03), non-coaching ('03-'10) | 9 | 168 | 168 | 1 | 20 | 7 | 140 | 4 | 80 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 433 | 48.1 | |
| SYR- Jim Boeheim | 1st job | 37 | 908 | 908 | 10 | 200 | 29 | 580 | 11 | 220 | 2 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 200 | 1 | 200 | 2358 | 63.7 | |
| VILL- Jay Wright | Hofstra ('94-'01) | 19 | 361 | 361 | 3 | 60 | 9 | 180 | 2 | 40 | 1 | 25 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 716 | 37.7 | |
| TOTAL | 206 (13.73) | 4258 | 20.7 | 40 | 0.19 | 108 | 0.52 | 24 | 0.12 | 10 | 0.05 | 6 | 0.03 | 3 | 0.01 | 2 | 0.01 | 8848 | 42.95 | ||
| PREV | YRS | WINS | CONF CHAMPS | NCAA | 16 | 8 | 4 | 2 | CHAMP | TOTAL | PER YEAR | ||||||||||
| BIG TEN | ILL- John Groce | Ohio ('08-'12) | 5 | 105 | 105 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 40 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 165 | 33 |
| IND- Tom Crean | Marquette ('99-'08) | 14 | 269 | 269 | 1 | 20 | 6 | 120 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 479 | 34.2 | |
| IOWA- Fran McCaffery | Lehigh ('85-'88), ND asst ('88-'99), UNCG ('99-'05), Sienna ('05-'10) | 17 | 297 | 297 | 4 | 80 | 5 | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 477 | 28.1 | |
| UM- John Beilein | Erie CC ('78-'82), Nazareth ('82-'83), Le Moyne ('83-'92), Canisius ('92-'97), Richmond ('97-'02), West Virginia ('02-'07) | 35 | 660 | 660 | 3 | 60 | 7 | 140 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 905 | 25.9 | |
| MSU- Tom Izzo | 1st job | 18 | 434 | 434 | 7 | 140 | 15 | 300 | 3 | 60 | 1 | 25 | 4 | 100 | 1 | 100 | 1 | 200 | 1359 | 75.5 | |
| MINN- Tubby Smith | Tulsa ('91-'95), Georgia ('95-'97), Kenucky ('97-'07) | 22 | 508 | 508 | 7 | 140 | 16 | 320 | 5 | 100 | 3 | 75 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 200 | 1343 | 61 | |
| NEB- Tim Miles | Mayville St ('95-'97), SW Minn St ('97-'01), ND St ('01-'07), CO St ('07-'12) | 18 | 295 | 295 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 315 | 17.5 | |
| NW- Bill Carmody | Princeton ('96-'00) | 17 | 283 | 283 | 2 | 40 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 363 | 21.4 | |
| OSU- Thad Matta | Butler ('00-'01), Xavier ('01-'04) | 13 | 341 | 341 | 8 | 160 | 10 | 200 | 2 | 40 | 1 | 25 | 1 | 50 | 1 | 100 | 0 | 0 | 916 | 70.5 | |
| PSU- Pat Chambers | BU ('09-'11) | 4 | 62 | 62 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 82 | 20.5 | |
| PURD- Matt Painter | S. Illinois ('03-'04), PURD asst ('04-'05) | 9 | 197 | 197 | 2 | 40 | 7 | 140 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 417 | 46.3 | |
| WISC- Bo Ryan | UW- Platteville ('84-'99), Milwaukee ('99-'01) | 29 | 670 | 670 | 2 | 40 | 11 | 220 | 4 | 80 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1035 | 35.7 | |
| TOTAL | 201 (16.75) | 4121 | 20.5 | 36 | 0.18 | 83 | 0.41 | 19 | 0.09 | 7 | 0.03 | 6 | 0.03 | 2 | 0.01 | 2 | 0.01 | 7856 | 39.08 | ||
| PREV | YRS | WINS | CONF CHAMPS | NCAA | 16 | 8 | 4 | 2 | CHAMP | TOTAL | PER YEAR | ||||||||||
| BIG 12 | BAYL- Scott Drew | Valpo ('02-'03) | 11 | 193 | 193 | 1 | 20 | 3 | 60 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 323 | 29.4 |
| IA ST- Fred Hoiberg | 1st job | 3 | 57 | 57 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 77 | 25.7 | |
