Ranking the All Time UConn teams from Dream Season and on

[nelsonmuntz]

I found this in a thread from a few years ago, and it made sense to revisit. There is no point in comparing UConn to other programs because we are so dominant, so let's match UConn up against UConn and see where UConn ends up. I only ranked the teams that made the Sweet 16. A case could be made for a few others (El-Amin's sprained ankle team in 2000, AJ Price getting hurt in 2008) and you can include them if you want.

My ranking of Calhoun/Ollie/Hurley era teams:

1) 2024 - Annihilated everything in its path, and had a pretty tough path in league play and in the NCAA Tournament. The greatest UConn team of all time.

2) 2004 - That team did look like 1990 UNLV at times. They could destroy teams when they were hitting on all cylinders.

3) 1999 - really good team with quality at every position and a couple of stars.

4) 2023 - Put them 4th because they got some upset help in the big Dance. I could be talked into nudging them down to 6th because 1995 and 2011 teams were pretty good.

5) 1995 - Ray, Doron, Donny, and Travis were tough to stop. Ollie was excellent at the point and Fair was effective off the bench when he wasn't in the doghouse. This should have been Calhoun's first championship.

6) 2011 - This team was young, but Kemba was the best player in the Tournament and there was enough complementary talent to make UConn Champion.

7) 2006 - Everyone hates on this team, but the talent was amazing. Marcus Williams was the best point guard we had prior to Kemba, and the front court was very good. This team had some chemistry issues, but I think the biggest problem was lack of a second ballhandler.

8) 2014 - no future NBA stars, but this team was strong at every position and had a solid bench. Napier was dominant when he needed to be.

9) 1994 - Donyell was excellent, but the supporting cast was not nearly as good as they would all be a year later.

10) 2009 - Good team. Price and Thabeet were good, not dominant. This was one of those supreme chemistry teams, especially after Dyson got hurt.

11) 1990 - Smith was an amazing college guard even if his game didn't translate to the next level, and this team played as well together as any UConn team, ever.

12) 1998 - very young team. Everyone could tell at the time that this team was a year away.

13) 1996 - This team was really good on paper and played well together, but when you boiled it down it was a 2 man offense that was susceptible to Allen having an off game.

14) 2003 - this team wasn't quite ready for prime time, but I will always believe that UConn would have made the Final Four if it had a better officiating crew for the game against Texas.

15) 2002 - As one-man-show as any UConn team in history, and we were still only a couple of bad calls against Okafor from making the Final Four.

16) 1991 - how did this team beat Shaq and Tyrone Hill in back to back games?

 

[Jaker]

Just looking at our NC teams:

1) 04
2)2024
3)1999
4)2023
5)2014
6)2011

 

[bendm]

Just looking at our NC teams:

1) 04
2)2024
3)1999
4)2023
5)2014
6)2011

You can’t put 2024 anywhere but first

 

[speckle]

The Dream Season. No one's ever as good as your childhood heros, or as evil as their villains (Duke).

 

[nelsonmuntz]

You can’t put 2024 anywhere but first

2004 is close. Okafor had back problems, otherwise that team loses 1 or 2 games all season.

 

[bmayuc]

If the Natty teams are matched up against each other, 2024 smokes all other teams.

1. 2024 - Absolute Wagon
2. 2004 - Weird Roster, but crazy talent level and at times just flat physically dominating
3. 1998 - Probably best vibes of any uconn team. Fit well together. Jake was proto modern big(boards, D, rim running)
4. 2023 - Had some shooting gaps and weirdness, but once they figured it out steamroller.
5. 2011 - Mature Kemba and the talented fetuses.
6. 2014 - Shabazz and the skinny guys

 

[Pmurph678]

I found this in a thread from a few years ago, and it made sense to revisit. There is no point in comparing UConn to other programs because we are so dominant, so let's match UConn up against UConn and see where UConn ends up. I only ranked the teams that made the Sweet 16. A case could be made for a few others (El-Amin's sprained ankle team in 2000, AJ Price getting hurt in 2008) and you can include them if you want.

