The Nine ... Plus The Wizard

"So who would be your top five college coaches of all time? Beyond Wooden it's got to be a close race, right?" - Luke R.

It is close, and thanks for asking! I don't have a ton of time to go deep in depth with this today, but I will even one up your question; here are my top ten college coaches of all time. Again, always remember that as much as I try to consider all of history, it is difficult having not "been there" to determine what was 100% legit and what wasn't. Also, we are considering men's basketball coaches only (sorry Geno and Patty Summit ... you're great, but you also coach a vastly different sport). Finally, the honorable mention: Henry Iba, Pete Newell, Brach McCraken, Phil Woolpert and if Billy Donovan can prove that those two national titles at Florida weren't flukes, he'll find his way on here soon. Also, Tom Izzo continues to build a pretty impressive resume, and could mount a challenge as well.

10. Rick Pitino - Coached at Boston U, Providence, Kentucky, Louisville; Career record: 521-191; .732 winning percentage; 1 National Title (1996 at Kentucky); led three different teams to the final four (Providence, Kentucky and Louisville)

When considering Coach Pitino one needs to throw out his two failed NBA stints (in New York and Boston), as well as all his personal life drama, and just focus on his body of work. What you are left with, if you can narrow the focus, is a Coach who has led three different schools to a decent amount of success; a coach who has won one national title, and been on the verge of four other national titles (3 final four, 1 championship game beyond the title year). He wins most of his games, and he seems to have a good rapport with his players. On the whole, he's a really good coach who will be able to jump up this list as he continues to win, and especially if he wins another national title.

9. Denny Crum - Coached at Louisville from 1971 until 2001; won two national titles at Louisville in 1980 and 1986; won 675 games in his career; 4 Final Four appearances in addition to the two national titles

Crum had a less than stellar end to his career, although it is important to remember that he was not tied to any of the NCAA sanctions levied at Louisville in his final few years there. Taking that into consideration, his teams generally overachieved during his tenure at Louisville, and he is one of only 11 coaches to win multiple NCAA titles, while also ranking in the top 20 in career wins.

8. Lute Olson - Coached at Long Beach St, Iowa and Arizona; Won one NCAA championship (1997 at Arizona) and made another four Final Four appearances; 780 career wins

Olson is placed here because he had the gusto that few men have. While coaching at Iowa from 1974 through 1983 he built a program that made a final four, and seemed to be capable of being an annual contender in the Big Ten (his last five years at Iowa saw one first place, three second place and one fourth place finish in the conference). Yet, driven by a desire to build something his own, and to get away from the "fish bowl" of Iowa, Olson went to a traditionally terrible Arizona. There, he turned the program into a frequent (11 time) Pac-Ten champion, as well as a periodic national powerhouse.

7. Jim Calhoun - Coached at Northeaster and Connecticut; two time NCAA champion (1999 and 2004); 823 career wins (and counting)

I battle putting Calhoun here if for no other reason than that his UConn program seems so steeped in corrupt patterns that I'm not entirely sure that he's accomplished this legitimately. Still, it's hard to overlook his mounting win total, his national championships, and the long list of professional players who owe allegiance to the man. Let's just say that if the NCAA decided to have UConn vacate some of these wins I wouldn't be sad.

6. Adolph Rupp - Coached at Kentucky (1930-1972); 876 wins (third most all time) and 82.2% winning percentage (2nd best all time); 4 NCAA Championships (1948, 1949, 1951, 1958); Two additional Final Four appearances

S0me interesting facts for Rupp: he was forced into retirement at the age of 70 because that was the mandatory age for all Kentucky employees to retire; he was a four time Coach of the Year; he wore a brown suit to all games. What holds Rupp back is a number of things. First, he coached in a different era; his teams were generally all-white up until 1969, and his Kentucky team was famously defeated by Texas Western in 1966, in a match featuring an all-white starting five (Kentucky) and an all-black starting five (Western). Was he a racist? It is generally held that he was, but for the purposes of this list it doesn't really matter. All that matters is that he didn't coach in the modern era for long, and his greatest successes came in a game that was vastly different than today's game.