| KU- Bill Self | Oral Roberts ('93-'97), Tulsa ('97-'00), Illinois ('00-'03) | 20 | 497 | 497 | 12 | 240 | 14 | 280 | 2 | 40 | 5 | 125 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 100 | 1 | 200 | 1482 | 74.1 | |
| KST- Bruce Weber | S. Illinois ('98-'03), Illinois ('03-'12) | 15 | 334 | 334 | 4 | 80 | 8 | 160 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 100 | 0 | 0 | 714 | 47.6 | |
| OK- Lon Kruger | Tex Pan-Am ('82-'86), Kansas St ('86-'90), Florida ('90-'96), Illinois ('96-'00), NBA ('00-'04), UNLV ('04-'11) | 27 | 510 | 510 | 2 | 40 | 13 | 260 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 25 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 905 | 33.5 | |
| OK ST- Travis ford | Campbellsville ('97-'00), E. Kentucky ('00-'05), UMass ('05-'08) | 16 | 211 | 211 | 1 | 20 | 3 | 60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 291 | 18.2 | |
| TEX- Rick Barnes | George Mason ('87-'88), Providence ('88-'94), Clemson ('94-'98) | 26 | 556 | 556 | 3 | 60 | 20 | 400 | 3 | 60 | 2 | 50 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1176 | 45.2 | |
| TCU- Trent Johnson | Nevada ('99-'04), Standord ('04-'08), LSU ('08-'12) | 14 | 236 | 236 | 2 | 40 | 5 | 100 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 416 | 29.7 | |
| TT- Chris Walker | 1st job | <1 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 9 | |
| WVU- Bob Huggins | Walsh ('80-'83), Akron ('84-'89), Cinci ('89-'05), Kansas St ('06-'07) | 31 | 719 | 719 | 11 | 220 | 20 | 400 | 2 | 40 | 2 | 50 | 2 | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1529 | 49.3 | |
| TOTAL | 164 (16.4) | 3322 | 20.3 | 36 | 0.22 | 87 | 0.53 | 12 | 0.07 | 12 | 0.07 | 4 | 0.02 | 2 | 0.01 | 1 | 0.01 | 6922 | 42.21 | ||
| PREV | YRS | WINS | CONF CHAMPS | NCAA | 16 | 8 | 4 | 2 | CHAMP | TOTAL | PER YEAR | ||||||||||
| PAC 12 | ZONA- Sean Miller | Xavier ('04-'09) | 9 | 210 | 210 | 4 | 80 | 5 | 100 | 1 | 20 | 2 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 460 | 51.1 |
| AZ ST- Herb Sendek | Miami (OH) ('93-'96), NC St ('96-'06) | 19 | 352 | 352 | 1 | 20 | 7 | 140 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 532 | 28 | |
| CAL- Mike Montgomery | Montana ('78-'86), Stanford ('86-'04), NBA | 31 | 651 | 651 | 6 | 120 | 15 | 300 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 25 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1166 | 37.6 | |
| COL- Tad Boyle | N. Colorado ('06-'10) | 7 | 120 | 120 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 140 | 20 | |
| OREG- Dana Altman | Marshall ('89-'90), Kansas St ('90-'94), Creighton ('94-'10) | 24 | 473 | 473 | 3 | 60 | 8 | 160 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 693 | 28.9 | |
| OR ST- Craig Robinson | Brown ('06-'08) | 7 | 104 | 104 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 104 | 14.9 | |
| STAN- Johnny Dawkins | 1st job | 5 | 91 | 91 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 91 | 18.2 | |
| UCLA- Ben Howland | N. Arizona ('94-'99), Pitt ('99-'03) | 19 | 391 | 391 | 7 | 140 | 9 | 180 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 100 | 1 | 100 | 0 | 0 | 951 | 50.1 | |
| USC- Kevin O'Neill | Marquette ('89-'94), Tennessee ('94-'97), Northwestern ('97-'00), NBA ('00-'07), Arizona ('07-'08) | 16 | 216 | 216 | 1 | 20 | 4 | 80 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 336 | 21 | |
