CBS Sports college basketball insiders Gary Parrish and Matt Norlander spent a month surveying 100-plus Division I men’s basketball coaches for our annual Candid Coaches series. They polled across the sport’s landscape: some of the biggest names in college basketball, but also small-school assistants in low-major leagues. Coaches agreed to share unfiltered opinions in exchange for anonymity. We asked them 10 questions and will post the results over a three-week span.
Our annual Candid Coaches series usually features 10 questions, most of which are designed to touch on topical issues that often change from one year to the next. But we also have questions that we bring back every year because it’s always nice to hear which teams and players and hires that coaches appreciate.
We’ve already published a couple of those this week.
Which school do coaches believe will win the 2025 NCAA Tournament? Kansas, they told us.
Who do coaches believe will be the sport’s best player this season? Duke’s Cooper Flagg, they told us.
Today, we’re publishing the results from a third question that we ask every offseason.
Who was the best high-major coaching hire of 2024?
John Calipari (Arkansas)43.4%Dusty May (Michigan)21.7%Mark Pope (Kentucky)8.5%Pat Kelsey (Louisville)4.7%Kevin Young (BYU)4.7%Kyle Smith (Stanford)3.8%
Others receiving votes: Jake Diebler (Ohio State), Darian DeVries (West Virginia), Andy Enfield (SMU), Chris Holtmann (DePaul), Steve Lutz (Oklahoma State), Eric Musselman (USC), Danny Sprinkle (Washington)
Quotes that stood out
On John Calipari
“Calipari is the best hire. [His] track record at every stop is the highest level of the sport. … Arkansas may sneak into his best stop with all the power in reserves and fans. And the backdrop of less attention [will give] him some freedom to breathe. He will enjoy it there more.””Only Hall of Fame guy someone hired. Period.””Cal stayed too long at Kentucky……
