When you’re the school that produced the Jumpman logo, a program with six titles and a history as rich as any in men’s college basketball, you shoot high in a coaching search.
In this case, North Carolina’s ceiling includes courting perhaps the white whale of the men’s college basketball coaching ranks.
North Carolina is expected to pursue former Butler and Celtics coach and current Boston top basketball exec Brad Stevens, among other high-profile names, after firing Hubert Davis, according to CBS.
While Stevens is described as a “long shot,” he reportedly has not ruled out possibly coaching again and the Tar Heels are “likely” to at least touch base.
Other intriguing names include former two-time champion Florida and current Bulls coach Billy Donovan, Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd, Michigan’s Dusty May and Iowa State’s TJ Otzelberger, per CBS.
Florida’s Todd Golden and Alabama’s Nate Oats also received mentions.
Jobs like North Carolina don’t come open very often and one could argue it’s perhaps the premier job in the sport due to the program’s rich history.
What’s notable about this search is it seems the Tar Heels are finally willing to break free from their tradition of employing those with ties to the program after the Davis era did not pan out.
Each of the program’s last five coaches spanning 65 years, dating back to Dean Smith taking over the program in 1961, either previously played for or served as an assistant for the program.
The aforementioned list is not one filled with North Carolina names, meaning it’s likely an outsider will be taking over the program.
Stevens and Donovan are interesting wrinkles to the mix since the duo both have not roamed a college sideline in more than a decade, yet are revered as two of the best college coaches in recent memory.
Donovan won back-to-back titles with Florida from 2006-07, one of only two coaches to do so in the 21st century, before leaving after the 2014-15 to coach the Thunder and eventually the Bulls.
There are rumblings this could be his last year in the NBA after an 11-season run, and Donovan would be “intrigued” by the opening since he’s always held them in high regard, per CBS.
ESPN further reported he will be at or near the top of North Carolina’s wish list.
Stevens never won a title in college, but he guided Butler to back-to-back national championship game appearances from 2010-11 in what some consider as good coaching performances as any in the sport.
He since thrived as the Celtics’ coach before building a championship team as an executive.
The complication there is whether he would want to return to coaching collegiately in this new Name, Image and Likeness era, especially when he could also land a cushier NBA job.
The other names mentioned include most of the younger top coaches in today’s sport, with only Golden having won a national title.
Last year’s Kentucky search showed, though, that getting top coaches to leave elite programs can be tough, no matter the pedigree.
UConn’s Dan Hurley turned down the Wildcats to stay with the Huskies, which some would have never fathomed since Kentucky is supposed to be a one-of-one job.
CBS noted how North Carolina’s finances are not in the best spot due to the money being spent on Bill Belichick, and top coaches usually have large buyouts.
Lloyd’s sits between $9 million to $12 million, Golden’s is $16 million, Oats’ is either $10 million or $18 million depending on the date, May’s is $7 million and Otzelberger’s is $4 million, per ESPN.
UNC is still reportedly expected to land the best coach this offseason among all the programs in the market in what could be a turning point for the program.
Davis inherited a program that won three titles under Roy Williams and he guided them to the national title game in his first season in 2021-22 before it went downhill.
The preseason No. 1 team in 2022-23 missed the tournament completely, and the last two editions went one-and-done, with this year’s team blowing a 19-point lead to No. 11 seed VCU.
