Hoyas go back to the future

Georgetown got Generation Next.

The school handed the reins of its men’s basketball program to the bloodline that built a behemoth yesterday, naming John Thompson III as the school’s 17th head coach. No contract details were announced.

“I’m fortunate in that I’m probably one of the few people in the world who can leave home and then come home,” said Thompson, who departed Princeton after four successful seasons (68-42) as coach at his alma mater to follow in the footsteps of his Hall of Fame father. “I grew up on this campus. I grew up at McDonough Gym. This is a part of who I am. …

“When I was growing up, there used to be this chant, ’We are Georgetown.’ I love that. When you say that, you mean the institution, the administration, the community, Washington, D.C., and the other members of our athletic program. That’s what we have — a program, not just a team. We are Georgetown. A few people have forgotten that we are Georgetown, but we’re going to work our rear ends off to remind them.”

Thompson’s hire comes more than a month after the university dismissed coach Craig Esherick after a 13-15 campaign in which the Hoyas posted their worst-ever Big East finish (4-12) and failed to earn a postseason bid for the first time since 1975.

Many fans and alumni found the delay in replacing Esherick maddening, especially considering that Thompson was the logical leading candidate from the start. But Thompson, 38, hinted at the likely reason for the delay during his introduction yesterday, explaining that he and his wife, Monica, were loath to leave their alma mater.

“Princeton basketball will always be a part of me, but it was time for a new challenge,” said Thompson, who last month led the Tigers to their third Ivy League title in his four seasons and leaves behind a roster likely to repeat. In the end, Thompson simply couldn’t pass up the opportunity to coach in the Big East, which has provided back-to-back national champions and adds basketball powers Louisville, Cincinnati, Marquette and DePaul after next season.

“The Big East, without a doubt, will be the premier, if not one of the premier, conferences in the country,” said Thompson, who is charged with resurrecting a program that has made just one NCAA appearance in the six seasons since his father resigned. “I’m a basketball coach. And you want the opportunity to succeed at the highest level and play the game at the highest stage. And that was a big part of this decision. Now that makes life tough. But we’re going to work our behinds off and meet the challenge.”

A major part of that challenge will involve toiling in the shadow of his father’s legacy. From 1972 to 1999, John Thompson Jr. amassed a record of 596-239 on the Hilltop, leading the Hoyas to three Final Fours and a national title (1984). Though the elder Thompson was present at yesterday’s introduction, he was careful to avoid the media during a quick exit from Georgetown’s Riggs Library and did not appear as host of his afternoon radio show. But if the father was careful not to add any extra pressure to the situation, the son seems to have long ago made his peace with the lofty standards attached to his name.

“I’ve gotten [that question] since I was playing junior high school ball,” Thompson said with a smile. “I am John Thompson’s son. I’ve been John Thompson’s son for 38 years. And I’m pretty comfortable being John Thompson’s son. No one’s going to put more pressure on me than myself. At Princeton, I was John Thompson’s son. It’s who I am. If you guys can deal with that, I think I’ll be OK.”

Undoubtedly, much of Thompson’s confidence stems from his success at Princeton, where he developed his own approach to the game as a player and assistant under another Hall of Famer, former Tigers coach and current Sacramento Kings assistant Pete Carril.

“Obviously, a lot of my thoughts and a lot of how I think the game should be played have been because of growing up in McDonough Gym watching [dad] coach his teams,” said Thompson, an All-Met player at Gonzaga High School and an eventual co-captain and co-MVP as a senior forward at Princeton in 1988. “But at the same time, a large part of who I am is due to Coach Carril. … It’s one of those things where you just go with your gut and coach. You follow your instincts, and maybe you’ll see a little bit of Pops in there and maybe you’ll see a little bit of Coach Carril.”

The one thing you aren’t likely to see from future Hoyas is the late-game chaos or player defections that defined the Esherick era.

As a player, Thompson was outrageously efficient, a fact exemplified by a senior season in which he had 103 assists at Princeton while committing just 34 turnovers. Over the last four seasons, his Tigers followed a similar mandate of defensive intensity and offensive efficiency to bump Penn from its perch as the Ivy League’s kingpin, routinely winning close games with Thompson’s methodical formula.

And unlike Esherick, who according to both past and present Hoyas had difficulty bonding with his squads, Thompson has the coveted reputation as being both a disciplinarian and a player’s coach.

“I didn’t ever quite feel the chemistry with Coach Esherick. But I definitely felt it in just 10 minutes with Coach Thompson,” said Georgetown sophomore forward Brandon Bowman, who nearly transferred from the Hilltop after a tumultuous freshman season. “You can just tell you’re going to want to play for him. … It’s like being born again.”