| UTAH- Larry Krystkowiak | Montana ('05-'06), Prior/Gaps NBA/CBA | 4 | 58 | 58 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 98 | 24.5 | |
| WASH- Lorenzo Romar | Pepperdine ('96-'99), SLU ('99-'02) | 17 | 325 | 325 | 2 | 40 | 7 | 140 | 3 | 60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 565 | 33.2 | |
| WA ST- Ken Bone | Cal St Stanislaus ('84-'85), Olympic ('85-'86), Seattle Pacific ('90-'02), Portland St ('05-'09), Gaps= asst jobs | 22 | 407 | 407 | 7 | 140 | 2 | 40 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 607 | 27.6 | |
| TOTAL | 180 (15) | 3398 | 18.9 | 31 | 0.17 | 60 | 0.33 | 10 | 0.06 | 3 | 0.02 | 3 | 0.02 | 1 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 | 5743 | 31.91 | ||
| PREV | YRS | WINS | CONF CHAMPS | NCAA | 16 | 8 | 4 | 2 | CHAMP | TOTAL | PER YEAR | ||||||||||
| SEC | BAMA- Anthony Grant | VCU ('06-'09) | 7 | 157 | 157 | 4 | 80 | 4 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 317 | 45.3 |
| ARK- Mike Anderson | UAB ('02-'06), Missouri ('06-'11) | 11 | 235 | 235 | 1 | 20 | 6 | 120 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 420 | 38.2 | |
| AUB- Tony Barbee | UTEP ('06-'10) | 7 | 117 | 117 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 157 | 22.4 | |
| FLOR- Billy Donovan | Marshall ('94-'96) | 19 | 442 | 442 | 6 | 120 | 12 | 240 | 1 | 20 | 2 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 100 | 2 | 400 | 1372 | 72.2 | |
| UGA- Mark Fox | Nevada ('04-'09) | 9 | 185 | 185 | 4 | 80 | 4 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 345 | 38.3 | |
| KY- John Calipari | UMass ('88-'96), NBA, Memphis ('00-'09) | 21 | 565 | 565 | 14 | 280 | 14 | 280 | 2 | 40 | 4 | 100 | 2 | 100 | 1 | 100 | 1 | 200 | 1665 | 79.3 | |
| LSU- Johnny Jones | Memphis ('99-'00), Alab asst ('00-'01), North Texas ('01-'12) | 13 | 220 | 220 | 1 | 20 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 280 | 21.5 | |
| OLE MISS- Andy Kennedy | Cincinnati ('05-'06) | 8 | 165 | 165 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 205 | 25.6 | |
| MISS ST- Rick Ray | 1st job | <1 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | |
| MIZZ- Frank Haith | Miami ('04-'11) | 9 | 178 | 178 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 218 | 24.2 | |
| SCAR- Frank Martin | Kansas State ('07-'12) | 6 | 130 | 130 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 235 | 39.2 | |
| TENN- Cuonzo Martin | Missouri State ('08-'11) | 5 | 95 | 95 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 115 | 23 | |
| TA&M- Billy Kennedy | Centenary ('97-'99), SE Louisiana ('99-'05), Miami asst ('05-'06), Murray St ('06-'11) | 15 | 241 | 241 | 4 | 80 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 361 | 24.1 | |
| VANDY- Kevin Stallings | Illinois St ('93-'99) | 20 | 394 | 394 | 2 | 40 | 8 | 160 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 634 | 31.7 | |
| TOTAL | 151 (10.79) | 3131 | 20.7 | 40 | 0.26 | 59 | 0.39 | 6 | 0.04 | 8 | 0.05 | 2 | 0.01 | 2 | 0.01 | 3 | 0.02 | 6331 | 41.93 | ||
| PREV | YRS | WINS | CONF CHAMPS | NCAA | 16 | 8 | 4 | 2 | CHAMP | TOTAL | PER YEAR | ||||||||||
