Niko should be in Big Ten coach of the year mix

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MNVCGUY

MNVCGUY

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Considering the way this team is playing with such a short bench and ridiculously bad luck on the injury front, Niko should at the very least be a finalist for Big Ten coach of the year. Hoiberg or someone else will win it but Niko has done a hell of a job given what he has had to work with.

I don't care who you are playing....you should not be able to dominate Big Ten teams with the roster we have right now.
 

I agree completely, but that agreement will largely be central to Gopher fans. My money would be on Hoiberg. Ben Mccollum would likely be considered ahead of Niko as well in most circles.
But with what Niko has done with what he has, 2 top 20 wins, numerous single possession losses, 6 Big Ten wins he'd have my vote. Culture change. He's developed Reynolds into an All B1G defender, a really good playmaker, Asuma has developed throughout the year, Grove's improvement has been huge this year as well. Bright future. Hopefully we can get to some sort of post season tournament.
 

What is the obsession with mediocrity here? People said the same thing about Ben Johnson because they played okay for a few months his first year instead of being the worst team in college basketball It's weird.

Niko's done a good job considering the dearth of talent he inherited, but you don't get to be Big Ten Coach of the Year because you took over a terrible program and are sitting in 12th in a very top heavy conference.

We don't need to overrate every little thing. The team still is playing 6 guys like Ben Johnson did too. That's not sustainable. Hopefully next years team actually has some depth with Niko getting plenty more time to recruit, because players get hurt every year. Losing 2 or 3 guys isn't a good enough reason to have 6 playable Division 1 guys.

I like Niko. He's been fine for how bad the situation was. But there's at least a handful of coaches more deserving assuming this is where the Gophers finish.
 

GoGophs2275 said:
What is the obsession with mediocrity here? People said the same thing about Ben Johnson because they played okay for a few months his first year instead of being the worst team in college basketball It's weird.

Niko's done a good job considering the dearth of talent he inherited, but you don't get to be Big Ten Coach of the Year because you took over a terrible program and are sitting in 12th in a very top heavy conference.

We don't need to overrate every little thing. The team still is playing 6 guys like Ben Johnson did too. That's not sustainable. Hopefully next years team actually has some depth with Niko getting plenty more time to recruit, because players get hurt every year. Losing 2 or 3 guys isn't a good enough reason to have 6 playable Division 1 guys.

I like Niko. He's been fine for how bad the situation was. But there's at least a handful of coaches more deserving assuming this is where the Gophers finish.
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There’s not really an objective criteria of what makes someone the best coach, so it’s not unreasonable to celebrate what this team has done given the lack of talent and injuries. If we look like this in a couple years we can all rip Niko for not putting together a deeper roster, but for the time being he has done an excellent job.
 

Preseason poll had us at 16th and we are currently 12th. Nebraska was picked 14th, and are 5th.

It might be more impressive that we have done that while losing 4 of our top 8 players, but it's not enough for him to win coach of the year.
 



GoGophs2275 said:
What is the obsession with mediocrity here? People said the same thing about Ben Johnson because they played okay for a few months his first year instead of being the worst team in college basketball It's weird.

Niko's done a good job considering the dearth of talent he inherited, but you don't get to be Big Ten Coach of the Year because you took over a terrible program and are sitting in 12th in a very top heavy conference.

We don't need to overrate every little thing. The team still is playing 6 guys like Ben Johnson did too. That's not sustainable. Hopefully next years team actually has some depth with Niko getting plenty more time to recruit, because players get hurt every year. Losing 2 or 3 guys isn't a good enough reason to have 6 playable Division 1 guys.

I like Niko. He's been fine for how bad the situation was. But there's at least a handful of coaches more deserving assuming this is where the Gophers finish.
Click to expand...
Wait a minute…. P. Reusse? Is that you?
 

MNVCGUY said:
Considering the way this team is playing with such a short bench and ridiculously bad luck on the injury front, Niko should at the very least be a finalist for Big Ten coach of the year. Hoiberg or someone else will win it but Niko has done a hell of a job given what he has had to work with.

I don't care who you are playing....you should not be able to dominate Big Ten teams with the roster we have right now.
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A lot of people will look at Minnesota and see a team that is going to win about as many Big 10 games as expected and not notice how depleted the team is. Let’s keep it that way. The record will be about the same as CBJ had last year but I’ve been impressed with Niko’s coaching. And there will be a metric sh!t ton of P5 openings. I’d rather Niko not pop up on anyone else’s radar.

