Fansided

College basketball blue bloods ranked by all-time legacy

By Mike Phillips

Michael Jordan is all smiles along with coach Dean Smith as Jordan announces at a 1984 press conference that he will forgo his senior year in college to play professional basketball. (Raleigh News & Observer/TNS via Getty Images)
Michael Jordan is all smiles along with coach Dean Smith as Jordan announces at a 1984 press conference that he will forgo his senior year in college to play professional basketball. (Raleigh News & Observer/TNS via Getty Images) /
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ACC
1991: Duke players Grant Hill and Christian Laettner high-five each other in celebration during the NCAA Championship against Kansas in 1991. Duke defeated Kansas 72-65. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /

4. Duke

  • Record: 2,144-861 (.709 Winning Percentage)
  • NCAA Tournament Appearances: 43
  • Final Fours: 16 (1963, 1964, 1966, 1978, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2010, 2015)
  • National Titles: Five (1991, 1992, 2001, 2010, 2015)
  • Notable Alums: Christian Laettner, Grant Hill, Johnny Dawkins

Duke and winning go hand in hand, so their appearance this high in the blue blood rankings isn’t a shock. While most folks associate Duke with all they have accomplished under Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski, Duke was still a legendary program even before Coach K’s arrival.

The Blue Devils first reached the NCAA Tournament in 1955, and they began to make regular trips to the Final Four in the 1960s. The winning continued when Krzyzewski succeeded Bill Foster in 1980. Coach K took a few years to get his program in place, but by 1986 Duke was back in the Final Four, and it seemed like a national title was inevitable.

After near misses in the late ’80s, Duke finally broke through in 1991, upsetting undefeated UNLV in the Final Four and knocking off Kansas to claim the school’s first national championship. The Blue Devils repeated in 1992, dismissing Michigan’s Fab Five to claim another title.

Krzyzewski has continued to win at a prodigious rate, adding three more national titles to Duke’s collection of hardware. The Blue Devils have also lorded over the ACC for a long time, and the name Duke has become synonymous with excellence.

Separating the programs at the top of this list really involves splitting hairs, and the reason Duke isn’t higher is their first title didn’t come until 1991. The three teams ahead of Duke all have longer track records of championships, which is the separator.