| OTHER | BUTLER (A-10)- Brad Stevens | 1st job | 6 | 161 | 161 | 4 | 80 | 4 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 200 | 0 | 0 | 521 | 86.8 |
| CREIGH (MO VAL)- Greg McDermott | Wayne St ('94-'00), ND St ('00-'01), N. Iowa ('01-'06), Iowa St ('06-'10) | 19 | 341 | 341 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 421 | 22.2 | |
| GONZAGA (WCC)- Mark Few | 1st job | 14 | 368 | 368 | 11 | 220 | 13 | 260 | 4 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 928 | 66.3 | |
| MEMP (CUSA)- Josh Pastner | 1st job | 4 | 97 | 97 | 1 | 20 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 157 | 39.3 | |
| MURRAY ST (OH VAL)- Steve Prohm | 1st job | 2 | 50 | 50 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 90 | 45 | |
| N MEX (MW)- Steve Alford | Manchester ('91-'95), SW MO St ('95-'99), Iowa ('99-'07) | 22 | 456 | 456 | 3 | 60 | 6 | 120 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 656 | 29.8 | |
| SDST (MW)- Steve Fisher | Michigan ('88-'97), NBA ('97-'99) | 23 | 460 | 460 | 3 | 60 | 12 | 240 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 200 | 1 | 200 | 1205 | 52.4 | |
| SLU (A-10)- Jim Crews | Evansville ('85-'02), Army ('02-'09), SLU asst. off prior to this year | 25 | 375 | 375 | 5 | 100 | 4 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 555 | 22.2 | |
| VCU (A-10)- Shaka Smart | 1st job | 4 | 100 | 100 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 190 | 47.5 | |
| WICH ST (MO VAL)- Gregg Marshall | Wintrhop ('98-'07) | 16 | 347 | 347 | 8 | 160 | 8 | 160 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 667 | 41.7 | |
| Jim Calhoun | Northeaster ('72-'86), UConn ('86-'12) | 40 | 873 | 873 | 15 | 300 | 23 | 460 | 4 | 80 | 5 | 125 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 600 | 2488 | 62.2 | |
| John Wooden | Indiana St ('46-'48), UCLA ('48-'75) | 29 | 620 | 620 | 21 | 420 | 16 | 320 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 2000 | 3410 | 117.6 | |
| John Beilein- only DI | Canisius ('92-'97), Richmond ('97-'02), WVU ('02-'07) | 21 | 402 | 402 | 3 | 60 | 7 | 140 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 647 | 30.8 | |
Hopefully you made it this far!
Here's a look at the 6 BCS conferences:
| CONFERENCE | Wins | Avg Wins | Conf Champs | Avg Conf Ch | NCAA | Avg NCAA | 16 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 1 | Total | Avg Total |
| ACC | 4024 | 21.3 | 46 | 0.24 | 88 | 0.47 | 18 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 9364 | 49.54 |
| Big East | 4258 | 20.7 | 40 | 0.19 | 108 | 0.52 | 24 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 8848 | 42.95 |
| Big Ten | 4121 | 20.5 | 36 | 0.18 | 83 | 0.41 | 19 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 7856 | 39.08 |
| Big 12 | 3322 | 20.3 | 36 | 0.22 | 87 | 0.53 | 12 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 6922 | 42.41 |
| PAC 12 | 3398 | 18.9 | 31 | 0.17 | 60 | 0.33 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 5743 | 31.91 |
| SEC | 3131 | 20.7 | 40 | 0.26 | 59 | 0.39 | 6 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 6331 | 41.93 |
To me it seems like the ACC and Big East are clearly the top 2 conferences for coaches. What is clear is that the presence of elite coaches like Coach K and Roy Williams makes a huge impact.