As far as COY goes, it’s gotta be Hoiberg and May 1-2 in some order, and anything else is madness. But really, the COY award is no more valuable than a World’s Greatest Grandpa t-shirt.
 

GoGophs2275 said:
What is the obsession with mediocrity here? People said the same thing about Ben Johnson because they played okay for a few months his first year instead of being the worst team in college basketball It's weird.

Niko's done a good job considering the dearth of talent he inherited, but you don't get to be Big Ten Coach of the Year because you took over a terrible program and are sitting in 12th in a very top heavy conference.

We don't need to overrate every little thing. The team still is playing 6 guys like Ben Johnson did too. That's not sustainable. Hopefully next years team actually has some depth with Niko getting plenty more time to recruit, because players get hurt every year. Losing 2 or 3 guys isn't a good enough reason to have 6 playable Division 1 guys.

I like Niko. He's been fine for how bad the situation was. But there's at least a handful of coaches more deserving assuming this is where the Gophers finish.
Click to expand...
First off - Never said Niko should win it (don't think he will) just that he should be in the mix because the coaching job he has done this year has been very impressive given how well the team has played with how short handed we are.

And secondly.....we haven't lost 2-3 guys we have lost 5 or 6 - Willis, Vaihola, Omot, Stephens, Turner, JCJ. We aren't short handed because we have a roster full of garbage we are short handed because of injuries.

Saying Niko has done a good coaching job this year isn't about embracing mediocrity it is about acknowledging that he has done a good job navigating a really tough roster situation and keeping the team competitive on a night in and night out basis. And if you watch the team play you can tell they are a really well coached group based on how they execute. You couldn't really say that about any of Ben's teams.
 



Gophers1992 said:
There’s not really an objective criteria of what makes someone the best coach, so it’s not unreasonable to celebrate what this team has done given the lack of talent and injuries. If we look like this in a couple years we can all rip Niko for not putting together a deeper roster, but for the time being he has done an excellent job.
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What he's done can be celebrated without making a mockery of the BIG COY award. He should not be in the running when you have other coaching jobs in the conference that have been much better.
 

mnhoopboy said:
What he's done can be celebrated without making a mockery of the BIG COY award. He should not be in the running when you have other coaching jobs in the conference that have been much better.
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COY awards are a joke in all sports as it is. In most cases it’s “guy who’s team we thought would be bad but actually they were good”

I’m not going to campaign for Niko to win the award I’m just saying there is a reasonable argument that he has been up there with the best of them in the B1G.
 

I think if we had closed out the Wisky game and then won against Maryland and Penn State as we should have- he would be right there for COY honors at the moment at 9-7. As it is no, but the guy is going to be a great coach here.
 

I am a big Niko guy. The Washington loss was the kind of loss Fleck is able to find each year though. We expect a win, but we cannot have nice things.
 



mnhoopboy said:
What he's done can be celebrated without making a mockery of the BIG COY award. He should not be in the running when you have other coaching jobs in the conference that have been much better.
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Yes, because B1G COY is second only to the Heisman in terms of prestige.
 

GoGophs2275 said:
What is the obsession with mediocrity here? People said the same thing about Ben Johnson because they played okay for a few months his first year instead of being the worst team in college basketball It's weird.

Niko's done a good job considering the dearth of talent he inherited, but you don't get to be Big Ten Coach of the Year because you took over a terrible program and are sitting in 12th in a very top heavy conference.

We don't need to overrate every little thing. The team still is playing 6 guys like Ben Johnson did too. That's not sustainable. Hopefully next years team actually has some depth with Niko getting plenty more time to recruit, because players get hurt every year. Losing 2 or 3 guys isn't a good enough reason to have 6 playable Division 1 guys.

I like Niko. He's been fine for how bad the situation was. But there's at least a handful of coaches more deserving assuming this is where the Gophers finish.
Click to expand...
Ben forever. Last place got him a raise after his first year. Magical season.
 


Ben Johnson went 7-13 last year in Big Ten play and ended 12th in the conference. He was 9-11 the year before.

I like the potential trajectory of Medved, but it’s not like we made any big leaps or turnarounds this year. He’s certainly capable of that award, I just don’t see the case for it this year. In this age of the portal he needs to put together a winning season to even be in consideration.
 

Gophers1992 said:
If we look like this in a couple years we can all rip Niko for not putting together a deeper roster, but for the time being he has done an excellent job.
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I agree he's done an excellent job. Perhaps he could have put together a better roster but it's not like he could have recruited 15 scholarship players to compensate for the six injuries.
 

Name someone in the conference who's done more with less. That is my question. Some have done more with more, yes.

