LIVE UPDATES: The NC State Basketball Coaching Big Board
Saturday Afternoon Updates
UPDATE 1: I’m expecting this to be wrapped up by Tuesday at the latest no matter who it is.
UPDATE 2: This below is confirmed, and based on other individual pieces of intel being put together, I think an offer will be made, it will be big, and it will likely come with more NIL money than Wade had at his disposal. Will Schertz want to wait around for bigger jobs or not? That’s the question.
Saint Louis coach Josh Schertz is interviewing today w/ NC State, source confirms
First by @ToddGibsonWNCN
Schertz recently agreed to a 6-yr, $20M extension at SLU
If Schertz turns it down, NC State is expected to turn to Tennessee’s Justin Gainey, a former Wolfpack guard pic.twitter.com/sXdAaY4HOe
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) March 28, 2026
UPDATE 3: Getting asked about my opinion of what’s going on. TONS of misdirection, as usual, during this phase of a search. But I know NC State is making a serious play for Schertz and is also serious about Justin Gainey. I think there is a question of strategy at play. Do you get the inexperienced, but inexpensive coach that frees up NIL money for players, or do you go after the coach whose system is proven but comes at a cost?
I think answering which one is better would depend on other factors. How much NIL money does NC State have at its disposal? If donors have backed away a bit, then you might want to play it conservative and lean on Gainey. But if you believe the coffers are full, and you can make a play for Schertz, then you take that swing. He’s the most coveted guy out there right now.
I also think you have to take into consideration that Boo was burned by Wade, which was not the sure-thing calculated hire that he wanted (remember he liked Odom). I think Boo is feeling like he can’t miss right now. He can’t make the wrong call.
I believe that to be the case. I also believe the coffers are VERY full. So, coupling those things with another nugget that we have to keep to ourselves right now, I’m going to lean toward it being Schertz. (We’ll release that nugget later, regardless of who is hired.)
UPDATE 4: The NC State jet shot over to Chicago, where Tennessee is playing Michigan tomorrow. We have confirmed that they are on to the Gainey interview.
UPDATE 5 (3:15PM): There was an X post from SLU reporter about Schertz that was deleted and reposted. The initial one was more relevant, so we’ll post that.
For anybody wanting to see the original post Frank quickly changed pic.twitter.com/LSJFKnMwqH
— A.B🇺🇸🦅 (@Blitzer_8) March 28, 2026
The NIL tidbit is correct. NC State NIL investment this year will blow you away and make you realize Wade did not leave because of the money. I am also not confident this guy is being told the truth about an offer.
What a whirlwind couple of days! Between deconstructing the Will Wade saga to ramping up a full-blown coaching search in the middle of March Madness, things have been busy. But even though it’s the weekend, things are pushing forward. Here’s the latest…
Saturday Morning Update
First off, let’s start with what we can confirm. Josh Schertz was initially priority #1 for NC State. He’s the hottest name in the mid-major pool right now, but he also just signed a nice extension. He’s a guy who can bring stability to the program, can build a roster on a mid-level NIL budget (I believe he had $5M to $6M last season), and has proven success at multiple levels.
Now, can NC State land him is the question. A source very close to the process told us early on that he would be the top target, but that it wouldn’t be easy to land him. He’s got a hefty buyout, a nice contract, and some pretty decent NIL promises going forward. While the ACC would be a nice jump from the Atlantic-10, does NC State have the ability to buy him out, bump up his salary, and bump up his NIL budget?
I think the answer is yes, but it won’t be simple. Schertz isn’t only being courted by NC State, he’s likely involved in some higher-profile searches as a 3rd or 4th option, and that could make things tricky. And even if he gets passed up for those, he’s also got a pretty nice setup at SLU, and he could hold out for a bigger job in a year or two.
However, the reason this Schertz thing is dragging on without a clear answer right now is that it’s likely that he’s weighing all of his options, with NC State being one of them. He’s the hottest name on the board right now at the mid-major level, so does he parlay that into a better job now?
If he gets offered a higher-profile gig than State, he’s gone. But NC State seems right in that tough spot where he likely views NC State as quality jump, he wonders if it’s a big enough jump. He likely also wonders if now is the time to cash those chips in. He had a great run this year and won 29 games, but Robbie ‘Milk Chamberlain’ Avila and Dion Brown are graduating. Those are his leading scorers, rebounders, and assist guys. If he goes back to SLU and can’t replicate his success from this year, he’ll no longer be the hottest mid-major out there, meaning less programs lining up to hire him, which means less money he can demand.
