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NCAA basketball: Top 25 highest-paid college basketball coaches for 2020

By Cody Williams

Mike Krzyzewski of the Duke Blue Devils talks with John Calipari of the Kentucky Wildcats (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)
Mike Krzyzewski of the Duke Blue Devils talks with John Calipari of the Kentucky Wildcats (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /
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College basketball (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /

22. Sean Miller, Arizona

Salary: $3,247,534 | Buyout: $2.7 million

A former college point guard at Pittsburgh, Sean Miller got into coaching immediately following his hoops career. He spent time as a graduate assistant and assistant coach at Wisconsin, Miami-Ohio, Pittsburgh, NC State and Xavier from 1992-2004. After that 2003-04 season, though, he was promoted by the Musketeers to be their next head coach.

Xavier went only 17-12 overall in Miller’s first season at the helm but did go 10-6 in the Atlantic-10, tying for second in the conference. He got the ball rolling the next year as he led the Musketeers to a 21-11 finish and an NCAA Tournament trip, which he did again the following year with a 25-9 campaign. Miller then went 30-7 and 27-8 in his final two years at Xavier, making it to the Elite Eight and Sweet 16, respectively.

Miller then left the Musketeers to take the job with the Arizona Wildcats, the first full-time hire since the retirement of Lute Olson. Though his first year wasn’t anything to write home about (16-15), he’s led the Wildcats to five Sweet 16 appearances and three Elite Eights while going 285-100 with the program.

Of course, the more recent years for Miller at Arizona have been mired by NCAA violation allegations that have cast a dark shadow over the Wildcats program. Even still, Miller’s success in terms of wins as a head coach seemingly make him worth being the No. 22-highest paid head coach.