5. Roy Williams - Coached at Kansas and North Carolina; 614 career wins (and counting); 2 NCAA Championships (2005 and 2009); five additional Final Four appearances

Williams has gone from being the Coach who couldn't win the big one while at Kansas to a two time national champion with little standing in his way of continuing to build an impressive resume. While at KansasWilliams built a dynasty that could never get over the top, but one that was routinely in the top ten of the nation. Now at UNC, his teams have seen some volatile moves from NCAA champions to missing the tournament, but he was solidly placed himself inside the top five coaches, with a chance to move up the list towards the crowded top.


4. Mike "Coach K" Krzyzewski - Coached at Army and Duke; 3x Coach of the Year; 4x NCAA Champion; seven additional Final Four appearances; 868 wins

I have to make a confession: Coach K will likely be at the number two spot on this list before long. He as more NCAA titles than the next two coaches, and he will soon have more wins than either of them. More importantly, it seems like there isn't really much of a slow down; just when it became "common knowledge" that Duke couldn't compete for the national title anymore, they went off and won it last year. Coach K is a great tactician on the sideline who learned under the best (see number two) and who will likely move into the number two spot on this list. What is left to be determined is if he can mount a serious offensive at the number one spot.


3. Dean Smith - Coached at North Carolina; 879 career wins; 4x Coach of the Year; 2x NCAA Champion; nine other Final Four appearances

Dean Smith is in this spot as much out of respect for his tremendous coaching style as anything. Over the course of his tenure at UNC his teams were routinely among the best in the nation, and although they only won the Big Dance twice, they were in the mix frequently from 1967 (his first Final Four appearance) until 1997 (his last Final Four appearance in his final season at UNC). Dean Smith is basketball at one of our nation's top basketball schools. He is currently number two on the all-time wins list, although he likely will be passed shortly by Coach K. Beyond everything else, Coach Smith held a dignity that few others (although certainly our number one) can match.

2. Robert Montgomery "Bobby" Knight - Coached at Army, Indiana and Texas Tech; 902 career wins; 3 National Titles; two additional Final Four appearances

Let's get one things straight: Bob Knight was a full-of-himself, better-than-thou jerk. But he was also one heck of a coach, and throughout his career that was proven time and again. What is funny is that if he had been able to reign himself in, to focus a bit more on humbling himself in front of recruits and containing himself on campus, he might have been able to win a few more national titles, have won 1,000 games, and have retired a Hoosier. But often times our greatest strengths are our greatest weakness, and for Coach Knight that is reality as well. He has more wins than any other coach, although he will also be passed by Coach K in relatively short order. He has his national titles, and his team was the last perfect season in the NCAA, but he also has his career being finished in exile in Lubbok, TX. What speaks volumes for Coach Knight is that his players are devoted still, that his graduation rates were better than anyone at a major program during his era, and that his program's were pristine with the NCAA: not even a sniff of a violation. Coach Knight did what Sinatra said: he did it his way. His way was being a brilliant tactician, an on the court general who could coach circles around the rest of the Big Ten and most of the nation. His way was not cheating as contemporaries at other schools did, and by only taking a player if that player made a commitment to getting his degree, not just using Indiana and its unique heritage as a spring board for the NBA. His way was winning the right way. On the one hand, if he had begun to bend the rules and change his approach he could have had it all: five or six titles, 1,000 + wins, retirement from IU. But that wouldn't have been Coach Knight. Say what you will about him. He did it his way.

1. John Wooden - 664 career wins; 10 National titles; two additional Final Four appearances; six time Coach of the Year

As I said yesterday, little can be said about Coach Wooden that hasn't already been said. I've argued before that the top three on this list could go in any order with a compelling argument, and that still holds true. The ten National Titles in twelve years is impressive, but it is partially an artifact of a different era, and to that end an argument can be made, and it can even make sense. But the fact still remains that Coach Wooden's UCLA dynasty stands alone, built upon his unique coaching ability, and his personality that permeated the game long after he was done coaching, and will continue to do so now that he is gone. When Coach K gets to his 1,000th win and cuts down his fifth National Title banner the argument will begin anew, the same way it did When Dean Smith became the all-time leader in wins, and the same way it did with Coach Knight. Maybe Coach K will even be able to get to six or seven National Titles, and then he will be able to make the argument 1 and 1A. But he'll continue to be 1A. Coach Wooden will be #1.