Five Best Coaching Trees In College Basketball

1. Rick Pitino, Louisville

Mar 22, 2014; Orlando, FL, USA; Louisville Cardinals head coach Rick Pitino reacts in the second half of a men

Notable Proteges: Billy Donovan (Florida), Tubby Smith (Texas Tech), Travis Ford (Oklahoma State), Herb Sendek (Arizona State), Mick Cronin (Cincinnati), Frank Vogel (Indiana Pacers)

Why He’s a Great Mentor: Pitino exudes passion, intensity and bravado.  His teams play with those qualities so it is no wonder his former assistants coach with those qualities as well.  Pitino surrounds himself with basketball junkies that would probably coach for free.  More than titles and full court pressure, developing passionate players and coaches is Pitino’s legacy.

Why He’s Here: A comprehensive list of Pitino proteges that dug even deeper into the levels of coaches his proteges have also spawned would require more bandwidth.  The branches of Pitino’s tree reach across every level of basketball and into virtually every conference in America. Pitino’s tree is atop the list because of depth and championships. Not only his, but those of Smith and Donovan. And without a doubt this tree will produce future titles.