What I’m hearing about UNC’s coaching search: Billy Donovan next up with Dusty May out

The college basketball transfer portal opens Tuesday, and despite firing Hubert Davis nearly two weeks ago, North Carolina still does not have its next head coach.

Instead, it has a growing list of candidates who have already rebuffed the Tar Heels’ interest, a sign that UNC’s historic pedigree carries less weight in a modern era dominated by roster building through the transfer portal, name, image and likeness, and revenue sharing.

Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd and Michigan’s Dusty May — two of UNC’s top initial candidates — have already removed themselves from consideration while coaching in this weekend’s Final Four.

So where does that leave UNC?

The Tar Heels’ top remaining candidate is Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan, according to multiple people briefed on UNC’s strategy, granted anonymity because they are not authorized to speak publicly about the search. North Carolina is aggressively pursuing Donovan, 60, despite his not coaching in college in over a decade.

Donovan, who won consecutive national titles at Florida in 2006 and 2007, remains open to the possibility, according to multiple industry sources, but is far from a slam dunk to take the job. One major sticking point has been Donovan’s desire to remain with Chicago through the end of the NBA regular season on April 12 — five days after the transfer portal opens, which would seemingly put him at a major disadvantage in building his first UNC roster. Additionally, while industry sources told The Athletic that Donovan has multiple years remaining on the contract extension he signed with the Bulls last summer, there is some industry chatter about Donovan potentially looking at different NBA openings this summer instead, with double-digit professional vacancies a possibility.

If North Carolina waited for Donovan, only for him to then take another job, it would be a gut punch to the Tar Heels’ chances of competitiveness next season — and an embarrassing setback in the search to fill a job widely seen as a top-five gig in the sport.

However, Donovan is serious enough about the UNC job that he has already begun discussing his potential staff were he to accept a Tar Heels offer, according to two sources. That staff would likely include several people who were with Donovan at Florida in some capacity, sources said, including at least one who is an active college assistant.

Donovan has also called at least one prominent high-major assistant with whom he had no prior ties, a source briefed on the search added.

UNC stakeholders believe that Donovan — between his prior college success and his NBA pedigree — would have little trouble luring talent to Chapel Hill, to say nothing of his X’s and O’s acumen.

If not Donovan, North Carolina would move to its next tier of candidates.

That group would include, in no particular order: Vanderbilt’s Mark Byington, Iowa’s Ben McCollum, Iowa State’s T.J. Otzelberger (who UNC previously contacted this cycle), Baylor’s Scott Drew, Saint Louis’ Josh Schertz and former Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone, an ESPN analyst who is a coaching free agent.

However, industry sources doubt how many — if any — of those candidates would seriously work for UNC.

Byington recently signed a contract extension with Vanderbilt, and industry sources said his buyout is $10 million-$11 million, a high price tag for a coach who has yet to make a Sweet 16. Byington, though, would have interest if offered.

Then there’s McCollum, who led Iowa to the Elite Eight in his first season with the Hawkeyes, but who multiple industry sources said is highly unlikely to take the UNC job even if offered. McCollum, 44, is an Iowa City native and lifelong Midwesterner who is comfortable in his current role — and who, were he to leave for a blue blood, would seemingly be a much better fit at Kansas when Bill Self retires.

Otzelberger, 48, already signed a contract extension this cycle, and despite leading Iowa State to three Sweet 16 appearances in the past five seasons, is not considered a cultural fit at UNC, according to multiple sources briefed on North Carolina’s thinking. The same applies to Schertz, 50, who rebuffed an offer from NC State in March and who signed a lucrative extension with SLU weeks ago. Schertz is considered a rising star in the industry and will be one of the top candidates for high-major jobs in next spring’s coaching carousel.

As for Drew, 55, who won a national title at Baylor in 2021, North Carolina has kicked his name around but has yet to seriously engage him about the job, according to two sources. Drew previously turned down the Kentucky job in 2024 despite close ties to then-athletic director Mitch Barnhart. While industry sources expect that Drew — who went 17-17 this season and missed the NCAA Tournament — would be interested in UNC, especially with better financial backing than he has at Baylor, there’s been little movement to suggest he’s a serious candidate.

That could change, however, if Donovan opts not to take the job. Drew’s buyout is considered manageable.

Lastly, there’s Malone, 54, who won an NBA title with the Denver Nuggets in 2023 before being fired late in the 2024-25 season. Multiple sources briefed on UNC’s thinking said Malone — whose daughter plays volleyball at UNC and who was around the program last season — has caught the attention of former players and longtime program supporters. His understanding of modern basketball trends — including accentuating three-time MVP Nikola Jokic — is intriguing from an X’s and O’s standpoint and would seemingly appeal to top talent that aspires to play at the next level. Malone’s time with Jokic means he is also familiar with Jokic’s agent, Misko Raznatovic, who also represents many top international recruits attempting to play college basketball.

Raznatovic has attended the last two Final Fours, including this year’s in Indianapolis, where several of his clients played for No. 3 Illinois.

But like with Donovan, there are questions. Is Malone a serious candidate for any of the expected NBA vacancies this summer? He has not coached in college since 2001, when he was an assistant at Manhattan, making his staff hires more important for networking and recruiting. He is even more of an outside-the-box candidate than Donovan, who at least won NCAA championships and has ties to many working in the sport.

North Carolina can still quickly wrap matters up by hiring Donovan, which is the most likely outcome at this time — but if it doesn’t, then UNC’s search may extend beyond what the school anticipated when it first fired Davis.

If there’s anything to take away from UNC’s search thus far, it’s this: Many of the built-in advantages that blue bloods once possessed no longer reign supreme in the modern era of college basketball.

Lloyd, who led Arizona to a No. 1 seed, announced Friday that he had agreed to an extension with the Wildcats through the 2031 season, one that makes him one of the highest-paid coaches in the sport. UNC never formally offered Lloyd the job, according to one program source, but communicated to Lloyd that it was willing to meet the financial requirements necessary to lure the 51-year-old away from the Wildcats. Many Tar Heels backers had voiced support for Lloyd behind the scenes because of his ties to Gonzaga coach Mark Few — a longtime friend of UNC legend Roy Williams and the coach who many boosters wanted the school to hire in 2021 before it elevated Davis — but ultimately, Arizona gave Lloyd everything he asked for to remain in the desert.

May, on the other hand, never seriously considered the Tar Heels, according to two industry sources, and could win his first national title Monday night against UConn. May, 49, is expected to receive NBA interest this offseason, according to multiple industry sources, but will not entertain other college jobs.

If he remains in Ann Arbor, expect May — like Lloyd — to sign a lucrative contract extension.