I was also surprised that the Big 12 by these measurements seemed clearly better than the Big Ten, and very close to the Big East with regards to avg. pts/yr for coaches.
The PAC 12 was essentially the weakest however you look at it- but I was surprised by the Big Ten's relatively weak showing. I was surprised the SEC looked competive comparatively- but I think most of that is Calipari and Donovan having such great success.
More charts? More charts:
| WINS | YRS | WINS | |
| 1 | DUKE- Mike Krzyzewski | 38 | 950 |
| 2 | SYR- Jim Boeheim | 37 | 908 |
| 3 | WVU- Bob Huggins | 31 | 719 |
| 4 | UNC- Roy Williams | 26 | 693 |
| 5 | WISC- Bo Ryan | 29 | 670 |
| 6 | UM- John Beilein | 35 | 660 |
| 7 | CAL- Mike Montgomery | 31 | 651 |
| 8 | L'VILLE- Rick Pitino | 28 | 640 |
| 9 | KY- John Calipari | 21 | 565 |
| 10 | TEX- Rick Barnes | 26 | 556 |
| CONFERENCE CHAMPS | YRS | CC | |
| 1 | UNC- Roy Williams | 26 | 15 |
| 2 | KY- John Calipari | 21 | 14 |
| T3 | DUKE- Mike Krzyzewski | 38 | 12 |
| T3 | KU- Bill Self | 20 | 12 |
| T5 | WVU- Bob Huggins | 31 | 11 |
| T5 | GONZAGA (WCC)- Mark Few | 14 | 11 |
| 7 | SYR- Jim Boeheim | 37 | 10 |
| T8 | WICH ST (MO VAL)- Gregg Marshall | 16 | 8 |
| T8 | OSU- Thad Matta | 13 | 8 |
| T10 | L'VILLE- Rick Pitino | 28 | 7 |
| T10 | MINN- Tubby Smith | 22 | 7 |
| T10 | MSU- Tom Izzo | 18 | 7 |
| T10 | WA ST- Ken Bone | 22 | 7 |
| T10 | UCLA- Ben Howland | 19 | 7 |
| NCAA'S | YRS | NCAA | |
| 1 | SYR- Jim Boeheim | 37 | 29 |
| 2 | DUKE- Mike Krzyzewski | 38 | 28 |
| 3 | UNC- Roy Williams | 26 | 22 |
| T4 | WVU- Bob Huggins | 31 | 20 |
| T4 | TEX- Rick Barnes | 26 | 20 |
| 6 | L'VILLE- Rick Pitino | 28 | 17 |
| 7 | MINN- Tubby Smith | 22 | 16 |
| T8 | MSU- Tom Izzo | 18 | 15 |
| T8 | CAL- Mike Montgomery | 31 | 15 |
| T10 | KY- John Calipari | 21 | 14 |
| T10 | KU- Bill Self | 20 | 14 |
| FINAL FOURS | YRS | FF | |
| 1 | DUKE- Mike Kryzewski | 38 | 11 |
| 2 | UNC- Roy Williams | 26 | 7 |
| T3 | MSU- Tom Izzo | 18 | 6 |
| T3 | L'VILLE- Rick Pitino | 28 | 6 |
| 5 | KY0 John Calipari | 21 | 4 |
| T6 | UCLA- Ben Howland | 19 | 3 |
| T6 | FLOR- Billy Donovan | 19 | 3 |
| T6 | SDST- Steve Fisher | 23 | 3 |
| T6 | SYR- Jim Boeheim | 37 | 3 |
| T10 | BUTLER- Brad Stevens | 6 | 2 |
| T10 | OSU- Thad Matta | 13 | 2 |
| T10 | KU- Bill Self | 20 | 2 |
| T10 | WVU- Bob Huggins | 31 | 2 |
| T14 | VCU- Shaka Smart | 4 | 1 |
| T14 | GTOWN- John Thompson III | 13 | 1 |
| T14 | IND- Tom Crean | 14 | 1 |
| T14 | KST- Bruce Webber | 15 | 1 |
| T14 | VILL- Jay Wright | 19 | 1 |
