Money and opportunity are two of the biggest reasons why Will Wade left a pretty good thing going at McNeese in favor of joining the cause over at North Carolina State. Wade reinvented himself at McNeese after his tumultuous tenure at LSU. The Cowboys' run to March Madness was enough to merit he belonged back in the Power Five. And with that comes a huge bump in salary for the coach.
On Friday, the contract details were revealed for Wade's NC State contract. It was a six-year deal that was first reported, but it took a minute for the exact financials to come out. On3 was all over this, as they found out it will be a six-year deal worth $17.25 million. We are looking at a $2.5 million base salary with incentives baked into it, as well as a $150,000 annual escalator for Wade to run shop.
As far as the incentives are concerned, Wade can make up to an additional $1.7 million based on on-court achievements. He can make up to $150,000 if he wins 16 ACC games or 24 regular-season games a year. Wade gets $100,000 for winning the ACC during the regular season or its conference tournament. He gets $1 million for winning March Madness and $300,000 based on good academics.
Now we need to take a look at what Wade's buyout with North Carolina State currently looks like.
Will Wade contract details: What is his North Carolina State buyout?
North Carolina State had to pay McNeese $1 million to buy Wade out to bring him to Raleigh. If Wade were to leave North Carolina State prematurely, he would have to pay back $5 million on or before April 1, 2026. The buyout goes down $1 million annually until it is only $1 million on or before April, 1, 2030. Overall, the financial implications of Wade's new deal at NC State is not a potential albatross.
While North Carolina State is usually competitive in all of its major sports, it is best known for its men's basketball program. Although the ACC still has one of its teams alive to potentially win the 2025 NCAA Tournament, only three of its 17 teams made it into March Madness. It may have been a down year for the conference, but North Carolina State has to be a program to bring it back to good.
Ultimately, North Carolina State athletic director Boo Corrigan seemed to be more than willing to do whatever it took to bring Wade to Raleigh. The Wolfpack may have had a fantastic run into the NCAA Tournament last year, but that clearly was short-lived. It was only a matter or time before Wade was back in the Power Five anyway, so give North Carolina State credit for striking the deal to land him.
Keep in mind that Wade's alma mater just so happens to be a big rival of NC State in Clemson as well.