My ranking of Calhoun/Ollie/Hurley era teams:

1) 2024 - Annihilated everything in its path, and had a pretty tough path in league play and in the NCAA Tournament. The greatest UConn team of all time.

2) 2004 - That team did look like 1990 UNLV at times. They could destroy teams when they were hitting on all cylinders.

3) 1999 - really good team with quality at every position and a couple of stars.

4) 2023 - Put them 4th because they got some upset help in the big Dance. I could be talked into nudging them down to 6th because 1995 and 2011 teams were pretty good.

5) 1995 - Ray, Doron, Donny, and Travis were tough to stop. Ollie was excellent at the point and Fair was effective off the bench when he wasn't in the doghouse. This should have been Calhoun's first championship.

6) 2011 - This team was young, but Kemba was the best player in the Tournament and there was enough complementary talent to make UConn Champion.

7) 2006 - Everyone hates on this team, but the talent was amazing. Marcus Williams was the best point guard we had prior to Kemba, and the front court was very good. This team had some chemistry issues, but I think the biggest problem was lack of a second ballhandler.

8) 2014 - no future NBA stars, but this team was strong at every position and had a solid bench. Napier was dominant when he needed to be.

9) 1994 - Donyell was excellent, but the supporting cast was not nearly as good as they would all be a year later.

10) 2009 - Good team. Price and Thabeet were good, not dominant. This was one of those supreme chemistry teams, especially after Dyson got hurt.

11) 1990 - Smith was an amazing college guard even if his game didn't translate to the next level, and this team played as well together as any UConn team, ever.

12) 1998 - very young team. Everyone could tell at the time that this team was a year away.

13) 1996 - This team was really good on paper and played well together, but when you boiled it down it was a 2 man offense that was susceptible to Allen having an off game.

14) 2003 - this team wasn't quite ready for prime time, but I will always believe that UConn would have made the Final Four if it had a better officiating crew for the game against Texas.

15) 2002 - As one-man-show as any UConn team in history, and we were still only a couple of bad calls against Okafor from making the Final Four.

16) 1991 - how did this team beat Shaq and Tyrone Hill in back to back games?

2009 is to low, if we don't lose Dyson we might win the NC, even without him we went to the Final 4 after a great regular season. I'd put them at 6th.

 

[DRBackup]

I found this in a thread from a few years ago, and it made sense to revisit. There is no point in comparing UConn to other programs because we are so dominant, so let's match UConn up against UConn and see where UConn ends up. I only ranked the teams that made the Sweet 16. A case could be made for a few others (El-Amin's sprained ankle team in 2000, AJ Price getting hurt in 2008) and you can include them if you want.

My ranking of Calhoun/Ollie/Hurley era teams:

1) 2024 - Annihilated everything in its path, and had a pretty tough path in league play and in the NCAA Tournament. The greatest UConn team of all time.

2) 2004 - That team did look like 1990 UNLV at times. They could destroy teams when they were hitting on all cylinders.

3) 1999 - really good team with quality at every position and a couple of stars.

4) 2023 - Put them 4th because they got some upset help in the big Dance. I could be talked into nudging them down to 6th because 1995 and 2011 teams were pretty good.

5) 1995 - Ray, Doron, Donny, and Travis were tough to stop. Ollie was excellent at the point and Fair was effective off the bench when he wasn't in the doghouse. This should have been Calhoun's first championship.

6) 2011 - This team was young, but Kemba was the best player in the Tournament and there was enough complementary talent to make UConn Champion.

7) 2006 - Everyone hates on this team, but the talent was amazing. Marcus Williams was the best point guard we had prior to Kemba, and the front court was very good. This team had some chemistry issues, but I think the biggest problem was lack of a second ballhandler.

8) 2014 - no future NBA stars, but this team was strong at every position and had a solid bench. Napier was dominant when he needed to be.

9) 1994 - Donyell was excellent, but the supporting cast was not nearly as good as they would all be a year later.

