John Thompson III facts for kids
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John Thompson III (2019)
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| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 11, 1966 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1984–1988 | Princeton |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1995–2000 | Princeton (assistant) |
| 2000–2004 | Princeton |
| 2004–2017 | Georgetown |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 346–193 (.641) |
| Tournaments | 9–10 (NCAA Division I) 3–4 (NIT) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| NCAA Division I Regional – Final Four (2007) 3 Ivy League regular season (2001, 2002, 2004) 3 Big East regular season (2007, 2008, 2013) Big East tournament (2007) |
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| Awards | |
| Big East Coach of the Year (2013) | |
John Robert Thompson III (born March 11, 1966) is a professional basketball coach and sports executive. He has been an assistant coach for the United States men's national basketball team since 2017. Before that, he was the head coach for the men's basketball team at Georgetown University.
Thompson grew up in Washington, D.C.. He was a top high school player, named first team All-Metro in 1984. He graduated from Princeton University in 1988. John Thompson III is also the son of John Thompson Jr, a very famous coach for Georgetown from 1972 to 1999.
Contents
Basketball Coaching Journey
Coaching at Princeton University
John Thompson III became the head coach at Princeton University in 2000. He took over from Bill Carmody. In his first year, he led the Tigers to win the Ivy League title. This was their first win since 1998.
The next year, Princeton tied for the Ivy League title. They lost a tiebreaker game to Yale. In his final season in 2003, Thompson led Princeton to 20 wins. They won the Ivy League for the third time in his four years there.
Coaching at Georgetown University
Thompson was hired by Georgetown in 2004. He replaced coach Craig Esherick. Georgetown had not been to the NCAA Tournament much recently. Thompson brought a new style of play called the "Princeton offense." This style focuses on smart ball movement and quick passes.
His first big win at Georgetown was against Pittsburgh in January 2005. The team later made it to the NIT tournament. In 2005, Georgetown won 23 games. They earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2001. A big moment was when unranked Georgetown beat the No. 1 ranked Duke team in January 2006. This was Georgetown's first win over a No. 1 team in 21 years.
The 2006-07 season was a huge success for Georgetown. Led by players like Roy Hibbert, they won 12 of their last 13 games. They won the Big East regular season title and the Big East tournament. This was their first tournament title since 1989. Georgetown was a high seed in the NCAA Tournament. They beat Belmont, Boston College, and Vanderbilt. They then faced North Carolina in the Elite Eight. Georgetown came back from being down by 11 points to win. This sent them to the Final Four for the first time since 1985. They lost to Ohio State in a close game.
The 2006-07 season was the peak of Thompson's time at Georgetown. After that, the team did not go as far in the NCAA Tournament. The 2015-16 season was tough for the team. They did not get invited to the NCAA Tournament or the NIT. The 2016-17 season was Thompson's last as coach. Georgetown had losing seasons back-to-back for the first time since 1972-73. On March 23, 2017, Thompson was fired.
Thompson coached Georgetown for 13 years. This is the second-longest coaching period in the school's history. His 278 wins are also second all-time for Georgetown. In both cases, only his father had more.
Working with Team USA
On October 12, 2017, Thompson was named an assistant coach for the United States men's national basketball team. He helps coach for the FIBA World Cup qualifiers. This was not his first time helping Team USA. He was also an assistant coach for the Under 18 men's team in 2008.
Role with the Washington Wizards
In July 2019, Thompson joined Monumental Sports & Entertainment. This company owns the NBA's Washington Wizards and WNBA's Washington Mystics. He now leads their new department for athlete development and engagement.
Images for kids
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John Thompson III outside McDonough Gymnasium after his team reached the 2007 Final Four.
See also
In Spanish: John Thompson III para niños
- List of NCAA Division I Men's Final Four appearances by coach