| T14 | MINN- Tubby Smith | 22 | 1 |
| T14 | TEX- Matt Barnes | 26 | 1 |
| T14 | OK- Lon Kruger | 27 | 1 |
| T14 | MIA- Jim Larranaga | 29 | 1 |
| T14 | CAL- Mike Montgomery | 31 | 1 |
| CHAMPIONSHIPS | YRS | CHAMPS | |
| 1 | DUKE- Mike Krzyzewski | 38 | 4 |
| 2 | UNC- Roy Williams | 26 | 2 |
| 3 | FLOR- Billy Donovan | 19 | 2 |
| T4 | SYR- Jim Boeheim | 37 | 1 |
| T4 | SDST (MW)- Steve Fisher | 23 | 1 |
| T4 | L'VILLE- Rick Pitino | 28 | 1 |
| T4 | MSU- Tom Izzo | 18 | 1 |
| T4 | KY- John Calipari | 21 | 1 |
| T4 | KU- Bill Self | 20 | 1 |
| T4 | MINN- Tubby Smith | 22 | 1 |
| PTS | YRS | PTS | |
| NA | John Wooden | 29 | 3410 |
| 1 | DUKE- Mike Krzyzewski | 38 | 3285 |
| NA | Jim Calhoun | 40 | 2488 |
| 2 | UNC- Roy Williams | 26 | 2363 |
| 3 | SYR- Jim Boeheim | 37 | 2358 |
| 4 | KY- John Calipari | 21 | 1665 |
| 5 | L'VILLE- Rick Pitino | 28 | 1620 |
| 6 | WVU- Bob Huggins | 31 | 1529 |
| 7 | KU- Bill Self | 20 | 1482 |
| 8 | FLOR- Billy Donovan | 19 | 1372 |
| 9 | MSU- Tom Izzo | 18 | 1359 |
| 10 | MINN- Tubby Smith | 22 | 1343 |
| 11 | SDST (MW)- Steve Fisher | 23 | 1205 |
| 12 | TEX- Rick Barnes | 26 | 1176 |
| 13 | CAL- Mike Montgomery | 31 | 1166 |
| 14 | WISC- Bo Ryan | 29 | 1035 |
| 15 | UCLA- Ben Howland | 19 | 951 |
| 16 | GONZAGA (WCC)- Mark Few | 14 | 928 |
| 17 | OSU- Thad Matta | 13 | 916 |
| T18 | OK- Lon Kruger | 27 | 905 |
| T18 | UM- John Beilein | 35 | 905 |
| 20 | MIA- Jim Larranaga | 29 | 762 |
| PTS/YR | YRS | PTS/YR |
| NA | John Wooden | 29 | 117.6 |
| 1 | UNC- Roy Williams | 26 | 90.9 |
| 2 | BUTLER (A-10)- Brad Stevens | 6 | 86.8 |
| 3 | DUKE- Mike Krzyzewski | 38 | 86.4 |
| 4 | KY- John Calipari | 21 | 79.3 |
| 5 | MSU- Tom Izzo | 18 | 75.5 |
| 6 | KU- Bill Self | 20 | 74.1 |
| 7 | FLOR- Billy Donovan | 19 | 72.2 |
| 8 | OSU- Thad Matta | 13 | 70.5 |
| 9 | GONZAGA (WCC)- Mark Few | 14 | 66.3 |
| 10 | SYR- Jim Boeheim | 37 | 63.7 |
| NA | Jim Calhoun | 40 | 62.2 |
| 11 | MINN- Tubby Smith | 22 | 61 |
| 12 | L'VILLE- Rick Pitino | 28 | 57.9 |
| 13 | SDST (MW)- Steve Fisher | 23 | 52.4 |
| 14 | PITT- Jamie Dixon | 10 | 52.3 |
| 15 | ZONA- Sean Miller | 9 | 51.1 |
| 16 | UCLA- Ben Howland | 19 | 50.1 |
| 17 | WVU- Bob Huggins | 31 | 49.3 |
| 18 | STJ- Steve Lavin | 9 | 48.1 |
| 19 | KST- Bruce Weber | 15 | 47.6 |
| 20 | VCU (A-10)- Shaka Smart | 4 | 47.5 |
FINAL NOTES:
Sorry this post was so long... but I hope it is appreciated (mostly because it took forever to do). There are a lot of take-aways:
1- Wooden was a very good coach- and it doesn't look like anyone will ever reach that level.
