Top 5 Friday...Best College Basketball Coaches under 50

We have started our "Top 5 Friday" and this week we're looking at the Top 5 College Basketball Coaches under 50 years old. With March Madness in full madness, this is a perfect time to explore who the best young coaches are.

5- Buzz Williams Virgina Tech
Aside from being probably one of the sweatiest coaches in college basketball, he is also one of the most passionate coaches. He continuously has his programs competitive and playing hard. He hasn't gotten to the promise land yet, but he is still young enough (42) to get a few opportunities. He might, however, need to tone down the jumping and plyometrics on the sidelines as he continues to get older.


4-Fred Hoiberg Iowa State

This district attorney for Gotham...O wait, it's not the same guy? Sorry I thought that they were the same person. Anyways, Hoiberg has taken Iowa State from a relatively unknown school to a team that is always relevant come March! He has done a great job with this program and at the young age of 42, has plenty of time left to build on his success...And save Gotham!


3- Shaka Smart VCU
I think if there was one college coach I would want to play for, it would be Smart. He not only loves the in-your-face style of defense, but he seems to engage with his players unlike other coaches in todays era. He has an energy and grit to him that makes him desirable to play for. He has done wonders for VCU and put them on the map in terms of an Atlantic 10 powerhouse.



2- Archie Miller Dayton
Younger brother of Sean Miller, it seems as though the Miller family just breeds great coaches. Archie has turned Dayton into one of the best teams in the A10 and consistently they are dancing come March. As unfortunate as it is, he might be so good for Dayton that other, bigger programs could try to scoop him up for more $$$. As an alum of an A10 team myself, THE ST. BONAVENTURE BONNIES, I hope he stays because he is great for the Atlantic 10 and Dayton.

1- Sean Miller Arizona
The OLDER brother of Archie Miller, this guy can straight coach! He got his start at Xavier where he basically dominated the A10 conference for a few years. He got his big break being hired at Arizona trying to fill the shoes of the great Lute Olsen. It's a tough task to follow a legend, however, Miller is paving his own way in leading his Wildcats to yet another Sweet 16 with aspirations higher than that! Miller (S) is in a fantastic spot to continue a run of greatness being at a big-time school while also being wildly successful! This is the type of situation I could see playing out for his younger brother Archie in the near future.

PS...Do those eyes not just SCREAM success!?

Throwdown Thursday - Fore!!

Throwdown - Alternate Shot (9 holes)

Matchup - Mcilroy & Barkley vs. Barker & Gilmore

The NBA is evolving, and THE FLOP is leading the way.

As someone who has watched basketball for over 20 years, played basketball both competitively and for fun, and also currently coaches, I've found it incredibly disheartening to see the evolution of basketball the past 20 years. It's gone from the physical "grit and grind" type game it was with the Bad Boy Pistons, to the "clear path" nonsense its become. Leading the attack in how soft the NBA has become...THE FLOP.

The art of The Flop was perfected by guys like Vlade Divac and continued by Manu Ginobili and others- a lot of foreign players who probably learned The Flop from the soccer field. Let's be honest, European players are much more prone to The Flop due to the incessant acting that they see/participate in as they are growing up playing soccer. It obviously parlays over to the basketball court and has taken the NBA by storm. It is comical to now see guys like James Harden, Chris Paul and even Lebron James do ANYTHING they can to get a competitive advantage. These are some of the best players in the NBA and they are throwing themselves out of bounds and flailing their arms and bodies all over the court, just to get to the line or draw a foul. When one isn't called, they act as though everyone else is stupid when in fact, its them who look like clowns. I can almost guarantee that Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and players from the early 90's are shaking their heads when they see this pathetic display of "competition." 

Right now, there are only a few of the "old school" mentality type of players left. Kobe, Duncan, The Truth Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, are guys that have competed the right way and won championships. This new-school wave of players is more worried about the amount of twitter followers they have, rather than how many rings they are trying to get. The Flop is a symbol of where the NBA is going. The NBA is moving to a league where its damn near impossible to get physical with anyone without it being a foul/flagrant/suspension. THEY REVIEW EVERYTHING! I can only imagine what they would call common fouls from the late 80s/early 90s right now. Clear path fouls. Flagrant 1. All these ridiculous terms that have been implemented for whatever reason are watering down this great game. It's getting so bad that I have kids on my 6th-8th grade team who ask me, "should I work on my flopping to try to get calls?" I made them run 5 suicides for that comment!

Adam Silver seems like he is going to do right by the NBA. He was given a product that is getting worse in my opinion. I understand that David Stern did a lot to revive the NBA from the mid-80s, however, where the NBA is now is not where the saviors of MJ, Bird and Magic wanted it to be. The NHL embraces fighting and the NFL is obviously a contact sport. Why is the NBA so afraid of a little contact, pushing and shoving and a scuffle from time to time? 

I don't know whats wrong with a little physicality! 

