College basketball coaching tiers 2023: Dan Hurley moves into Tier 1, John Calipari falls

In a sport with 362 groups, one must be a dummy to aim any contextualization of the hierarchy of the coaches who lead the sport.

Fortunately, we’re not one, however three, such dummies.

This is Year 2 of The Athletic’s Men’s Basketball Coaching Tiers. (See final yr’s right here.) This train is supposed to transcend the subjectivity of a numeric coaching rating or the inherent callousness of the dreaded annual Hot Seat checklist.

Instead, we break down coaches into tiers, looking for traces of demarcation amongst teams of coaches, then take these tiers to a number of authorities all through school hoops, glean their opinions, tweak the tiers as needed and share our findings with you.

Is it an ideal methodology? No.

Will you most likely be indignant about your favourite coach? Probably.

But we’re attempting.

Criteria for inclusion span a number of classes that, we expect, encapsulate an image of faculty basketball’s pecking order. Coaches rated listed here are required to suit the next {qualifications}:

• All coaches from the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC.

• Any coach from a non-“power” convention who has led his staff to the NCAA Tournament within the final three seasons.

• Any coach main a program presently ranked in KenPom’s prime 100 program score.

• Each will need to have coached a full season on the Division I degree.

• Each should be an energetic Division I coach.

It should be stated, there’s no science or unassailable consistency to our grading. As in, every tier doesn’t include benchmark {qualifications}. A number of that is primarily based on really feel, opinion, familiarity and a few occasional admitted recency bias.

Everything is debatable, and that’s partially the purpose.

We reviewed these tiers with a former player-turned-analyst, an X’s and O’s guru, a number of former coaches, a high-profile grassroots director, a present college basketball administrator and a search agency head. All have been granted anonymity in change for his or her candor. We took their opinions, used them to form a few of what you see right here and can share with you a few of their perception.

There’s no precise definition of what makes an incredible coach — be it drawing up performs, in-game changes, scouting chops, recruiting, program management, participant relations, and so on. What issues most is bigoted, therefore our variant panel. Each agreed that the problem of this process is the amount, high quality and number of school basketball coaches. That, and, after all, the outcomes.

As one trade insider put it: “We are definitely in a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately world, which is what makes this so hard. Fan bases not only don’t have a lot of patience; they don’t have a real appreciation for what people have done in the past.”

So, now that it’s clear that that is an not possible process, let’s get to those infallible, incontrovertible tiers.

There’s no debating these are the perfect coaches in school basketball. There’s additionally no assure such standing is indefinite. The powerful choice was made this yr to drop a coach from a sure public land-grant analysis college in Lexington, Ky., from the highest tier (we’ll get to him shortly), whereas a brand new title has risen into this uncommon air.

Multiple respondents referred to both Bill Self or Rick Pitino as the perfect coach within the sport or stated the 2 are worthy of being in a tier all of their very own. A grassroots coach we extremely respect referred to as them “probably two of the greatest five college coaches ever.”

We thought-about a 1A and 1B tier distinction, putting Self and Pitino on their very own. Maybe that’s warranted — these are the one energetic coaches with a number of nationwide championships — however separating the 2 coaches with essentially the most, um, “complicated,” resumes simply didn’t sit nicely.

At the identical time, that will be completely consultant of our school basketball ecosystem, wouldn’t it?

Bill Self is extensively thought to be the perfect coach within the sport. (Jay Biggerstaff / USA Today)

It’s nearly inarguable that Self has been the perfect coach on the highest degree for a while. He’s extensively regarded amongst fellow coaches as the perfect out of timeouts, lifeless balls and halftime. As one respondent who delves deep into Xs and Os and knowledge evaluation put it, Self is “the best combination of coaching and recruiting.”

As for Pitino, yeah, it’s difficult, however there’s no questioning his place within the sport. Does anybody anticipate something aside from instant success at St. John’s? He simply went 34-6 in league play over the last two years at Iona. Now he’s stacking expertise in Queens. He wins in all places.

One former high-major coach recommended Izzo belongs in his personal class on account of his 26 straight NCAA Tournament appearances. “Do you know how hard that is to do?” the coach stated.

Other names right here ought to come as little shock. Drew, Few, Sampson and Bennett are persistently among the many greatest, most profitable program leaders on the market. Bennett’s endurance right here, nevertheless, is beginning to come into query.