10) 2009 - Good team. Price and Thabeet were good, not dominant. This was one of those supreme chemistry teams, especially after Dyson got hurt.

11) 1990 - Smith was an amazing college guard even if his game didn't translate to the next level, and this team played as well together as any UConn team, ever.

12) 1998 - very young team. Everyone could tell at the time that this team was a year away.

13) 1996 - This team was really good on paper and played well together, but when you boiled it down it was a 2 man offense that was susceptible to Allen having an off game.

14) 2003 - this team wasn't quite ready for prime time, but I will always believe that UConn would have made the Final Four if it had a better officiating crew for the game against Texas.

15) 2002 - As one-man-show as any UConn team in history, and we were still only a couple of bad calls against Okafor from making the Final Four.

16) 1991 - how did this team beat Shaq and Tyrone Hill in back to back games?

2009 too low. If we're making lists on paper, you don't rank this team without Dyson. With him they were the best team in the country. No lower than 6th

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Long-time UConn fans know that it takes more than just being a great team to win a National Championship. 1990 was the biggest emotional whiplash over 48 hours that a program can have, beating Clemson on an impossible last second shot, then losing to Duke when Laettner hits a last second shot off an inbounds play right after Tate George bobbled a steal out of bounds trying to catch it rather than just batting the ball down court and letting the clock run out. That team was probably the second best team in the country that year, and who knows what could have happened in a Championship game against UNLV?

The 1994 team was really good, and lost to Florida in the Sweet 16 in what I think was Calhoun's single worst coached game of his career. We were having trouble scoring and he wouldn't put Brian Fair in the game because Fair didn't play defense. Defense was not our problem that game.

The 1995 team was awesome, and lost to the ultimate national champion UCLA in one of the greatest Final 8 games I have ever seen. UCLA should not have even made that game, barely surviving Missouri in the second round on a last second, coast-to-coast.

The 2002 team was not one of UConn's best, but had a shot to win it all. It got knocked out in the Final 8 by a good, not great Maryland team that would go on to win the National Championship. That Final 8 game is one of the very few big games in UConn history where officiating was a problem, with the officiating crew treating a lumbering, unathletic Lonnie Baxter like he was Hakeem Olajuwon. If Okafor is not in foul trouble that whole game, UConn wins easily.

It takes a little luck, it takes a year where maybe there is not that much depth at the top of college basketball, and it takes chemistry.

 

[Inyatkin]

Just noting that this list has a team that finished 32-3 in 13th place and I don't particularly disagree

 

[Dave]

2004 vs 2024 for the top spot would be a fun matchup to watch

 

[Tenspro2002]

I found this in a thread from a few years ago, and it made sense to revisit. There is no point in comparing UConn to other programs because we are so dominant, so let's match UConn up against UConn and see where UConn ends up. I only ranked the teams that made the Sweet 16. A case could be made for a few others (El-Amin's sprained ankle team in 2000, AJ Price getting hurt in 2008) and you can include them if you want.

My ranking of Calhoun/Ollie/Hurley era teams:

1) 2024 - Annihilated everything in its path, and had a pretty tough path in league play and in the NCAA Tournament. The greatest UConn team of all time.

2) 2004 - That team did look like 1990 UNLV at times. They could destroy teams when they were hitting on all cylinders.

3) 1999 - really good team with quality at every position and a couple of stars.

4) 2023 - Put them 4th because they got some upset help in the big Dance. I could be talked into nudging them down to 6th because 1995 and 2011 teams were pretty good.

5) 1995 - Ray, Doron, Donny, and Travis were tough to stop. Ollie was excellent at the point and Fair was effective off the bench when he wasn't in the doghouse. This should have been Calhoun's first championship.

6) 2011 - This team was young, but Kemba was the best player in the Tournament and there was enough complementary talent to make UConn Champion.

7) 2006 - Everyone hates on this team, but the talent was amazing. Marcus Williams was the best point guard we had prior to Kemba, and the front court was very good. This team had some chemistry issues, but I think the biggest problem was lack of a second ballhandler.

