Chris Caputo: The Newest Commander in Chief for George Washington Men's Basketball

The longtime assistant is set to change things in the nation's capital

First, Kyle Neptune parlayed a 16-16 record with Fordham during the 2021-22 season into an opportunity to replace Jay Wright at Villanova. His successor, Keith Urgo, just led the Rams to a 25-8 season, their best since their last tournament appearance in 1991. Just recently, Kim English converted two seasons in which he displayed his upside into a new deal at Providence College- joining Neptune as the second up-and-coming A10 coach to jump ship for the Big East in as many years.

In short, there’s been a noticeable trend in recent years. The Atlantic 10 conference has become a breeding ground for developing- and furthering- the careers of young coaches.

And you can add one more name to an ever-growing list: Chris Caputo, who’s ready to ascend George Washington’s program to new heights.

Caputo began his journey as a player at Westfield State, a small public school in southern Massachusetts, where he served as the team’s starting point guard from 1999-2002. Upon graduating, he was hired by Jim Larranaga to serve as the Director of Basketball Operations and as a Video Coordinator at George Mason University, a title he would hold from 2002 until 2005 when he joined the full-time staff as an assistant coach.

During his first season on the Patriots bench, the team finished the regular season at 22-6, including a 15-3 record in the Patriot League, earning them a regular-season conference championship. Despite losing to Hofstra in the second round of the postseason conference tournament, George Mason earned an at-large berth for the NCAA Tournament as a 13-seed.

Aided by seniors Jai Lewis, Tony Skinn, and Lamar Butler in addition to rising stars Folarin Campbell and Will Thomas, the Patriots pulled off one of the most miraculous Cinderella runs of all time, advancing to the Final Four after pulling off upset wins over Michigan State (75-65), North Carolina, (65-60), Wichita State (63-55), and Connecticut (84-84) in first four rounds before falling to the eventual national champions in Billy Donovan’s Florida Gators, 73-58.

Caputo was an assistant for Larranaga and was part of two other NCAA Tournament teams at George Mason following the program’s run in 2005-06. The Patriots appeared in the 2008 Tournament as a 12-seed, losing to Notre Dame in the opening round, 68-50. In 2011, they reached the tournament again, this time as an 8-seed, winning their opening game vs. Villanova, 61-57 and then falling to Ohio State in the second round, 98-66.

Following the 2010-11 season, Larranaga left the school after 14 years to take the job opening at Miami. He brought his staff (including Caputo) with him as he worked to rebuild the Hurricanes program. In 2015, Larranaga appointed Caputo an associate head coach, a step up from his role as an assistant.

As a member of Larranaga’s staff at Miami, Caputo was part of 5 teams that earned an NCAA Tournament berth (2013, 2016, 2017,2018, and 2022). He was on the sidelines when the team won both the regular season and postseason title and was a part of Miami’s Elite Eight team in 2022, amongst other accolades.

On April 1st, 2022, word came about that Caputo would replace Jamion Christian as the head coach at George Washington University.

Aided by the star power of veteran guards James Bishop IV, Amir Harris, and Brendan Adams and big man Ricky Lindo Jr. in addition to other key contributors such as freshman Max Edwards plus Noel Brown and Hunter Dean in the frontcourt, the Colonials went 16-16 in Caputo’s inaugural season with the program. George Washington also finished with a 10-8 record in conference play, putting them 7th in the 15-man Atlantic 10 league.

Caputo showed considerable promise as a first-time head coach, specifically on the offensive end of the floor. GW finished 53rd in the NCAA in effective field goal percentage this year at 53%; for reference, the Division I average was 50.4% in 2022-23. The team was also 11th in two-point field goal percentage in all the nation, mainly due to the remarkable efficiency of the team’s core, as five players shot 50% or better from two-point range while attempting at least four two-point field goals per game- Bishop, Dean, Lindo, Edwards, and Adams (refer to the figure below):

Top Two Point Producers for George Washington MBB; 2022-23 (min. 4 2P FGA/Game)

If there were any knock on the Colonials, it would come on the defensive side. Their opponent's effective field goal percentage was a whopping 52%, and the team struggled to force turnovers; only 15.5% of opponent possessions vs. GW this past year ended in a turnover, putting the team's defense at 325th nationally (in terms of turnover rate), and well below the D-I average of 18.2% in 2022-23.

With that, the future is bright for Caputo and the Colonials. Despite losing Adams and Lindo due to a lack of further eligibility and the likes of Dean and veteran guard Amir Harris to the transfer portal, the team should be more than capable of competing. Bishop has already announced he will be exercising his additional year of eligibility, and the team will return Edwards, Brown, and Qwanzi Samuels to name a few key contributors. Furthermore, Oklahoma transfer Benny Schroder should be in the fold alongside a trio of incoming three-star guards: Jacoi Hutchinson, Christian Jones, and Trey Autry.

In the end, this is only the beginning for Caputo. And, considering the string of recent success which first-time head coaches have enjoyed in the A10 conference, the odds are ever in his favor.