Since the COVID-19 cancellation of 2020, Virginia has gained a pair of ACC championships however hasn’t gained an NCAA Tournament sport and missed the dance totally in 2022. That’s a troublesome stretch to swallow. Three of UVA’s final 4 NCAA Tournament appearances ended with first-round losses to UMBC, Ohio and Furman. The different resulted in a nationwide title. It’s all onerous to sq..

“I can’t believe I’m going to say this,” a player-turned-analyst stated, “because he’s a really good coach, but I’m questioning Tony Bennett. … He’d be at the top of (Tier 2) for me.”

Is that honest? This is among the nice difficulties in making a caste system like this. Single-game NCAA Tournament outcomes carry a lot weight however are inherently fitful. As one high-major administrator stated: “I really struggle judging people by any one result.”

That brings us to Dan Hurley. Before March, the 50-year-old was 2-4 in NCAA Tournament video games. He was most recognized for his final title and sideline hysterics. Then UConn beat Iona, Saint Mary’s, Arkansas, Gonzaga, Miami and San Diego State, and now, so far as this train goes, he’s among the many better of the perfect.

There was a lot dialogue. The aforementioned administrator chalked this up as recency bias and countered, “Hasn’t John Calipari accomplished significantly more than Dan Hurley?” Yes, he has. Still, within the right here and now, Calipari is treading water with one NCAA win within the final three years, whereas Hurley has constructed a sustainable rocket ship at UConn.

“If Scott Drew’s there, if Kelvin Sampson’s there, if Mark Few is there,” stated a former longtime high-major coach, “then Dan Hurley deserves to be there, too.”

Should one title carry a lot sway? Maybe not (the place is Kevin Ollie, anyway?), however we’re shopping for this inventory as a long-term title in a sport trying to change the likes of Mike Krzyzewski, Jim Boeheim, Roy Williams, Jay Wright, Bob Huggins, and so on. If he doesn’t already, it gained’t be lengthy till Hurley matches the half.

Let’s get proper at it: Calipari is the one coach with a nationwide championship who isn’t in Tier 1. Go mad, Big Blue Nation. Reminiscent of this train a yr in the past, after we debated and dithered about Boeheim and Huggins, slotting Calipari proved difficult. He’s gained and brought three colleges to a Final Four — asterisks be damned. But none of that has occurred in 9 lengthy years.

Insiders argued either side of the coin: that Kentucky has each obtainable useful resource, however having each obtainable useful resource makes it that a lot tougher to comprehend outsized expectations; that Cal has been dogged for being a nasty coach unfairly however typically schematically he’s not an incredible coach. One supply referred to as watching Kentucky final yr “brutal,” whereas one other argued, “he probably gets hated on too much.”

The backside line, as Cats followers know all too nicely, is there was practically a decade’s price of disappointment — of stacked rosters transferring on to the draft, however not transferring on within the NCAA Tournament.

“With the talent they have, it’s not good enough for Kentucky, and it’s not good enough for him,” an analyst stated.

The excellent news for Calipari: Nothing is ceaselessly, because the transiency of Tier 2 this yr proves. Three coaches checked out, and 6 moved in — Shaka Smart, Greg McDermott, Nate Oats, Brian Dutcher, Jim Larrañaga and Randy Bennett.

That the brand new entrants run from 46 (Smart) to 74 (Larrañaga) says just about all the things about how this factor works. Adjusting to the evolution of the sport, remaining related at varied ranges of applications and sustaining success are the key sauce. Smart gained at VCU and Texas, and now he has Marquette poised to problem for a nationwide title.

McDermott, whom one analyst referred to as “maybe the best offensive coach in the country,” steadily and persistently constructed has Creighton into a nationwide program. He and Dutcher most likely had their greatest squads within the COVID-19 canceled 2020 season, with the Bluejays successful the Big East and San Diego State sitting on a 30-2 document. Oats gained at Buffalo and is now successful at Alabama, the place followers solely lately found the basketball area. As for Bennett, he hasn’t had a dropping season since his first yr at Saint Mary’s. Were he not present within the immense shadow of Gonzaga, who is aware of what his program may obtain?

No one proves learn how to make success final higher than Larrañaga. He has taken two non-traditional powers (George Mason and Miami) to the Final Four, whereas unabashedly embracing the game’s new wave.