The door is still open with Schertz, so we’ll wait to see how things play out. Some dominoes likely need to fall with other schools before we get an answer. It could be a long weekend.
There’s some speculation that NC State is on its way out there right now.
Nobody does #SearchSZN like the NC State fanbase. https://t.co/phu3KfjWew
— PackInsider.com (@PackInsider) March 28, 2026
The sleuth work by @GeneralNCSU on X is spot on with that flight. It’s registered to Seven Wolves LLC, which is most certainly an NC State/Donor plane.
*Confirmed: It’s Brian McMurray’s plane, and it is in STL at this moment.
And here’s a nugget that won’t sway anything but is interesting none-the-less…
COACHING SEARCH UPDATE #3:
SLU guard Isaac Holmes followed Schertz from ISU to SLU. He played at Apex Friendship (NC) and is the son of Tony Holmes, a former NC State football player who owns local Chick-fil-As.
Follow Along for real intel and some useless intel (like this)👇… pic.twitter.com/pVBy0YX8Sh
— PackInsider.com (@PackInsider) March 28, 2026
Onto another name that was floated to us yesterday. Richard Pitino. Yes, the son of the legendary Rick Pitino, who had a couple of decent seasons at Minnesota before finding his footing with New Mexico for 4 seasons. He then moved on to Xavier, where he struggled this past season at 15-18 on the year. When we dug into why, their fanbase seems split on it being the lack of resources or his coaching style, but the reported $5M in NIL for a Big East team is kinda ridiculous in this day and age.
While the name seems intriguing, I’m not as sold that he is really even an option. To be clear, this information is coming from the donor circles, not the administration or anyone on the transition team. So you can call this unconfirmed, but when people with large amounts of money are floating it, you have to take it somewhat seriously. Heck, that’s how Will Wade landed here.
That said, reports seem correct that Boo didn’t want Wade to begin with and was pushed to hire him by the donor class, who desperately wanted him. I think you’ll see a very different approach this time around. Remember, Boo has leverage with how the Wade situation ended and the fact that his first choice (Ryan Odom) went on to have a very successful season 1 with UVA (however, Odom was never going to pass up the UVA job to begin with). He hired Wade and it ended in embarrassment for him. Our guess is that Boo is going to do what he wants to do this time around. That is why we don’t believe Pitino will end up being a real candidate.
One long-shot candidate may be Vandy head coach Mark Byington. There’s been smoke on this name since day one, but it wasn’t clear why. His buyout is enormous, and it’d be shocking if any SEC coach left for an ACC job at this point. But then we were told Boo’s son is a grad assistant there. Maybe there has been some backchannelling or a prior relationship that could carry real weight. We’ll keep an eye on this one.
Then there is Justin Gainey. Gainey isn’t some fallback option. NC State seriously likes him, and I believe would consider him a great hire. The real problem is, he has no head coaching experience despite being an associate head coach under Rick Barnes for the past 3 years. The fanbase is at a point where I think they’d be very accepting of Gainey, but would have to put aside their ‘Sid Lowe’ trauma for a minute. Lowe was another NC State PG who came back to coach, and let’s just say it didn’t end up all that great.
Gainey might be a former NC State PG as well, but that’s where the similarities end. Lowe came from the NBA with no college coaching experience, while Gainey has been groomed to be in the role he’s in. He’s recruited and landed top players at the highest levels and has basically been picked to become the next in line at Tennessee.
With guys like Jon Sheyer and Jai Lucas proving that you can be a young first-year coach and have big-time success, maybe NC State jumps on Gainey immediately if Schertz tells them no.
The groundswell for Gainey is mounting. Former NC State WR Torry Holt and former players Richard Howell and Julius Hodge have been vocal about their trust in him as a head coach. While that’s noteworthy, it’s also important to know that some influential donors are starting to feel the same way.
With that said. We’re going to leave just 2 realistic names on our big board for now. With a couple of guys potentially ready to graduate up if the situation changes.
Justin Gainey | Tennessee
Role: Associate Head Coach
Age: 49
Alma Mater: NC State
Chance he’d accept if offered: 100% (yes, 100%)
Gainey has become one of the most respected assistants in college basketball, particularly known for his defensive expertise and player development. The 49-year-old is in his fifth season on Rick Barnes’ staff at Tennessee in 2025-26, including his third as associate head coach and defensive coordinator. During his time in Knoxville, the Volunteers have been very successful, making multiple NCAA Tournament appearances, reaching Sweet 16s and Elite Eights, and consistently ranked among the nation’s elite defensive squads.