8) 2014 - no future NBA stars, but this team was strong at every position and had a solid bench. Napier was dominant when he needed to be.

9) 1994 - Donyell was excellent, but the supporting cast was not nearly as good as they would all be a year later.

10) 2009 - Good team. Price and Thabeet were good, not dominant. This was one of those supreme chemistry teams, especially after Dyson got hurt.

11) 1990 - Smith was an amazing college guard even if his game didn't translate to the next level, and this team played as well together as any UConn team, ever.

12) 1998 - very young team. Everyone could tell at the time that this team was a year away.

13) 1996 - This team was really good on paper and played well together, but when you boiled it down it was a 2 man offense that was susceptible to Allen having an off game.

14) 2003 - this team wasn't quite ready for prime time, but I will always believe that UConn would have made the Final Four if it had a better officiating crew for the game against Texas.

15) 2002 - As one-man-show as any UConn team in history, and we were still only a couple of bad calls against Okafor from making the Final Four.

16) 1991 - how did this team beat Shaq and Tyrone Hill in back to back games?

That's a lot of disrespect for 1996 (#1 seed), 2002 (#2 seed, Elite 8) and 2009 (#1 seed, Final Four). If we're talking strictly about quality on the court and not, like, fan favorites or emotional impact, I'm going with:

1) 2024
2) 2004
3) 1999
4) 2009
5) 1996
6) 2023
7) 1995
8) 2006
9) 2011
10) 1998
11) 2002
12) 2014
13) 1990
14) 1994
15) 2003
16) 1991

This ranking acknowledges that some of our championship teams got favorable paths or were not particularly strong (2011, 2014), and some of our non-championship teams were excellent, but ran into juggernauts, bad luck, or hot opponents, or had an off game (1995, 1998, 2002, 1996, 2006, 2009).

 

[Inyatkin]

2014 is impossible to rank. They were up and down in the regular season, probably a top 10-15-ish team. Blown out by Louisville.
Then they went through an absolute gauntlet to win the title. Three straight games against the pre-tournament favorite, the postseason No. 1 and the preseason No. 1. No one could possibly say they didn't earn it on the court.

 

[huskymedic]

Assisted access link <<

 

[DRBackup]

Long-time UConn fans know that it takes more than just being a great team to win a National Championship. 1990 was the biggest emotional whiplash over 48 hours that a program can have, beating Clemson on an impossible last second shot, then losing to Duke when Laettner hits a last second shot off an inbounds play right after Tate George bobbled a steal out of bounds trying to catch it rather than just batting the ball down court and letting the clock run out. That team was probably the second best team in the country that year, and who knows what could have happened in a Championship game against UNLV?

The 1994 team was really good, and lost to Florida in the Sweet 16 in what I think was Calhoun's single worst coached game of his career. We were having trouble scoring and he wouldn't put Brian Fair in the game because Fair didn't play defense. Defense was not our problem that game.

The 1995 team was awesome, and lost to the ultimate national champion UCLA in one of the greatest Final 8 games I have ever seen. UCLA should not have even made that game, barely surviving Missouri in the second round on a last second, coast-to-coast.

The 2002 team was not one of UConn's best, but had a shot to win it all. It got knocked out in the Final 8 by a good, not great Maryland team that would go on to win the National Championship. That Final 8 game is one of the very few big games in UConn history where officiating was a problem, with the officiating crew treating a lumbering, unathletic Lonnie Baxter like he was Hakeem Olajuwon. If Okafor is not in foul trouble that whole game, UConn wins easily.

It takes a little luck, it takes a year where maybe there is not that much depth at the top of college basketball, and it takes chemistry.

Come on, now. I love that 1990 team, but UNLV blew Duke's doors clean off in that game. There is unlikely any question how that game would turn out.

