NCAA Basketball: 10 best head coaching hires of 2023 offseason

7. Mark Madsen (California)

It’s hard to believe that these Golden Bears were in the NCAA Tournament as recently as 2016 because this has been quite possibly the worst power conference program in recent years. California has finished below .500 for six straight years, bottoming out with a 3-29 mark this past year. Recent coaches Wyking Jones and Mark Fox did not get the job done, but there’s certainly reason for new optimism in Berkeley.

Madsen starred at Stanford in the late 90’s before spending just under a decade playing in the NBA. He also had a 6-year stint on the Lakers’ coaching staff before beginning his head coaching career at Utah Valley in 2019. He won a pair of WAC regular season titles with the Wolverines and led Utah Valley to a 28-9 mark this past season. This program is trending in a great direction, but could Madsen do the same in the Pac-12?

With Stanford basketball in uneasy shape, it’s stunning to see Madsen being hired by his alma mater’s bitterest rivals, but they truly are winners of this offseason. Madsen has done a marvelous job recruiting and coaching in recent years with the Wolverines, plus he has all that experience in the NBA. He’s spent nearly a decade as a player or coach with the Lakers and will now hope to bring winning basketball to northern California.