Lincoln Riley is a superstar head coach within the collection of programs at USC Athletics. He instantly brought success and relevance to a long-suffering football program. He has USC poised to remain a top-tier factor in the college football world. Yet, while Riley is a national publicity magnet for USC, the Trojans have another superstar head coach who isn’t yet getting banner-headline attention and coverage … but probably will in the coming years.
Lindsay Gottlieb showed this past season why USC women’s basketball is almost certain to return to the center of the college hoops conversation.
Very few things in life are guaranteed. USC’s continued prosperity in women’s basketball could be derailed by a key injury — that’s always a possibility in sports — but as long as a devastating injury or other disastrous (unforeseen) plot twist doesn’t emerge, the Women of Troy are clearly headed for the big time under Gottlieb.
If you listened to her postgame press conference — for which we have audio — after USC’s NCAA Tournament loss to South Dakota State on Friday night, you know that USC women’s basketball has a coach who is completely in command of her situation. Gottlieb understands exactly what needs to be done and how the process of continuous improvement must unfold at USC.
We invite you to listen to the full audio clip below, but before you do, simply realize that Gottlieb has a mental architecture all mapped out. She knows how to sequence her actions in line with her priorities. She displays an understanding of how to relate to players and earn their trust.
Gottlieb specifically shows that before a coach can teach a player how to play defense or how to rebound, a coach must first be on the same page as the player. Objectives and goals must be the same. A commitment to excellence and development must be shared. The hunger to win must be paramount, the dedication to the team’s goals the primary driver of effort and activity, as opposed to personal statistics.
Gottlieb’s words are thoughtful, but underlying her words is a firm confidence that what she has established will continue to be developed. What is being built at USC will only get stronger — not only because of recruiting, but also because of player development and the ability to create an environment in which players want to be coached hard and want to become the best.
Nothing is guaranteed, but the odds of USC becoming a significantly better college hoops force in the coming years is not something anyone should bet against. Lindsay Gottlieb is a winner in every way. No one should doubt her ability to lift USC back to the top tier of women’s college basketball.
Here’s our audio clip from Friday at the NCAA Tournament:
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