In a surprising move, UNC reportedly hires Michael Malone as its next head coach

North Carolina is hiring a coach with NBA experience to be its next men’s basketball head coach. However, this is not the NBA coach many thought could become the next leader of the Tar Heels. Former Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone is expected to be hired as UNC’s next head coach, ESPN reported Monday. Malone, who helped the Nuggets win an NBA title in 2023, has never been a head coach at the college level and hasn’t coached in the college game since 2001. Malone’s reported hiring comes as a bit of a surprise. Most insiders didn’t even consider him a potential candidate for the job, and there were no credible reports that UNC was interested in hiring him. Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan was rumored to be the top candidate for the job after Michigan’s Dusty May and Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd withdrew their names. Malone does, however, have a connection to the UNC athletic department. Her daughter, Bridget, plays for the university’s women’s volleyball team. Malone’s reported hiring came nearly two weeks after UNC opted to fire head coach Hubert Davis after five seasons. Davis, who also played college basketball at UNC, went 125-54 during his tenure with the program, helping the Tar Heels to the national championship game in his first season at the helm. But UNC opted to fire Davis after blowing a large lead to VCU in its surprise loss in the first round of this year’s NCAA tournament. It was the second year in a row that UNC failed to advance past the first round. Malone, 54, was widely considered one of the best head coaches in the NBA during his 10 years with the Nuggets. He went 510-394 during his NBA head coaching career, helping Denver become a playoff mainstay late in his tenure before being abruptly fired just days before the start of the 2025 NBA playoffs. Malone was also previously the head coach of the Sacramento Kings, but was fired shortly after his second season with the team in 2014. Before becoming an NBA assistant head coach in 2001, Malone was an assistant coach in Oakland, Providence and Manhattan. This is a developing story and will be updated.