That doesn't make him coach of the year, but it gets him votes and recognition. That's all I and the OP are saying.
 


Bad Gopher said:
Name someone in the conference who's done more with less. That is my question. Some have done more with more, yes.

That doesn't make him coach of the year, but it gets him votes and recognition. That's all I and the OP are saying.
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IMG_1408.jpeg
According to Gemini, Nebraska is the only team doing significantly more with less. Purdue and Wisconsin just slightly ahead in talent but much higher in the standings. Obviously this is a flawed look because the past HS recruiting is pretty much irrelevant for the gophers.
 

Bad Gopher said:
Name someone in the conference who's done more with less. That is my question. Some have done more with more, yes.

That doesn't make him coach of the year, but it gets him votes and recognition. That's all I and the OP are saying.
Click to expand...
IMG_1410.jpeg
Here’s another one looking at the recruiting rankings of the top 5 scorers on every team vs current standings. Nebraska and Purdue are the developmental model. Iowa and Wisconsin over performing as well.

Complete Big Ten Coaching Efficiency Rankings


Tier 1: The Maximizers (Elite ROI)


1. Fred Hoiberg (Nebraska): The gold standard of overachievement. He has taken the conference's least-heralded scoring core (3.0 stars) and coached them into a 3rd place standing.


2. Matt Painter (Purdue): Continues to win with continuity and development over portal stars. His 3.4-star core is currently sitting at 4th.


3. Dusty May (Michigan): Managing the league's highest expectations perfectly. He has blended elite talent (4.6 stars) into a cohesive unit that holds the 1st place spot.


4. Brad Underwood (Illinois): A high-floor coach who has his 4.2-star roster exactly where they should be—contending for a title in 2nd place.


5. Ben McCollum (Iowa): In his first year, he has proven his tactical genius translates to the Big Ten, coaching a 3.3-star core to a surprising 7th place.


6. Niko Medved (Minnesota): Despite historical recruiting struggles (3.1 stars), he has the Gophers playing competitive basketball at 12th in the standings.


Tier 2: The Stabilizers (On-Track)


7. Tom Izzo (Michigan State): The benchmark for the league. His 4.5-star roster is a perennial threat and currently sits at 5th.


8. Greg Gard (Wisconsin): Consistently keeps a mid-tier talent pool (3.6 stars) in the top third of the league, currently 6th.


9. Jake Diebler (Ohio State): Has provided stability in his first full season, with his 4.0-star core performing reliably at 8th.


10. Mick Cronin (UCLA): Navigating the transition well, keeping a 3.8-star roster in the top half of the conference at 9th.


11. Chris Collins (Northwestern): While 16th in the standings, his 3.2-star core is often limited by external factors; however, this year is a slight step back from his recent peak.


Tier 3: The Underachievers (Talent-Wins Gap)


12. Darian DeVries (Indiana): Despite landing high-tier scoring talent (4.4 stars), the Hoosiers have lacked the chemistry to climb out of 10th place.


13. Eric Musselman (USC): The most talented roster on paper (4.8-star top scorers) but currently the biggest underachiever at 11th in the standings.


14. Danny Sprinkle (Washington): Boasts an athletic 3.8-star core that hasn't found its rhythm in the Big Ten, currently sitting at 13th.


15. Steve Pikiell (Rutgers): While he landed a historic 2025 class (4.2 stars), the team has struggled with the physical conference slate, landing at 14th.


16. Buzz Williams (Maryland): Has yet to implement his system effectively with a 4.0-star roster that is currently underperforming at 15th.


17. Dana Altman (Oregon): A rare "down" year for a legendary coach. His 3.2-star core has found no traction in the B1G, sitting at 17th.


18. Mike Rhoades (Penn State): With a 3.4-star core that matches Purdue's talent profile, sitting at the very bottom (18th) represents a major gap in production.



Man AI is cool.
 
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GoGophs2275 said:
What is the obsession with mediocrity here? People said the same thing about Ben Johnson because they played okay for a few months his first year instead of being the worst team in college basketball It's weird.

Niko's done a good job considering the dearth of talent he inherited, but you don't get to be Big Ten Coach of the Year because you took over a terrible program and are sitting in 12th in a very top heavy conference.

We don't need to overrate every little thing. The team still is playing 6 guys like Ben Johnson did too. That's not sustainable. Hopefully next years team actually has some depth with Niko getting plenty more time to recruit, because players get hurt every year. Losing 2 or 3 guys isn't a good enough reason to have 6 playable Division 1 guys.

