Last Four Champions - Roster Breakdown

JASUN74

All-Conference
May 22, 2008
3,114
4,436
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Gotta love the people on this board thinking they discovered the answers to life's mysteries because they took a beginner's data science course.
How about thanks , interesting read. Roster, my nephew got seven baby chicks last week and they’re under the lights. How many are Rosters? Haha. Anyone can guess and if you win, you win!
 
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JASUN74

All-Conference
May 22, 2008
3,114
4,436
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ITVI is the only person who I want to see respond here. The rest of you elementary school level dickriders please stfu.
Ohhh shiiiit that cracked me the helll up man. Lmfao. I’m still laughing out loud. Thank you good sir. Craziness.
 

preacherfan

All-Conference
Oct 11, 2003
28,912
4,423
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Yep; the formula is to have a championship quality coach.
The problem with that is that we only identify the "championship quality coaches" using 20/20 hindsight. Before winning a title, I would not have had either Hurley or Golden on my list. Hurley had never gone past the round of 32. Golden had never gone past the round of 64. Self had some E8's before KU. So, he is the only one that would have been hired using that standard of a "championship quality coach."
 

JonathanW2

Senior
Aug 6, 2025
392
578
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I see one additional "take away" message from that summary of rosters.
For those who claim "mid-major players are inferior, I only want P5 transfers", of the 8 transfers on those championship rosters, 7 of the 8 transferred in from Mid-Majors, and only 1 (from TAMU) transferred in from a P5 school.

Although this year will change that some, as of the 17 transfers across the 4 teams who average 15+mpg, 5 came from Mid-Majors and the other 12 from P5 schools.
 
Aug 4, 2025
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Would agree with the general idea of complete team with the right amount of top tier talent as well as very good role playing more traditional 3-4 year college players.

You can look at big macro CBB data, but also zoom in and just do great UK teams.

Cal’s title team, almost 40 and 0 squad (take a gander at the composition of the team that beat that squad) Tubby’s title team and very good s16 EE teams. Pitino’s peak run.

Pros, roles, old and young. Not everyone was a superstar from the get go. Most cases took a couple of seasons to build up to those titles and deep runs.
 

Farsight Clone

All-Conference
Aug 30, 2025
2,389
4,500
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It appears there are two common dominators.

1. Your coach who knows how to use their roster to their greatest strengths and comprehends their weakness

2. Balance of pure/hidden talent and experience.
 
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AJBlue

Junior
Dec 16, 2015
222
393
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These are the top 6 scorers from the last 4 national championship teams. I was curious how these teams were assembled in regards to direct recruits and transfers, and how they stacked up based on individual rankings:

2024-2025 Florida Gators

Walter Clayton (Sr.) - Transferred from Iona in 2023 (no. 22 transfer - On3)
Alijah Martin (Grad.) - Transferred from Florida Atlantic in 2024 (no. 95 transfer - On3)
Will Richard (Sr.) - Transferred from Belmont in 2022 (not in top 100 transfers - On3)
Alex Condon (So.) - No. 231 recruit in 2023 - On3/Rivals
Thomas Haugh (So.) - No. 198 recruit in 2023 - On3/Rivals
Denzel Aberdeen (Jr.) - No. 143 recruit in 2022 - On3/Rivals

2023-2024 UCONN Huskies

Tristen Newton (Grad.) - Transferred from East Carolina in 2022 (no. 43 transfer - 247Sports)
Cam Spencer (Grad.) - Transferred from Rutgers in 2023 (no. 114 transfer - 247Sports)
Alex Karaban (R-So.) - No. 92 recruit in 2021 - On3/Rivals
Donovan Clingan (So.) - No. 46 recruit in 2022 - On3/Rivals
Stephon Castle (Fr.) - No. 8 recruit in 2023 - On3/Rivals
Hassan Diarra (Sr.) - Transferred from Texas A&M in 2022 (no. 63 transfer - 247Sports)

2022-2023 UCONN Huskies

Adama Sanogo (Jr.) - No 73 recruit in 2020 - On3/Rivals
Jordan Hawkins (So.) - No. 51 recruit in 2021 - On3/Rivals
Tristen Newton (Sr.) - Transferred from East Carolina in 2022 (no. 43 transfer - 247Sports)
Alex Karaban (R-Fr.) - No. 92 recruit in 2021 - On3/Rivals
Donovan Clingan (Fr.) - No. 46 recruit in 2022 - On3/Rivals
Andre Jackson (Jr.) - No. 49 recruit in 2020 - On3/Rivals

2021-2022 Kansas Jayhawks

Ochai Agbaji (R-Sr.) - No. 150 recruit in 2018 - On3/Rivals
Christian Braun (Jr.) - No. 119 recruit in 2019 - On3/Rivals
Jalen Wilson (R-Jr.) - No. 46 recruit in 2019 - On3/Rivals
David McCormack (Sr.) - No. 40 recruit in 2018 - On3/Rivals
Remy Martin (5th year Sr.) - Transferred from Arizona State in 2021 (no transfer rankings in 2021, No. 110 recruit - On3/Rivals)
Dajuan Harris (R-Sr.) - No. 132 recruit in 2019 - On3/Rivals


Here are my conclusions:

1. The Death of the "One-and-Done" Blueprint


With the exception of Stephon Castle (#8 recruit) on the 2024 UConn team, the top scorers are almost exclusively Upperclassmen.
  • Kansas (2022) was powered by three Seniors and two Redshirt Juniors.
  • Florida (2025) and UConn (2024) relied heavily on Graduate students and Seniors.

2. The Transfer Portal is a Foundational Tool

There is a clear trend in how coaches are using the portal. It has evolved from a "safety net" to a "primary engine":
  • 2022 & 2023: Only one transfer appeared in the top 6 scorers for Kansas and UConn.
  • 2024 & 2025: Exactly half (3 of 6) of the top scorers were transfers.

3. "Developmental" Recruits Over "Blue Chips"

Look at the high school rankings of the non-transfers. Most fall between #40 and #200+.
  • Kansas won with players ranked #119, #132, and #150.
  • Florida won with three players ranked outside the top 140 (including Alex Condon at #231).

4. The "UConn Bridge" Strategy

UConn’s back-to-back run provides a perfect case study. In 2023, they won primarily with internal development (Sanogo, Hawkins, Karaban). In 2024, they maintained that core but pivoted to the transfer portal (Cam Spencer) to replace lost production.

Conclusion: The "Gold Standard" for modern roster building is keeping 3–4 core developmental players and using the portal to add 2–3 "plug-and-play" veterans who have already peaked physically.
Eye opening - Coaching helps for sure but just reinforces the parts are out there and dont have to be a list of 4s and 5s to do it. Might also reinforce that if you're not as good a coach you do need 4s and 5s (Cal)
 

theBlues

All-Conference
Oct 18, 2025
1,337
2,979
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The problem with that is that we only identify the "championship quality coaches" using 20/20 hindsight. Before winning a title, I would not have had either Hurley or Golden on my list. Hurley had never gone past the round of 32. Golden had never gone past the round of 64. Self had some E8's before KU. So, he is the only one that would have been hired using that standard of a "championship quality coach."
Very true; it's not easy. I can't say I know how to pick a young championship quality coach before everybody else wants them. But it's easier to know in hindsight that the guy you picked isn't one.
 
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