The actual answer: there is no quantifiable way, let alone established criteria, for making this determination, period.
But we love our lists, our rankings and jawing about such, don't we?
Some will say any sort of adjudication of this subject must be based on guys getting to the Big Show but that's an fallible measuring device because you and I could 'train' Aaron Gordon to the NBA. The young man is going to make it first and foremost because of who he is and the work he puts in and this is not to shortchange whoever is aiding him in developing and honing his skills set -- it's just reality.
What is a much more interesting take is which trainers have taken on actual projects, guys nobody saw reaching such a zenith, who eventually made it to the NBA? Or guys who have made quite the comfortable living based on earnings from playing overseas who weren't all that heralded as prepsters?
Hey, was there anyone writing on the NCP hoops message board that the high school Damian Lillard was a surefire first-rounder on his way to professional stardom?
Who nailed it that Josh Akognon was going to make a living shooting the basketball.
Just where were the prognostications that Omar Samhan would play such a prominent role in the renaissance of St. Mary's basketball, captivate a national network during Big Dance time and make solid dollars from playing abroad?
Even if straining and with aural magnification, all we're hearing is crickets.
Another achievement worth exploring is identifying trainers who worked with limited skills high school guys, individuals who eventually earned college scholarships whichever the level and had their college education paid for. Talk about a feat that magnifies all sorts of lifetime opportunities.
It's all really a conundrum -- there are multiple so-called measurement sticks to employ in trying to determine this King of the Training World yet nobody except the individuals involved truly have the knowledge of who really did what with and for whom and for how long. Often times, there are multiple trainers working with an individual during his prep and college days. As fans, we usually don't possess that knowledge.
Plus, lost in all this is are the talents themselves who put in the effort and work to make their dreams come true. Trainer so-and-so didn't simply sprinkle pixie dust around and, shazam!!!, out came an excellent basketball player. This most important of elements is infrequently considered.
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Why stop at trainers who teach kids that get to college to play ball? There are guys who I consider miracle workers who get poor athletes to a level where they can make and contribute on a high school team, or mediocre high school players into All-League caliber players. What the players you train achieve speaks almost nothing of how 'good' a trainer is, its about the progressions they use to teach and develop skill and how applicable what they are doing is to the individual and the game itself. Theres plenty of no-names who do great work and there are certainly guys with reputations that do nothing more than steal money and rep moves a kid has no business ever doing in a game.
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