Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- UNC’s search for a new head coach faced hurdles as top college and NBA targets withdrew, leading to the surprise hire of NBA champion Michael Malone.
- Elite coaches like Ben McCollum and Scott Drew opted to stay put, highlighting a shift in how even "Blue Blood" programs like North Carolina are perceived.
- The move to a pro-style leader reflects changing dynamics in NIL and the portal, proving that "prestige" alone no longer guarantees top-tier coaching hires.
There have been a few stunners in the college basketball coaching ranks lately but none quite eclipses what happened with North Carolina's head coaching search. Despite a litany of big names being linked to the job, the Tar Heels landed on former NBA head coach Michael Malone as their successor to Hubert Davis, seemingly hurried by the looming transfer portal..
The Malone move seemingly came out of left field for North Carolina, which had been linked to Chicago Bulls' head coach Billy Donovan and a litany of successful college coaches like Tommy Lloyd and Dusty May. While Lloyd made headlines by opting to sign an extension with Arizona instead of taking the job, it appears there was more hesitation from other coaches to seriously pursue the Tar Heels' gig.
The 5 coaches who said 'no' to UNC
CBS Sports' Matt Norlander is reporting that both Iowa head coach Ben McCollum and Baylor's Scott Drew pulled themselves out of the running for the job. Jeff Goodman had previously reported that Iowa State's T.J. Otzelberger also withdrew from the process early on, meaning the Tar Heels were spurned by at least five high-profile Division I head coaches including Lloyd and May.
There is no clear resolution on the Tar Heels' interest in Donovan, whose college resume is outstanding thanks to his run with Florida that included consecutive national championships. Donovan appears to have won a power struggle to gain front office control in Chicago, however, making the pivot to Malone an expedient response with the transfer portal set to open tomorrow.
Why Blue Blood jobs aren't nearly as enticing as they used to be
It is unclear if North Carolina wanted to go further down the collegiate ranks and explore the likes of Vanderbilt's Mark Byington or Saint Louis' Josh Schertz, but the pivot to Malone was quite revealing. The fact that sitting head coaches at Iowa, Iowa State and Baylor opted to stay put rather than move to one of the five most recognizable jobs in the country says a lot about how NIL and the transfer portal have leveled the playing field.
With the right financial backing and recruiting chops any job can lead to instant success, which we saw with Curt Cignetti at Indiana in football. Coaches like McCollum and Drew felt more comfortable in their current setups rather than taking a risk by moving to North Carolina, which is a pressure cooker that chewed up and spit out a beloved alumni like Davis in just four years.
Kentucky and Indiana also experienced issues selling their vacancies in their last hiring cycles. The Wildcats were spurned by Drew and Dan Hurley before pivoting to Mark Pope while Indiana poached Darian DeVries from West Virginia.
It would have been blasphemy even a decade ago for someone to turn down an opportunity to coach at one of the blue bloods, but the landscape of the sport has changed. Non-traditional powers can be built up quickly with the right investment so it looks as if coaches will now prioritize fit and comfort with their situations instead of brand name value.
What now for UNC and other Blue Bloods?
This is something worth monitoring down the line with Kansas, which was nearly in this year's hiring cycle before Bill Self opted to return for another year. North Carolina clearly thought they wouldn't have to work too hard to sell their vacancy but times have changed.
In terms of pure basketball brain power, few coaches have more to offer UNC than Malone, who is an NBA champion and helped develop Nikola Jokic into one of the best players in the world. The problem is that Malone hasn't been involved at the collegiate level since 2001, when he completed a two-year run as an assistant with the MAAC's Manhattan Jaspers.