https://www.slamonline.com/the-magazine/30-most-influential-mbb-teams/94-cal/

I thought Cal's '92-'93 team was the one that made the Sweet 16 run, knocking off defending two-time national champion Duke in the 2nd round? This was the team that had a true freshman Kidd on the SI cover with Bobby Hurely.

Cal's '93-'94 team was knocked off in the first round by UW-Green Bay in as maddening an NCAA basketball game as any Cal fan has ever witnessed.

The 93-94 team had the best Cal team in terms of the talent, no question, but it lacked coaching expertise.

Sweet article. I was in HS at the time, so sadly I didn't get to experience the golden era of Cal Mens BB.. I loved the little series of interviews that Cal put out on twitter a while back. I was hoping there would be an extended version of those interviews released at some point, but alas, Cal marketing knows how to leave money on the table.

Nice article, but I'd dispute that Jason Kidd "introduced the program to their first taste of national prominence." We did win the NCAA championship in 1958-59 and finished 2nd the next year.

IIRC, I may have seen a nationally broadcast Cal basketball game around this time (I think I may have also seen a nationally broadcast football game in which California participated around this time). However, I was a kid in SoCal and I had no idea who California was.

I do know that as a NBA fan, I loved how Jason Kidd played. (I also was a fan of Kevin Johnson, who I only knew of as the Phoenix Suns's point guard and not as Cal's former point guard.)

Through a strange twist of fate I find myself a fan of Cal basketball and football (and pretty much all things Cal), now. I very much hope to see Cal become a nationally prominent and dominant team in football and basketball, again.

Eastern Oregon Bear said:

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Nice article, but I'd dispute that Jason Kidd "introduced the program to their first taste of national prominence." We did win the NCAA championship in 1958-59 and finished 2nd the next year.

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Very true!

I wonder how old the article's author is. I wouldn't be surprised if he's young enough not to remember 9/11.