Why UGA's basketball coach thinks expanding the NCAA tournament is 'a fantastic idea'
The NCAA Tournament expanded to 68 teams in 2011. Georgia head coach Tom Crean wouldn’t mind if the field grew by another four teams in the near future.
In mid-May, the ACC suggested the idea of growing the NCAA Tournament from 68 teams to 72 teams. When asked about this possibility, Crean said he is “all for it.” In his eyes, anything that draws attention to college basketball’s postseason is good for the sport.
“I think it’s a fantastic idea,” Crean said. “We’re not talking about making it another week, right? I’m for anything that’s going to continue to bring more attention to it. You look at where it’s at right now. You look at the finances that are behind it, the sponsorships that are behind it, the TV coverage that is behind it. I don’t think there’s a downside to that.”
The potential ACC proposal would grant another group of four play-in games to potentially be played out West. As it stands, the First Four play-in games take place in Dayton, Ohio. The ACC's potential proposal would give the opening round eight games, which would be divided regionally, to kick off the NCAA Tournament.
At the SEC spring meetings, league coaches discussed the ACC's idea, to which commissioner Greg Sankey said there was a level of “support” for among the coaches.
Kentucky head coach John Calipari believes that expanding the field by four teams should occur only if it gives mid-major programs a better chance at being included. He doesn’t want the field to expand only to include additional Power 5 teams that didn’t have too strong of a season.
“If you’re saying to get more Power 5 teams in, no, don’t do it,” Calipari said. “If you’re doing it, and you say you’re going to do it for the mid-majors, the lower schools or the schools that don’t have a chance, tell me how you’re going to guarantee that. Don’t tell me you’re going to do it and then all of a sudden you have four new positions and three of them are from the Power 5. The 13th school (in a conference)? No, don’t do that. Leave it at 68.”
At the end of the day, Crean noted this decision will likely come down to the financial incentives at play.
“They’re going to make those decisions based on what’s going to grow college basketball, what’s going to grow the financial part of it and grow awareness of it around the world,” Crean said. “If they get to the point where they feel (expansion) does it, we’ll do it. If they don’t, we’ll stay with where we’re at.”
Long-range shooting
Crean’s offenses have historically been geared toward shooting the 3-pointer.
And when it comes to shooting the long ball, Crean wants his players accustomed to a next-level distance. In the practice gym, Crean made sure to put down an NBA 3-point line so that the players can can continue shooting the ball from that deep of a range. This is nothing new for the players, however, as the previous Georgia coaching staff also used an NBA 3-point line in practice.
The NBA 3-point line is 23 feet 9 inches from the arc and 22 feet from the corners. This is compared to the NCAA line of 20 feet 9 inches.
Crean said he would support the college game shifting to the NBA 3-point line.
“It’s rare when guys come in and know how to shoot an NBA 3,” Crean said. “And they’re not as comfortable with it – some are, but not as a whole. When they’re getting ready to go to the NBA, that becomes a whole new deal for them, to learn how to really space and knock down those kind of shots. I’m for the development of the game, being that part of it.”
While there was previously an NBA 3-point line at practice, Crean revealed that he also put down a “4-point line” in the practice gym, which is an idea he borrowed from Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown.
The “4-point line,” with Georgia's distance from the hoop unknown, isn’t designed for shooting. It’s actually designed to help space the floor, especially when bigger players are on the court. And with the 3-point shot being an big part of the game, creating room for those shots is integral.
“It’s to get your downhill game right, to get your driving game right,” Crean said. “I’m for anything that creates more space. It’s so hard for the guys to understand the space of the court and how you have to move out.”
This story was originally published June 7, 2018 at 9:28 AM with the headline "Why UGA's basketball coach thinks expanding the NCAA tournament is 'a fantastic idea'."