No Playing Pedigree: Many Coaches Didn't Don Jersey Before Sideline Suit
August 19th, 2017 - 8:28
You don't need to be a great player to be a great coach. In fact, you don't need to play at all. Nearly 20% of the active NCAA Division I coaches graduated from colleges where they didn't compete for the institution in basketball. Three of the 2017 Final Four mentors were in this category.
There is no textbook career path to becoming a coach. Indiana's Branch McCracken is the only one of 58 All-Americans who became major-college mentors to compile a higher winning percentage as a coach than as a player (.588 as IU player from 1927-28 through 1929-30; .677 as Hoosiers coach in 24 seasons from 1938-39 to 1964-65). Proving you don't have to don a jersey to be successful as a bench boss, the following alphabetical list of active DI coaches didn't play competitive basketball for a four-year college: