The Decade in Sports: The Greatest Players, Coaches, of the Decade

The first decade of the new millennium is coming to a close and another chapter in the history of sports has been written. But how will this decade be remembered? Who were the defining teams, players, and coaches that shaped the sports landscape for the first part of this century? Here is a list of the defining sports entities in the NBA, Major League Baseball, NFL, College Basketball, College Football, Tennis, and Golf. 

NBA

Player of the Decade

Shaquille O’Neal —For the first half of the decade, there was no player in professional basketball that was able to dominate like Shaq. O’Neal won the first MVP award of the decade in 2000, and was the MVP of the first three Finals. He took home another championship with the Miami Heat in 2006 and gave his career one last jump start winning All-Star Game MVP in 2009. How Shaq only won one MVP is still a mystery.

Honorable Mention: Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash

Coach of the Decade

Phil Jackson —Jackson spent this decade right where he left the last one off: on top. Phil was able to meld the incredible talents of Shaq and Kobe into the decade’s first dynasty. After that relationship split up, Phil took some time off only to reemerge and bring a new Lakers team to glory and mold Kobe into the great player he is today. He finished this decade with four championships and two other appearances in the Finals.

Honorable Mention: Greg Popovich, Jerry Sloan

Team of the Decade

Los Angeles Lakers — In a decade in which two teams shared seven of the 10 championships, there still could only be one logical choice. The Lakers won the first three championships, missed the Playoffs only once, and finished the decade on top. That coupled with two other Western Conference Championships, and the Lakers could be considered the team of the decade in any sport.

Honorable Mention: San Antonio Spurs, Detroit Pistons

MLB

Player of the Decade

Albert Pujols — Pujols wasn't even in the Major Leagues to start this decade, yet he still managed to quickly become the sport’s most dominating hitter. After running away with the Rookie of the Year award in 2001, Pujols went on to win three MVPs and a World Series. If that weren’t enough, he also finished in the top five in MVP voting eight of the nine years he’s been in the league, finishing the decade batting .334 with 366 home runs.

Honorable Mention: Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera

Manager of the Decade

Joe Torre —Torre could easily have been considered the manager of the last decade as well. He won the first World Series of the decade and appeared in two others. Although only one championship in eight years is considered a failure by some with the Yankees, his streak of making the playoffs every year of this decade—with two different franchises—is simply remarkable.

Honorable Mention: Tony LaRussa, Terry Francona, Charlie Manuel

Team of the Decade

New York Yankees —The Yankees expect to win the World Series every year. They spend the most money and get the most attention, and sometimes that attention is deserved. The Yankees book ended the decade with championships in 2000 and 2009, and also won two more pennants while missing the playoffs only once.

Honorable Mention: Boston Red Sox, St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies

NFL

Player of the Decade

Peyton Manning — Manning won three MVPs during the decade (tied for most ever), and could be looking at his fourth this year. He threw for at least 4,000 yards in eight of nine seasons and is on his way to a ninth this year as well. All this while not missing a start the entire decade. He has only won one Super Bowl to date, but that’s already more than Dan Marino and Dan Fouts combined.

Honorable Mention: Tom Brady, Ladanian Tomlinson

Coach of the Decade

Bill Belichick —Before this decade began, a Bill Belichick coached team had never won more than 11 games in a season. In this decade Belichick took the Patriots to a 12 win season, two 14 win seasons, and the memorable 16-0 season of 2007. He also matched his previous best 11 twice while winning three Super Bowls and appearing in another.

Honorable Mention: Tony Dungy, Andy Reid, Jeff Fisher

Team of the Decade

New England Patriots —The Patriots memorable Cinderella run to a Super Bowl championship in 2001 appeared to be a fluke when the team failed to reach the playoffs the following year. But the Patriots rebounded around its curmudgeonly coach and poster-boy quarterback to win back-to-back Super Bowls in 2003 and 2004. The undefeated season of 2007 ended in disappointment, yet the achievement is still remarkable. The Patriots defined success in the NFL in the 2000s.

