That didn't matter. Cal continued to tweak his offense to best fit the personnel he used, and it became a revelation. Promoting the idea of breaking the defender down individually and cutting and finding open shots off of the penetration. Derrick Rose and Chris Douglas-Roberts were perfect for this offense, and excelled in it.
Only Cal would have the guts to pull off that kind of move.
4. John Thompson III-Georgetown
If only Georgetown could have just skipped the Craig Esherick era and gone from one Thompson to another, we would be talking about the Hoyas as a dynasty based on the results JT3 has had since he took over the program in 2004.
After leaving a Princeton program where he was fresh off his 3rd Ivy League title, Thompson inherited a Georgetown team that was in shambles, and quickly rebuilt them into a national power, by implementing a new offense, and showing a new commitment to keeping local recruits at home.
His record with Georgetown is 100-36 (.735) and even more impressive is that in just three seasons, Thompson took Georgetown from the NIT to the Big East Champion with a mix of Esherick's recruits, and his own.
Now, the most impressive part about his resume is that he has won back-to-back regular season titles in the Big East, a conference that many pundits strongly believe to be the best in the country year in and year out.
His ability to nurture Esherick's recruits and develop his own only proves that he can not only recruit but also teach. Players like Johnathan Wallace and Roy Hibbert were inconsistent until they worked out a niche in Thompson's offense, where they excelled.
It took Bill Self and Roy Williams years before they reached their first final four, and if it wasn't for the incredible shooting machine Stephen Curry, Thompson might have back to back final fours on his resume.
Now he has proved he can recruit out of state. Thompson swooped into SEC country and plucked Greg Monroe out of Louisiana, one of the top big men prospects in the entire nation.
Throw Monroe in with Henry Sims, another top ranked big man, and Jason Clark, a highly regarded shooting guard and both nearby products and the Hoyas have themselves another strong class to add to last year's guard-heavy class which included Austin Freeman and Chris Wright.
Don't expect Georgetown to give up their stranglehold on the Big East so easily next season, and Thompson is a main reason why.
3. Roy Williams-North Carolina
Not only has Williams added the elusive national championship to his resume, but he continues to use the prestige of North Carolina, and has used his country charm to consistently pull in a ridiculous amount of talent as the Tar Heels reload instead of rebuild.
He just finished his 5th season at his alma mater after leaving Kansas fans with a bad taste in their mouths, and has been fantastic in his seasons at Chapel Hill already.
Williams has compiled a record of 142-33 (.811) at North Carolina and has been to the NCAA tournament every season since being hired, including a National Championship in 2005, the Elite Eight in 2007, and a Final Four appearance this past season.
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