He previously served as associate head coach at Marquette, spent time as an assistant at Arizona, and had earlier stops at Santa Clara, Appalachian State, and Elon. Gainey began his coaching career in administrative roles at NC State.
Pros: He’s a proven entity working under one of the nation’s most well-respected coaches. He has helped build elite, tough-minded teams at the high-major level. Gainey excels at developing guards and point guards, has strong recruiting ties (especially in North Carolina), and has worked under successful head coaches like Rick Barnes and Sean Miller. As a former player and staff member at NC State, he’d know what he’d be getting himself into, and he’d have a deep understanding of the expectations, fanbase, and culture. If Gainey is offered this job, he 100% takes it. That’s not our opinion; that’s from as good a source as there is on this topic.
Cons: He has no head coaching experience at any level, which is the biggest question mark for programs. Some fans might prefer a candidate with prior success as a head coach, but if you don’t need that, then Gainey is as good as it gets.
Style of Play: Gainey’s primary impact is on the defensive end, where Tennessee has been historically dominant, emphasizing physicality, discipline, communication, and forcing opponents into inefficient shots. Offensively, he has contributed to high-assist-rate teams that feature skilled guard play and ball movement. His background as a very fundamental point guard translates well into developing trustworthy and talented guards.
NC connection: Very strong ties, obviously. Gainey is a former NC State player (1996-2000), where he was a three-year starter at point guard, team captain as a senior, and part of the memorable 1997 ACC Tournament Cinderella run (playing every minute and earning All-Tournament honors). He is from High Point, NC, and began his coaching career on the Wolfpack staff (administrative coordinator 2006-08 and director of basketball operations 2008-09). Returning home to lead his alma mater would be a full-circle opportunity where he’d have a ton of support and deep recruiting ties. He attended Greensboro Day High School in Greensboro.
Josh Schertz | Saint Louis
Role: Head Coach
Age: 50
Alma Mater: Florida Atlantic U
Chance he’d accept if offered: 50%
Schertz has built a reputation as a consistent winner across different levels. After a dominant run at Division II Lincoln Memorial (including deep tournament runs), he elevated Indiana State and has now turned Saint Louis into a competitive program, recently leading them to strong Atlantic 10 showings and an NCAA Tournament appearance. The 50-year-old emphasizes efficient offense and player development.
Pros: He’s won everywhere he’s been. He’s known as a good X’s and O’s guy and his style of basketball is disciplined, fundamental, and is enjoyable to watch. He’s also the ‘anti-Wade’ who isn’t into marketing gimmiks or flashy slogans. Heck, he reportedly doesn’t even have an agent (but I find that hard to believe.)
Cons: He’s never won at a high-major level, but usually the A-10 is a proving ground for eventual high-major coaches.
Style of Play: Schertz describes it as ‘organized randomness.’ Here he is talking about it. “We call it organized randomness. Randomness by itself would just be chaos. So you have to have some principles, some structure and concepts. And then we teach guys how to play instead of teaching them plays… It’s not patterns, it’s rhythm. It’s like jazz.”
NC connection: He has clear roots in the state from his early coaching days, serving as associate head coach at Queens University (NC) from 2001–03 and then at High Point University from 2003–08. That local experience could make an ACC move to Raleigh feel like a natural step up if the opportunity arises.
Other names to watch
Mark Byington | Vandy
Long shot to leave the SEC, and big time buyout, but Boo has connections there, so we’ll keep him on here
Richard Pitino | Xavier
No confirmation that Boo has any interest, but his name is being floated by donors who matter. He’s struggled this year, but his NIL budget was horrible. We’ll leave him on as long as the big money is saying his name.
Phill Martelli Jr. | VCU
We were given his name early on, and while I personally believe NC State hires Gainey before going with Martelli Jr, Boo has a close relationship with the VCU AD as was widely reported during the hiring of Will Wade.
Boo is keeping this all very tight. Some of our usual sources on the money side have told us they’re in the dark on candidates at this point, but all have also said they are fully backing Boo, with one telling us they’re increasing their donations after how the Wade situation transpired.
This list is not an end-all, be-all, and I wouldn’t be surprised to hear a few names over the weekend that aren’t on here.
We’ll keep you updated.
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