“Talk about a guy in his 70s who changed his whole philosophy,” one grassroots coach stated. “He didn’t hesitate jumping on the NIL.”

A ultimate be aware on the transiency of Tier 2: transferring up and on can also be a chance, and if anybody is poised for the bounce, it’s Matt Painter. Plenty of insiders thought he needs to be in Tier 1 already, citing his playcalling acumen and talent to establish and develop gamers who go well with Purdue.

“In the sense of longevity, consistency, reinvention, winning with lesser talent, development,’’ one former coach said. “Outside of that recency bias of the game last year, I just think he’s that good.”

The catch, after all, is learn how to measure March success — or on this case, lack of success. If Calipari is held to that commonplace, Painter most likely must be, too.

“I love Paint, so my instinct is to say he’s among the best coaches in the game,” an administrative supply stated. “And he is, but this is probably the right spot for him. Results-wise, there are a lot of similarities between him and (Xavier’s) Sean Miller, and there have been some very average years in there.”

Large group. A wide selection of circumstances. A wide selection of conclusions.

Such as: What on the earth do you do with Chris Beard?

Career .701 win share, a nationwide championship sport look, assembled a Texas roster that gained 29 video games and misplaced within the Elite Eight final season.

“He’s just too good,” an trade supply stated. “He’s got too many answers for too many things.”

Beard additionally misplaced his dream job after an arrest following a home incident, after which Ole Miss threw him a lifeline.

“He gets the most out of his players, wherever he is,” the analyst stated. “But it’s fair to ask if the other stuff counts. If it’s strictly basketball, he’s Tier 2. With the other stuff, that matters because it affects doing your job.”

And then there’s Hubert Davis. One season, it’s a run to the nationwide championship sport. The subsequent, it’s one of the crucial disappointing seasons in latest males’s school basketball historical past. Add to that the priority that he has strayed too removed from what made North Carolina nice, a minimum of in accordance with these watching from afar.

“There’s really not similarities to the old Carolina Way, with the way that they play,” an trade supply stated.

Davis has five-star guard Elliot Cadeau on campus, plus a 2024 recruiting class presently that includes two nationwide top-10 prospects.

“He’s a tricky one,” the previous coach stated. “He has a lot to prove still. Can he run the type of program he’s been given? I think he can, but he hasn’t yet. Not consistently. And I’m not talking about getting to the Final Four. I’m talking about making the (NCAA) Tournament.”

Year 3 will likely be an essential one for Hubert Davis. (Grant Halverson / Getty Images)

Some of those coaches — Texas A&M’s Buzz Williams and Maryland’s Kevin Willard, specifically — have been deemed to be on the cusp of seasons that demand reassessment in a great way. Some of them — the Big Ten trio of Brad Underwood, Greg Gard and Chris Holtmann — may use a jolt of high-level success in March, a minimum of in accordance with the sources The Athletic spoke to for suggestions. And there was some mystification relating to one coach specifically.

“It’s amazing to me that nobody’s hired John Becker,” the grassroots coach stated. “Just literally amazing.”

Vermont’s coach has a .712 win share in 12 seasons and 6 straight regular-season convention titles. Becker is sort of actually on the level in his profession the place he would tackle a problem at a better degree. But that decision has but to return.

“He’s done an incredible job,” the executive supply stated. “The resources they have at Vermont relative to the rest of the league are good but still lacking at the same time. He really struggles to get (quality) games scheduled based on their region and their sustained success. But they just win over and over and over again.”

Now it will get attention-grabbing. Or difficult. Here you might have 35 coaches who may transfer up or down a tier and possibly not draw an excessive amount of pushback.

Perfect examples — Porter Moser and Juwan Howard. It wasn’t way back each have been being hailed as rising shares anybody would purchase. Moser was talked about for each opening in school basketball after vaulting Loyola Chicago to nationwide prominence. Howard was talked about for each NBA opening after making main waves at Michigan.

Now? Moser is 34–33 in two years at Oklahoma, looking for upward momentum in school basketball’s most brutal league. A 5-13 Big 12 mark in Year 2 of his six-year deal means rather a lot is driving on Year 3.

As for Howard.

“You had two lotto picks and Hunter Dickinson and couldn’t win? That’s a problem,” the analyst stated of final yr’s Michigan staff. “I don’t think there’s been a lot of impressive X-and-O going on the last couple of years, and the end-of-game situations have been really poor.”