 

[DRBackup]

That's a lot of disrespect for 1996 (#1 seed), 2002 (#2 seed, Elite 8) and 2009 (#1 seed, Final Four). If we're talking strictly about quality on the court and not, like, fan favorites or emotional impact, I'm going with:

1) 2024
2) 2004
3) 1999
4) 2009
5) 1996
6) 2023
7) 1995
8) 2006
9) 2011
10) 1998
11) 2002
12) 2014
13) 1990
14) 1994
15) 2003
16) 1991

This ranking acknowledges that some of our championship teams got favorable paths or were not particularly strong (2011, 2014), and some of our non-championship teams were excellent, but ran into juggernauts, bad luck, or hot opponents, or had an off game (1995, 1998, 2002, 1996, 2006, 2009).

I like this list, but I can't put 1996 higher than 1995. The only reason that team didn't get to the final four was because they met the eventual national champion in their home state in the Elite Eight. The 1996 team had some quality pieces around Ray, who was a legend, but the 1995 team had more of them.

 

[Tenspro2002]

I like this list, but I can't put 1996 higher than 1995. The only reason that team didn't get to the final four was because they met the eventual national champion in their home state in the Elite Eight. The 1996 team had some quality pieces around Ray, who was a legend, but the 1995 team had more of them.

1995 had a more understandable Tournament loss, but 1996 lost only 2 regular season games all year, won 23 in a row, most of them by a lot.

1995 lost 4 games entering the Tournament, including blowouts at Kansas, 2 ugly losses to Villanova, and at unranked Providence. Yes, 1995 lost to the eventual champ, but it's not like they were on some hot streak (lost 3 of 8, gave up a ton of points even in their wins).

 

[Scottzer]

2004 vs 2024 for the top spot would be a fun matchup to watch

I know 2004 ran a lot of zoom action and weren’t exactly behind the times. But, imagine 2004 running the 2024 offense. I think you trade Villanueva for Boone as a starter. But, regardless, I think that team would be incredible in the 2024 offense. If done that way, I think 2004 beats 2024.

 

[Tenspro2002]

I know 2004 ran a lot of zoom action and weren’t exactly behind the times. But, imagine 2004 running the 2024 offense. I think you trade Villanueva for Boone as a starter. But, regardless, I think that team would be incredible in the 2024 offense. If done that way, I think 2004 beats 2024.

Clingan vs. Okafor would be an amazing battle.

I give the nod to 2024 largely because of shooting prowess. We can put Spencer on Taliek Brown and have him sag off, and you don't even have to guard Boone outside the lane. Castle checking Ben Gordon would be a great matchup. Karaban might struggle with Villanueva's size though.

 

[UC0NN]

The 04 team was more talented than the 99 team sure. Higher ceiling. NBA players everywhere. There is no question the 99 team is better than the 2004 team.

 

[UC0NN]

Clingan and Okafor are not going to score much on each other.

 

[UC0NN]

24 Uconn is different in that they play elite offense and defense.

Shoot like crap in the sweet 16 or later and still blow the other team out deep in the tourney? You won't see that often on a consistent basis.

 

[elmcityboy]

would be interesting to rank every single team from the era! like, what's the worst uconn team of the last 35 years?

2017-18 has the worst computer rankings, but that team arguably had more talent on paper than hurley's first year, when we replaced terry larrier, a healthy mamadou diarra, and antwoine anderson with tarin smith, kassoum yakwe, and brendan adams.

 

[Scottzer]

Clingan and Okafor are not going to score much on each other.

I never say Okafor isn’t scoring on somebody. He had footwork, strength, and a baby hook. He was the above the rim Sanogo. But, I don’t know if Gordon was strong enough to contend with Castle.

 

[DRBackup]

1995 had a more understandable Tournament loss, but 1996 lost only 2 regular season games all year, won 23 in a row, most of them by a lot.

1995 lost 4 games entering the Tournament, including blowouts at Kansas, 2 ugly losses to Villanova, and at unranked Providence. Yes, 1995 lost to the eventual champ, but it's not like they were on some hot streak (lost 3 of 8, gave up a ton of points even in their wins).

But the 1995 team is just better, overall. Especially outside the Big East, the same thing we saw the last two years. The 1996 team was effectively a two man team, the 1995 team was not.