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North Carolina has zeroed in on its next men's basketball coach, and it's a name that wasn't on anyone's radar.
According to ESPN's Pete Thamel, former NBA championship-winning coach Michael Malone is set to be hired by the Tar Heels to replace Hubert Davis, who was fired after a first-round exit this season. Malone was most recently the head coach of the Denver Nuggets.
It's a hire that certainly comes a bit out of left field. Initial candidates for the UNC job included names like Arizona's Tommy Lloyd and Michigan's Dusty May, as well as Chicago Bulls and former Florida coach Billy Donovan. However, the former two removed their names from consideration, while the latter is still finishing up his regular season.
Malone, who also coached the Sacramento Kings for two seasons, spent 10 seasons with the Nuggets, winning a championship in 2023. However, he was fired 79 games into the 2024-25 season, despite the team's 47-32 record.
Since his firing, Malone has worked as a studio analyst at ESPN. Now, he returns to college for the first time since 2001, when he was an assistant at Manhattan. He was also previously an assistant at Providence and Oakland.
It's the first hire the program has made that wasn't an alumnus or former assistant since 1952, and it's certainly one nobody saw coming.
Contact/Follow @College_Wire on X and @College_Wires on Threads. Like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of college sports news, notes, and opinions.
This article originally appeared on College Sports Wire: UNC basketball hiring former Nuggets coach Mike Malone
Continue reading...
According to ESPN's Pete Thamel, former NBA championship-winning coach Michael Malone is set to be hired by the Tar Heels to replace Hubert Davis, who was fired after a first-round exit this season. Malone was most recently the head coach of the Denver Nuggets.
It's a hire that certainly comes a bit out of left field. Initial candidates for the UNC job included names like Arizona's Tommy Lloyd and Michigan's Dusty May, as well as Chicago Bulls and former Florida coach Billy Donovan. However, the former two removed their names from consideration, while the latter is still finishing up his regular season.
Malone, who also coached the Sacramento Kings for two seasons, spent 10 seasons with the Nuggets, winning a championship in 2023. However, he was fired 79 games into the 2024-25 season, despite the team's 47-32 record.
Since his firing, Malone has worked as a studio analyst at ESPN. Now, he returns to college for the first time since 2001, when he was an assistant at Manhattan. He was also previously an assistant at Providence and Oakland.
It's the first hire the program has made that wasn't an alumnus or former assistant since 1952, and it's certainly one nobody saw coming.
Contact/Follow @College_Wire on X and @College_Wires on Threads. Like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of college sports news, notes, and opinions.
This article originally appeared on College Sports Wire: UNC basketball hiring former Nuggets coach Mike Malone
Continue reading...
