Top 10 College Sports Coaches Ever: Where does Mike Krzyzewski Stand?
2. Dean Smith, North Carolina Tar Heels, 1961-1997 College Basketball
Record: 879-254
2 National Championships
13 Conference Tournament Championships and 17 Regular Season Conference Championships (All in ACC)
Dean Smith’s resume stands on its own as an elite resume, putting him in the conversation for greatest college basketball coach of all time. But with other coaches picking up more wins and national championships in the sport, there had to be more to putting him near the top of this list.
And there is.
In addition to Smith’s resume, he became a prominent figure in sports for his push for desegregation in the American South, being a huge supporter of the Civil Rights Movement, and helping to shape the way college basketball dramatically changed over time.
But what is most impressive about Smith is that nobody, and we mean nobody, has a better tree of athletes and coaches developed under them. He has produced successful coaches at the college and NBA Level in guys like Larry Brown, Billy Cunningham, Roy Williams, George Karl, and even Los Angeles Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak.
Then let’s go to the players. Rasheed Wallace, Jerry Stackhouse, Sam Perkins, Antawn Jamison, James Worthy, and Vince Carter.
Finally, let’s go in for the kill: Michael Jordan. ‘Nuff said.
So in addition to an amazing resume, Smith has coached three other hall of fame coaches, two who could become the greatest ever themselves, and one with multiple hall of famers, including the greatest player ever.
Developing people? Smith dominates anybody to ever do it. Winning? Well, he did that too. Changing the game and society? Look at the bold stances he took in the South in the 1960s.
Next: Honorable Mentions