Back to the Future - Tiger Woods 2015

You would be hard pressed to find even a casual PGA fan that wouldn't argue that at one point, Tiger Woods had the game of Golf by the fingertips. When he wasn't atop the leaderboard, you would hear more rumbles of "Where's Tiger" than "Who's actually winning" (and to some degree, this is still the case). Since then and in the wake of other off-course issues, Tiger Woods now finds himself a 39 year old 14 time Major winner nursing a few strains, bumps & bruises and looking to find his former self (on the course at least..) and make his comeback.

In that sense, once left to wonder, is Tigers former self good enough? Sounds crazy I know, but so long are the days where Tiger will have the tournaments won on the first tee based on his physical skills and dedication alone. You can't ignore what Tiger has done for the game of golf but if there is a comeback to be had, Tiger not only has to find his game from the glory days, but he would be foolish to think even if he does, Sundays would be a runaway victory. 

Believe it or not, Tiger has himself to thank for this. In essentially captivating the world and putting golf back on the map, Tigers fame gave rise to the now generation of Golfers looking to follow in the footsteps of their childhood idol and steal the headlines. McIlroy, Fowler, Johnson, Scott, Day, Spieth, Kaymer to name a few.

While many experts argue that Tiger is "finished" and that his fall from immortality was inevitable, others see Tiger primed for a second act in 2015 and after all, who doesn't like a good comeback story. I can't say that Tiger is down for the count. Also can't say I'm pulling for the guy to be a lifer on the DNP list plagued with injuries. What I can say though is that IF Tiger is able to return back to his former self, there are a gauntlet of young talented players that are primed to steal his thunder and one is left to wonder - will the Tiger of old be good enough to dethrone the new era field that now stands in his way of Major #15..? Golf season is again upon us! Chapter 1: The Masters - April 9th 

16 teams left, what if we were to build a starting five of the best players remaining?

PG - Jerian Grant - Notre Dame



Honorable Mention - T.J McConnell - Arizona, Delon Wright - Utah, Travis Trice - MSU



This position is absolutely stacked.   So much so that you could have gone in a few different directions here.  Kevin Pangos doesn't even make the cut nor does Terry Rozier who has been lights out.  I decided to leave Terry off the list because he just recently got thrown into the PG spot with the cutting of Chris Jones at Lville.  Marcus Paige has been solid too as has Tyus Jones from Duke.  However, at the end of the day Jerian Grant poses the biggest threat at the PG position.  He is probably the best pro prospect of any of these guys and one that can put ND on his back.  Love TJ, Delon and Travis as well.  It's going to be a great seeing all of these guys battle against each other moving forward.



SG - Buddy Hield - Oklahoma



Honorable Mention - Aaron Harrison - Kentucky, Norman Powell - UCLA



Was hoping GA State could pull out the win on Saturday so we could have put RJ Hunter at the top of the list but Buddy Hield isn't a bad option.  One of the better pure shooters in college basketball Buddy can take over any game with his abilities.  This kid from the Bahahmas looks like he will transition nicely into the NBA.  Hield’s a big reason why Oklahoma is in its first sweet 16 since the days of Blake Griffin back in 09'.



SF - Stanley Johnson - Arizona



Honorable Mention - Sam Dekker - Wisconsin, Rondae Hollis - Jefferson - Arizona, Pat Connaughton - Notre Dame



Another position with some solid depth.  Brandon Dawson from MSU is a name that you don't see on this list that very well could have been.  The other three Honorable Mentions are great players in their own right but Stanley Johnson is the cream of the crop.  6'8 freshman that can do a little bit of everything, going 4-5 from three in Arizona's first matchup and grabbing 10 boards on Saturday against OSU. He blocks shots, comes up with big time steals - this guy can really impact a game.  Arizona has 4 legit NBA prospects and that doesn't even include TJ McConnell (see above).



PF - Karl -Anthony Towns - Kentucky



Honorable Mention - Trey Lyles - Kentucky, Domantas Sabonis - Gonzaga, Kyle Wiltjer - Gonzaga



KAT is one of the more dynamic big men we have seen in quite some time. 7 Footer that can run the floor extremely well, likely to be the first or second pick in this coming draft.  Love Wiltjer's game being able to step out and hit from 3 but I just don't think he or anyone else can make the impact that Karl does on the defensive end.



C - Jahlil Okafor - Duke



Honorable Mention - Frank Kaminsky - Wisconsin, Willie Cauley - Stein - Kentucky, TaShawn Thomas - Oklahoma



Toss up in my opinion between Kaminsky and Okafor.  You can’t really going wrong with either guy but the reason I went with Okafor was based purely on their success so far in this tournament.  Both guys have been phenomenal but Okafor is a whopping 21-27 from the field so far in this tournament!  Duke will make it to the final four if he keeps putting the ball through the hoop at that clip.



Thoughts?  Anyone I leave out?

Happy Monday