Multiple respondents cited the oft-repeated line that Howard solely gained with John Beilein’s gamers. That’s not totally correct. Howard’s greatest staff was a 2021 group that went 23-5 and reached the Elite Eight. Four of that staff’s prime six gamers (Franz Wagner, Dickinson, Mike Smith and Chaundee Brown) by no means performed for Beilein. That stated, issues do want to show round in Ann Arbor. Last season was unhealthy, and judging by projections, this yr may very well be worse.

Moving up from Tier 5 are Jerry Stackhouse, Bryce Drew, Pat Kelsey, Ryan Odom, Joe Pasternack and Andy Kennedy. Micah Shrewsberry, in the meantime, after taking Penn State to the NCAA Tournament with a staff constructed from spare portal components, moves up two spots. No one on this whole train obtained as a lot common reward as the brand new Notre Dame coach.

“I was surprised Micah is not higher,” the grassroots coach stated. “Micah, of anybody in Tier 4, could be in Tier 2 in the next year or two and Tier 1 for the next 15 years.”

We obtained some pushback on Leon Rice. Just a few insiders famous that it’s absurd to supply his degree of success at Boise State. One former coach stated, “You could put Leon Rice in Tier 3, and nobody that follows basketball would doubt that.”

Both Mike Boynton and Andy Enfield have been highlighted as coaches who do good work that will get simply neglected.

It’s form of forgotten now that Enfield did the not possible at Florida Gulf Coast and was thought-about a possible one-hit marvel when touchdown at USC. Did anybody envision him lasting 10 years there and successful at a .616 clip?

And Boynton, at 41, stays a coach many are excessive on, regardless of some attempting instances at Oklahoma State, a lot of which was out of his management.

“He’s had to handle an NCAA postseason ban that was wrongly administered,” a high-major administrator advised us. “But his teams have been tough as nails. This is a guy I buy long-term. Every time I talk to him, I leave more impressed by him.”

It’s crowded within the center, which is smart, however there’s a official distinction between how coaches acquired right here. Some are on the rise like Kim English. After simply two years at George Mason, he jumped on to Providence — and straight to Tier 5.

“I don’t know if it’s confidence or if it’s arrogance, but he is unafraid,” one trade supply stated. “And in that league, you gotta be that way. … I think he’s going to be toe-to-toe with those guys. I just respect him as a coach. There’s people that don’t like him, and I think that’s because he’s tough and there’s a confidence there. And there’s people that love him, and I think it’s because he’s tough, and there’s a confidence there. So is it confidence? Arrogance? Either way, it’s working.”

People really feel equally about Tobin Anderson. From the skin, it would appear like he’s merely catapulted himself off of 1 win — Fairleigh Dickinson’s epic 16-over-1 NCAA Tournament upset of Purdue — however folks inside basketball level to his longevity exterior of Division I. Anderson went 209-62 at St. Thomas Aquinas, reaching three Sweet 16s and one Elite Eight. Experts anticipate extra of the identical at Iona.

“He has a unique style,’’ one analyst said. “Press all game, motion-centric offense. It’s a style shock when you play them.”

Mitch Henderson earns comparable reward at Princeton. The former Tigers participant doesn’t run Pete Carril’s fabled “Princeton offense” to a tee, however his variation works nicely.

“I like Mitch Henderson a lot,” one insider stated. “He’s got a very unique style of play, he’s got a very unique way about him. He probably doesn’t get enough credit because he really wants to be at Princeton.”

This season ought to inform us whether or not Villanova’s Kyle Neptune is prepared for the massive time. (Kyle Ross / USA Today)

Mixed in, nevertheless, with the coaches on the rise are the Tier 5 coaches who’ve now or have had Power 6 jobs and are both climbing the ladder for the primary time or on their second spherical. Kyle Neptune matches the primary group. The Villanova coach acquired the keys to the game’s sweetest journey, however his staff a yr in the past was beset by accidents to key gamers — Justin Moore and Cam Whitmore, specifically — and earned one thing of a mulligan in Year 1. But now the Wildcats are wholesome and have tapped into the switch portal. The Villanova coach isn’t alleged to be in Tier 5.

“They’re not going to give you a bunch of time to be good at Villanova,” one grassroots coach stated merely.

Then once more, nobody thought Pitt would give Jeff Capel far more time, both. Instead, athletic director Heather Lyke’s long-game plan paid off, because the Panthers doubled their win whole and went again to the tourney final yr. That moved Capel from Tier 6 to five. He won’t final lengthy there.