2- Elite coaches are much better than any other coach. The top ten coaches (pts/yr) are well above any other coaches. The difference between coach #5- Izzo, and coach #12 Pitino is more than 17 points a year- which is pretty huge- and Pitino is obviously a well above average coach.
3- Thad Matta is pretty highly rankled- and outside of Izzo, Smith (who is pretty far removed from being an elite coach success-wise), and Matta the Big Ten is not very impressive. Painter has had a surprisingly successful career so far according to these metrics, and Beilein and Ryan get hurt from non-DI success for around a decade each- but the Big Ten doesn't hold up at this point against the other conferences like I thought it would.
4- Coaching at elite programs makes a huge difference- This is also a chicken/egg debate- are coaches elite from being an elite program- or do elite programs just attract elite coaches and allow them the tools to separate from their peers? What it also points out is how impressive coaches are who aren't at typical elite programs. Calhoun built a UConn program from nothing to elite, Mark Few has had a tremendous career, and Brad Stevens looks like he is on the fast-track to super-stardom. I suppose it is not surprising- but for the most part the traditional elite powers have the top coaches. It is interesting seeing how many coaches started at mid-majors- and it is pretty clear if you do well in the NCAA's or dominate mid-major programs you do get noticed and get a good shot at some decent programs.
Hope you all enjoyed this- it is pretty interesting looking at all the coaches past records. I think the data answers pretty much any question you could have about coaches- and I hope you all enjoy data as much as I do. If you notice any clear errors let me know- if you disagree/agree with my ranking systems or anything else let me know in the comments- it could produce some good discussion!
February 24th, 2013 at 10:44 PM ^
Should the stats only be given when a coach is at the DI level? For instance, even if Beilien had an amazing team at the CC level he wouldn't be given the points for it...unless you're counting championships from every level. You may have clarified this but given it was so long I just skimmed it mostly looking at the data (which you had a lot of!). It is interesting though.
February 25th, 2013 at 9:35 AM ^
I counted all wins at levels lower than D-1 (non-high school) but did not give nay points for making DII tournaments, or DII conference championships- so essentially coaches only get the points for non-DI wins but nothing else.
There are a few coaches this impacts- and for Beilein I gave his stats only counting DI to do a DI comparison only for those who are interested.
Perhaps I should have counted those numbers differently- I had to make a lot of assumptions- but any time you do a ranking system you have to...
February 24th, 2013 at 11:06 PM ^
This was awesome. A stat geek's wet dream.
February 25th, 2013 at 7:29 AM ^
I think that you have a lot of data here, but that the data results are drowned out by the analytical assumptions (such as the assumption that making the tournament is the coaching equivelent of winning 20 more regular-season games). Your results show that coaches who make the tournament regularly are much more 'elite" than those who don't. That seems to be the assumption you made going in, though.
Try halving and then quartering the values for tourney acceptance and wins, and see if the gap between your 'elite" coaches and non-elite coaches doesn't drop proportionately.
This is nice work, don't get me wrong. I just think that your conclusions may be driven by your assumptions, and think that you should check that.
February 25th, 2013 at 9:33 AM ^
Definitely true about how it could change a lot.
How owuld you change it? How do you value an NCAA tournament appearance compared to a win?
When people talk about coaches it seems to center on these things: total wins, ncaa's, final fours, and championships.
Total wins just skews towards experience- avg wins makes most seem pretty similar.
NCAA's are what every teams goal is- so making a tournament seems worthy of a lot of value when disucssing how good a coach is- decreasing it from 20 to me seems like it will devalue that- but I'd love to hear others thoughts on a good number choice.
Final Fours and championships are very tied to being an elite coach- because that is how we judge coaches (and players). Who is the best NBA coach? My guess is people think Phil Jackson and Red Aurbach- any coincidence they have so many titles? That is why I seperated it to pts/yr average as well- so coaches that may not win titles but have good success can be valued. Mark Few for example gets a very high ranking despite no elite eights.
I guess I am saying I totally agree with what you are saying- but I'd like to hear specific reasons why I should change the point system. Yes halving the ncaa or other tournament points may change data (skew it more towards most wins, or average wins compated to tournament success)- but WHY should I do that? I did somewhat arbirtrarily pick 20 for NCAA because it seemed to me like a twenty win season and an NCAA invite are pretty equal- why would I halve or quarter that- what logic is there that 10 or 5 makes mroe sense (it may exist- I'd love to hear your arguement)?
February 27th, 2013 at 5:16 PM ^
Some things that raised my eyebrows:
- You throw a lot of weight behind winning a National Championship which, while being a very laudable accomplishment, has a large component of luck attached to it, especially in the modern tournament. I'd argue that a coach that wins his regular season conference championship has accomplished a task as difficult, if not more difficult than going on a six game winning streak in a tournament. In your metric, it's valued 1000% less.
- You assessment doesn't take into account variables like strength of schedule, strength of conferences and so on. A guy like Boeheim, who has been consistently good in the Big East for almost 4 decades is much more impressive in my opinion than a guy like Brad Stevens, who has done amazing things at Butler for sure, but is still playing a mid-major schedule.
- While Wooden's career is impressive and certain never to be equaled, it's important to remember that he was competing in 25 team fields with teams from lesser conferences still getting auto bids. Winning the NCAA Championship becomes a little less dependant on luck when you only have to win 4 games and the first two of them are usually going to be against teams of inferior quality. In those days a top seed in the tournament was almost assured a spot in the Final Four, making that accomplishment much less impressive in my opinion. That said, his ability to have his team's consistently execute on such a high level once they got to the Final Four is very impressive. Still, if Wooden coached in the current 64-68 team era, his record would not be what it was, and the metric doesn't compensate for that.
February 28th, 2013 at 3:10 PM ^
All very good points.
SOS and other variables would really just make this super crazy to calculate- but would be interesting.
Your reasoning for conf. champs desrerving more credit- at least relative to ncaa champs does seem legitimate.
I get that winning it all requires luck- but every coach to have won a tournament has been an established coach. Yes some young or less-successful coaches have a final four run under their name- but it seems that only elite coaches win championships. Perhaps that is because if a coach does win fans/media immediately elevate them to that status- but that is a completely idfferent issue.
I was not trying to have a diffinitive top-coach list- just putting out a list based on the assumptions I made.
I agree with your point about Wooden- compeltely different era- just thought it'd be an interesting comparison. Any time you cross era comparisons become tricky- and since coaches coach 3-4 decades it can make this challenging.
Maybe if I have time I will try to reevaluate changing some of the variables- most likely with raising the value of conf championships.
Any other changes you think I should make (or others)- and if so include the values you would use.
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