Ivy League Basketball: Top 10 head coaches of the century (2000-20)
By Joey Loose
5. John Thompson III – Princeton (2000-2004)
It’s no surprise that another Princeton coach lands on the list, and Thompson is another clear disciple of the Princeton offense learned under Carril. Like virtually every other Princeton coach of the last few decades, Thompson was part of that 1996 team that upset UCLA, but we’ll focus on Thompson’s four years as head coach of the Tigers.
Thompson played a major role in the years before his promotion, so we can give him a ton of credit for Princeton’s success during these years. Across those four seasons, the Tigers made two NCAA Tournaments, an NIT appearance, and went 45-11 in the Ivy League. They finished atop the Ivy League in three of those seasons and were a clear contender on a yearly basis. Neither NCAA Tournament game was particularly close, but the fact that Thompson got them there is impressive enough.
We could talk for a long time about Thompson’s years at Georgetown (he made a Final Four after all), but his years at Princeton alone were incredibly impressive. Any coach who wins 80% of their conference games is doing something right. Thompson did a fantastic job of continuing the dominance of this Princeton program, even if successor Joe Scott couldn’t quite take advantage himself.