WASHINGTON - John Thompson III won't have to make a name for himself at Georgetown. "Pops" took care of that long ago.
Ready to try living up to the legacy of his Hall of Fame father, Thompson III was hired Tuesday to coach the Hoyas back to prominence.
"I am John Thompson's son. I have been John Thompson's son for 38 years. I'm pretty comfortable being John Thompson's son," said Thompson III, the coach at Princeton since 2000. "The pressure that comes along with that - no one's going to put more pressure on me than myself."
The elder Thompson coached the Hoyas for 27 seasons, turning a little-known program into a national powerhouse. With Patrick Ewing at center, Georgetown made three appearances in the NCAA title game in the 1980s, winning the championship in 1984.
Thompson resigned in 1999 and works as a TV analyst, and the Hoyas haven't been the same since. His longtime assistant, Craig Esherick, was fired last month after going 103-74.
The elder Thompson - whom Thompson III calls "Pops" - sat proudly in the front row at Tuesday's news conference.
A handful of coaches have succeeded their fathers in Division I basketball, but the only true comparison for Thompson III is Joey Meyer, who immediately followed his father, Ray, at DePaul in 1984. The younger Meyer was widely considered a good coach, but his career was overshadowed by the fact that he never achieved the success of his father.
The younger Thompson comes with a successful record. He led Princeton to a 68-42 record over four seasons, including Ivy League titles and NCAA tournament berths in 2000-01 and 2003-04. The Tigers went 20-8 this season, losing to Texas in the first round of the tournament.
