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NCAA Basketball: Top 15 head coaches on the rise entering 2023-24 season

By Cole Amundson

Dec 14, 2021; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; Furman Paladins head coach Bob Richey in the second half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 14, 2021; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; Furman Paladins head coach Bob Richey in the second half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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Drake Bulldogs head coach Darian DeVries Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
Drake Bulldogs head coach Darian DeVries Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports /

5. Niko Medved, Colorado State

Although Niko Medved’s Colorado State Rams struggled last season, his proven ability to rebuild three programs in a short amount of time will raise intriguing eyebrows to many AD’s across the country. The Minneapolis native started his head coaching journey at Furman, taking the Paladins from nine wins in his first season to 23 in his fourth. Medved would end up taking the job at Drake for one single season, guiding the Bulldogs to a 17-win season after a woeful 7-win season in 2016-2017.

Medved would then return to Fort Collins — where he was an assistant under former Rams coach Tim Miles from 2007 to 2013 — and notably guided the Rams to a 6-seed in the 2022 NCAA Tournament where they would fall to Michigan in the Round of 64. Medved will certainly be in the mix for power-five jobs in the future. It’s now a matter of whether he will entertain such offers.

4. Darian DeVries, Drake

Darian DeVries, who spent 17 seasons (20 years on staff) as an assistant at Creighton under Dana Altman and Gregg McDermott, now enters his sixth year with hopes of leading the Drake Bulldogs to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. The 2018-19 and 2020-21 Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year even coaches his son — Tucker Devries — who earned the 2022-2023 Missouri Valley Player of the Year Award.

The father-son-duo is back in Des Moines for the 2023-2024 season — giving continued unwavering excitement for the Bulldogs basketball program. DeVries will certainly be a hot name to watch out for when the coaching carousel starts to spin in March/April 2024.

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