I like Niko. He's been fine for how bad the situation was. But there's at least a handful of coaches more deserving assuming this is where the Gophers finish.
Click to expand...
No matter how you view it he’s done a commendable job. Looking forward to the future.
 

Gold Vision said:
View attachment 42610
Here’s another one looking at the recruiting rankings of the top 5 scorers on every team vs current standings. Nebraska and Purdue are the developmental model. Iowa and Wisconsin over performing as well.

Complete Big Ten Coaching Efficiency Rankings


Tier 1: The Maximizers (Elite ROI)


1. Fred Hoiberg (Nebraska): The gold standard of overachievement. He has taken the conference's least-heralded scoring core (3.0 stars) and coached them into a 3rd place standing.


2. Matt Painter (Purdue): Continues to win with continuity and development over portal stars. His 3.4-star core is currently sitting at 4th.


3. Dusty May (Michigan): Managing the league's highest expectations perfectly. He has blended elite talent (4.6 stars) into a cohesive unit that holds the 1st place spot.


4. Brad Underwood (Illinois): A high-floor coach who has his 4.2-star roster exactly where they should be—contending for a title in 2nd place.


5. Ben McCollum (Iowa): In his first year, he has proven his tactical genius translates to the Big Ten, coaching a 3.3-star core to a surprising 7th place.


6. Niko Medved (Minnesota): Despite historical recruiting struggles (3.1 stars), he has the Gophers playing competitive basketball at 12th in the standings.


Tier 2: The Stabilizers (On-Track)


7. Tom Izzo (Michigan State): The benchmark for the league. His 4.5-star roster is a perennial threat and currently sits at 5th.


8. Greg Gard (Wisconsin): Consistently keeps a mid-tier talent pool (3.6 stars) in the top third of the league, currently 6th.


9. Jake Diebler (Ohio State): Has provided stability in his first full season, with his 4.0-star core performing reliably at 8th.


10. Mick Cronin (UCLA): Navigating the transition well, keeping a 3.8-star roster in the top half of the conference at 9th.


11. Chris Collins (Northwestern): While 16th in the standings, his 3.2-star core is often limited by external factors; however, this year is a slight step back from his recent peak.


Tier 3: The Underachievers (Talent-Wins Gap)


12. Darian DeVries (Indiana): Despite landing high-tier scoring talent (4.4 stars), the Hoosiers have lacked the chemistry to climb out of 10th place.


13. Eric Musselman (USC): The most talented roster on paper (4.8-star top scorers) but currently the biggest underachiever at 11th in the standings.


14. Danny Sprinkle (Washington): Boasts an athletic 3.8-star core that hasn't found its rhythm in the Big Ten, currently sitting at 13th.


15. Steve Pikiell (Rutgers): While he landed a historic 2025 class (4.2 stars), the team has struggled with the physical conference slate, landing at 14th.


16. Buzz Williams (Maryland): Has yet to implement his system effectively with a 4.0-star roster that is currently underperforming at 15th.


17. Dana Altman (Oregon): A rare "down" year for a legendary coach. His 3.2-star core has found no traction in the B1G, sitting at 17th.


18. Mike Rhoades (Penn State): With a 3.4-star core that matches Purdue's talent profile, sitting at the very bottom (18th) represents a major gap in production.



Man AI is cool.
Click to expand...
Interesting that we have the lowest average star roster (3.1) of anyone in the Big Ten.
 



GoGophs2275 said:
What is the obsession with mediocrity here? People said the same thing about Ben Johnson because they played okay for a few months his first year instead of being the worst team in college basketball It's weird.

Niko's done a good job considering the dearth of talent he inherited, but you don't get to be Big Ten Coach of the Year because you took over a terrible program and are sitting in 12th in a very top heavy conference.

We don't need to overrate every little thing. The team still is playing 6 guys like Ben Johnson did too. That's not sustainable. Hopefully next years team actually has some depth with Niko getting plenty more time to recruit, because players get hurt every year. Losing 2 or 3 guys isn't a good enough reason to have 6 playable Division 1 guys.

I like Niko. He's been fine for how bad the situation was. But there's at least a handful of coaches more deserving assuming this is where the Gophers finish.
Click to expand...
Worst take 2026
 



I have enjoyed watching Niko's offense this year, but little noted has been the fact that the defense has been really solid despite the team having almost zero rim protection. On Evan Miya the Gophs rank 60th in defense and that is being accomplished in a really tough league. We have certainly had teams that we could not stop but there just have not been many breakdowns where the opposition gets easy buckets in a row. The guys always get back on defense, preventing the easy runouts.
 

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