Honorable Mention: Indianapolis Colts, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers

College Basketball

Player of the Decade

Tyler Hansbrough —Hansbrough played all four years for North Carolina, winning Freshman of the Year in 2006 and National Player of the Year in 2008. Hansbrough validated his decision to stay in school his senior year by finally winning his elusive National Championship. The Tar Heel also finished his career as the ACC’s all-time leading scorer and had his number retired by the legendary program.

Honorable Mention: J.J. Reddick, Jay Williams, Candace Parker

Coach of the Decade

Roy Williams —Amazingly, Roy Williams has already reached 600 wins in his head coaching career. Williams reached a remarkable five Final Fours in the decade coaching the Kansas Jayhawks and North Carolina Tar Heels. Williams was an Hakeem Warrick block away from a National Championship with the Jayhawks in 2003 before winning two championships only three seasons apart with two entirely different rosters with the Tar Heels.

Honorable Mention: Tom Izzo, Mike Krzyzewski,

Team of the Decade

North Carolina Tar Heels —One could easily make the case that the Michigan State Spartans were the best team of this decade, making four appearances in the Final Four. The Tar Heels’ are remembered largely for missing the NCAA Tournament two years in a row to begin the decade. However, the Heels made four Final Fours of their own under two different coaches, winning National Championships in 2005 and 2009. The disaster that was Matt Doherty is now in the distant past as North Carolina wrapped up yet another successful decade of college basketball.

Honorable Mention: Michigan State Spartans , Florida Gators, Connecticut Huskies

College Football

Player of the Decade

Tim Tebow —Football’s golden god hasn’t even finished his collegiate career and already he’s being touted as one of the best college football players of all time. He was a part of one National Championship team, led his team to another, won the Heisman Trophy as a Sophomore and will finish his career as a three-time Heisman finalist, possible two-time winner and has a great chance of winning a third National Championship. During this time, Tebow also broke Herschel Walker’s SEC record for rushing touchdowns. No matter how this season finishes, Tebow has secured his place in the college football history books.

Honorable Mention: Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, Paul Posluszny

Coach of the Decade

Urban Meyer — Meyer coached three different programs in the decade, won BCS Bowl games with two different teams, and won two National Championships with two different starting quarterbacks. Meyer brought the Utah program to national respectability before making Florida one of the more dominant programs of the decade. Meyer hasn’t finished writing his story as the Gators haven’t lost a game in the 2009 season at the time of this writing. He could well be on his way to a third championship in the early days of the next decade.

Honorable Mention: Pete Carroll, Jim Tressel, Nick Saban

Team of the Decade

Southern California — Despite the Florida Gators’ success to close out the decade, USC was the dominant team throughout. The Trojans won two consecutive National Championships, narrowly losing a third. The program produced three Heisman Trophy winners, 14 first round draft picks, and finished in the top five in both the AP and USA Today polls eight times.

Honorable Mention: Florida Gators, LSU Tigers, Ohio State Buckeyes

Tennis

Player of the Decade

Roger Federer — Federer’s remarkable decade is beyond compare in the history of tennis. Not only did he win more major tournaments than anyone else this decade, he won more than any player in any decade or any career. Federer’s run of 15 major championships between 2003 and 2009 also included a record run of 22 consecutive majors in which he at least reached the semi-finals. Federer became just the sixth player in history to win every major in his career and reached the finals of five more. Federer’s record breaking career is far from over and the consistency and efficiency in which he racked up achievements leaves many tennis experts lauding him as the best of all time.

Honorable Mention: Rafael Nadal, Serena Williams

Golf

Player of the Decade

Tiger Woods —Tiger Woods failed to win a major in 2009, a feat so out of the ordinary it generated headlines across the country. Twelve of Tiger’s 14 major championships came in this decade, along with being named PGA Player of the Year seven times. Woods has established himself as the best golfer of his generation and perhaps the best of all time. His courageous performance against Rocco Mediate in a playoff round at the 2008 U.S. Open was merely a footnote in Tiger’s incredible growing legacy.

Honorable Mention: Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Padraig Harrington