Blog Wars: College coach into NBA

Which college coach would fare best in the NBA?

Brian Feldt
Although he has already proven himself at the NBA level, I’ll take the easy way out and say Rick Pitino, who currently coaches the Louisville Cardinals. Pitino coached the Knicks and Celtics for a while and had a decent rack record. His 88-89 team went 52-30 and made a trip to the conference semifinals. Since he has already proved he can perform at the next level, and has added years and years of experience to his resume, I think Pitino could handle the NBA if the chance came around. There was talk that his style was too aggressive for the NBA, but I think there could be some teams that would buy into. Or at least if an ownership gave him enough years, he could build a team around a draft that would support his theories.

Derek Robbins
I’m going to have to go with coach Mike Krzyzewski. On top of having a ridiculously hard name to spell, he’s also a guy who a lot of NBA talent respect. Kobe Bryant, a guy who didn’t even go to college, has admitted to wanting to play for Coach K. He leapt at the ability to do so in the Olympics. It is my belief that if Coach K decided to take a leap into the pros, a lot of other players would come out of the woodwork and express their desire to play for the man. I know, I know, having the best talent does not equal having the best coaching. That said, if you can recruit talent to your team on name-sake alone perhaps you don’t need to coach well. Coach K has that. He wins.

Sean McGahan
John Calipari is the perfect grease ball to return to the big show. His hair alone qualifies him for the NBA sidelines. Although his previous NBA record doesn't shine, people forget he took a sub par Nets team above .500 and was fired by a quick-trigger-fingered GM. He's proven he can develop NBA talent (Derrick Rose, Marcus Camby) and is obviously a ladder climber.

Ryan Voyles
Why not go with the man of the hour, North Carolina’s Roy Williams. He’s been a proven winner for over thirty years, and now that North Carolina has become a shoe-in for the Final Four every year, maybe it is time for him to move on. Sure he has no experience in professional basketball to speak of, but being at North Carolina certainly is better than coaching the Charlotte Bobcats. Why not give him a chance with the big boys, he has nothing to prove at the collegiate level anymore.