Four Quality Quotes From Four Final Four Coaches

• By Grant Young

Spring is a great time for basketball coaches to reflect on how their season went. These quiet moments off the court and out of practice present the perfect opportunity to analyze what went well so that it can be built upon in the future, and what went awry so that it can be fixed quickly. 

Yet, even if the season ended in resounding success, great coaches can always find a way to improve. Just take it from Dan Hurley, Nate Oats, Jay Wright, and Kim Mulkey. 

All four of these college coaches have made it to the Final Four, with three of them leading their teams to the Final Four of the 2024 NCAA Tournament. And they’re still discovering ways to become a better version of themselves with each passing day.

CoachTube has courses from all four Final Four coaches, and we have pulled four quotes that any coach can learn from. We’re going to take a closer look at each one, allowing you to unpack the wisdom within and take tidbits to utilize in your own coaching strategy.

Dan Hurley - “Having good transition defense, ball screen defense and closeouts are the easiest ways to having a winning team.”

Dan Hurley is fresh off of winning the 2024 NCAA Championship with the UConn Huskies. He also won the 2023 NCAA Championship, and is the most in-demand college basketball coach in the world right now. 

It’s no secret that Hurley prides himself on defense. His teams are always some of the most disciplined on defense, especially when it comes to the fundamentals. And the above quote — which comes from his ‘UConn’s Defensive Principles’ course — is a testament to that. 

Hurley emphasizing transition defense, ball screen defense and closeouts make a ton of sense, especially in the college game. Because college basketball is a game of momentum and features exceptional athletes, solid transition offense and defense can be the difference between winning and losing. If a team can stop easy transition baskets and make their opponents work for every point that’s shown on the scoreboard, they’ll often find a way to win. This is also why closeouts and ball screen defense. 

Perhaps most important is that these defensive techniques are something that should take place every practice. Yet, it’s easy for players to go through the motions in practice, because they’re done it so many times. But coaches who keep their players accountable in practice will see them shine when it matters most. 

Nate Oats - “These are our five non-negotiables: Talk, Sprint, Stance, Ball Pressure, and Finish.” 

Alabama head coach Nate Oats just led his team to a Cinderella run during March Madness, where the Crimson Tide made it all the way to the Final Four before losing to Hurley’s Huskies. 

Oats tries to keep it simple when it comes to his defensive philosophies, which is proven on his Coaching School - Play Fast’ course from back when he was the head coach at University of Buffalo.

We want to focus on the first and last of Oats’ non-negotiables, because these are cultural pillars that every coach needs to employ. Talk between players isn’t just important because it helps with defensive alignment. It also instills camaraderie and cohesiveness between a team. And teaching players to finish everything — the play, the game, their homework assignments — is teaching them discipline. And teaching discipline is teaching them what it takes to be a successful man or woman in the world. 

These non-negotiables are surely something every coach can bring to their own team and help construct a successful culture.  

Jay Wright - “You never want your players to be confused.”

Prior to retiring in 2022, Jay Wright led Villanova University to four Final Fours (2009, 2016, 2018, 2022) and won two national championships in 2016 and 2018. The dynasty that he created was contingent on communication. Not only communication between his players, but communication within his entire program, from top to bottom. 

Wright’s quote about not wanting players to be confused — which comes from his ‘Villanova Defense — is a great one, because coaches often want to overcomplicate concepts and techniques to their players. Sometimes, it’s easy to forget that these are kids we’re talking to. The more simple we can make our message, the less confused they will be, and the easier it will become for them to implement that message into their performance. 

Making a message simple as can be is also a way for coaches to sharpen their own communication skills. And it sets an example of straightforward, understandable talk within a team. Promoting playing on the same page is a quality that all coaches should possess in spades.

Kim Mulkey - “You have to have a core base of who you are as a head coach.”

LSU women’s head coach Kim Mulkey won the 2023 NCAA Championship, and then led her team to the 2024 Final Four, where they were defeated by Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes. 

Mulkey had one of the loudest personalities in all of college basketball. Yet, this quote from her Quick Hitters & In Bound Plays’ course proves that there’s a method to what sometimes seems like madness. 

No two coaches can be the same, because every coach has a different personality. The same goes with two teams. One season’s team will have different personalities than the next, and will demand a different team identity as a result. 

A coach can harness these differences into success, if they can understand how their own personality influences that of their players and coaching staff. Regardless of whether you’re the head coach or an assistant, your ability to use your authentic and distinct personality to your advantage will help your team win games. It will also create a better team atmosphere, too. 

Perhaps Mulkey’s sense of style on the sidelines isn’t for you. But that doesn’t mean you can’t show the world some of yourself, as well. 

We hope you’ve been able to take something from these four quotes from four Final Four coaches, and use it to produce even more success next season.