Sources don’t assume Richard Pitino is lengthy for New Mexico. In two seasons, he has turned this system into a 22-game winner, jumpstarting the Lobos and restarting his profession.

“He’s quietly done a really nice job,” one analyst stated. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up back at a high-major soon.”

Perhaps the trickiest man to determine is Chris Collins. He jumped up a tier after taking Northwestern to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in program historical past. Sources laud his capability to do the darned close to not possible in Evanston and his choice to encompass himself with savvy coaches. More than one trade insider cited the addition of Chris Lowery to run the protection as a difference-maker for the Wildcats, who jumped from 73 to 22 in adjusted protection per KenPom with Lowery on the bench. But the query for Collins isn’t about what he has executed, it’s about what extra can he do.

“You were right to move him up one, but I don’t think he’ll ever go higher than this in that job,” the executive supply stated. “It’s so hard. Think about it. He’s gotten Northwestern to the NCAA Tournament more than the rest of the planet.”

It’s a little bit of a limbo degree, with a few of the coaches doing sufficient to keep away from any true employment peril whereas additionally not precisely filling the fan base with rampant optimism.

Bobby Hurley, for instance, is 141-113 total at Arizona State and simply obtained a two-year contract extension via 2026 after main the Sun Devils again to the NCAA Tournament.

“That’s a really hard job,” the previous coach stated. “I don’t know why it is, but it is. Think of all the head coaches who have gone through there. Bill Frieder left Michigan because he thought that was going to be a good job. Herb Sendek went there. That to me is a very hard job.’’

If there’s true upward mobility in the group, it manifests in Appalachian State’s Dustin Kerns. The 70-58 record in Boone maybe isn’t eye-catching … but how Kerns operates is, at least to a couple of sources The Athletic contacted.

“It’s not exactly a great basketball job,” the grassroots coach stated. “And he’s been to the NCAA Tournament, and he’s recruited well.”

Said an trade supply: “You could easily put him in Tier 5. Innovative system. Very good situationally. Makes players better. It’s guys like that, that are going to be hurt as it moves on down the line — the better he makes his players, the more they’re going to leave. But he’s one jump away from a higher league.”

“So these are the guys basically getting fired next year, right?” That’s how one trade insider categorized Tier 7, and nicely, sure. That’s the place we’re, with the coaches who desperately want to seek out some semblance of success to remain employed.

The query right here isn’t if it’s unhealthy — that’s apparent. It’s why. In some circumstances — Jerrod Haase at Stanford, Wayne Tinkle at Oregon State — the roles are usually not simple. Then once more, it’s not going to get simpler for Haase if he’s round when the Cardinal transfer to the ACC. Tinkle did make the bubble Elite Eight in 2021 — “It’s crazy how quickly perceptions and narratives can change,” one administrative supply stated. Then once more, he adopted that up with three- and 11-win seasons.

Mike Hopkins and Kenny Payne have, alternatively, been gifted robust applications with a historical past of success. Hopkins, the previous longtime Boeheim assistant, began sizzling by successful Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors his first two seasons and successful the league regular-season title in his second season. That yr, nevertheless, was the final the Huskies made it to the NCAA Tournament, a run of diminishing returns. Hopkins’ staunch dedication to his previous boss’ protection appears to be a part of the issue.

“I’ve heard a couple coaches make fun of that zone they play,” one analyst stated. “It’s just so hard to play 2-3 with the way 3-point shooting is in this day and age.”

With a brand new athletic director on the town, Hopkins actually must get issues proper in a rush.

As does Payne. It could seem untimely to activate the flames beneath Payne’s seat. He’s solely in his second season at Louisville and inherited a staff that has been via a factor or two. Except …

“I had one of their games, and I think it was the worst shootaround I’ve ever witnessed,” one analyst stated. “It was shocking. Messing up the scouting report, guys running into each other, not knowing what they were doing on drills. It was a disaster.”

The Cardinals misplaced by a median of 11.9 factors per sport, together with by plus-20 six instances and greater than 30 twice. The whole season was an abject catastrophe.

(Illustration: Sean Reilly / The Athletic; Photos of Greg McDermott, John Calipari and Rick Pitino: Justin Casterline, Porter Binks and Rob Carr / Getty Images)