Joel Berry reacts to Hubert Davis firing: ‘I wasn’t surprised at all’

Following North Carolina’s loss to VCU in the 2026 NCAA Tournament, Hubert Davis’ future came into question. The Tar Heels ultimately made a coaching change Tuesday and announced Davis’ departure, and UNC great Joel Berry said he wasn’t surprised by the decision.

Conversations took place throughout the days following North Carolina’s season-ending loss, which saw the Tar Heels’ 19-point lead evaporate in the second half. It marked another early exit for UNC, and the program will now hit the reset button as the search begins to replace Davis after five years at the helm.

While Berry said he wondered if North Carolina would show “grace” in light of Caleb Wilson’s season-ending injury, he also noted the need for more consistent success in the NIL era. He said that might have been a factor in the decision to move on from Davis.

“I wasn’t surprised at all,” Berry told SiriusXM College Sports Radio. “By looking at that collapse, you start thinking about, ‘Well, we’ve seen this story before.’ I kind of thought some grace would be shown. You went 24-7 during the regular season, you’re 18-0 at home and you lose your best player. And you end up having this downfall at the end of the season.

“I thought [they] would show a little grace and then maybe laying out the plan for what things look like moving forward. But ultimately, not surprised because of the world and the era that we’re in right now where patience isn’t something that resonates with a lot of people.”

Joel Berry: NIL era ‘common factor’ in Hubert Davis decision

As roster costs continue to increase in the NIL era, Joel Berry pointed out the importance of donor support. Inside Carolina previously reported the North Carolina roster payroll was roughly $14 million this past year, which is on the higher end of Power Five spending, according to data from Opendorse. Teams in power leagues spent an estimated $7 million to $10 million on average on rosters in 2025-26.

However, Berry said when schools lose some support from donors, it can be even more challenging to find pieces to put in place. If that’s what North Carolina was hearing, he said that could have been a factor in Hubert Davis’ departure.

“When you’re a coach right now and you get to a point where your donors, your boosters – whatever you want to call them. When they say, ‘We’re going to handcuff you and not give you money to go out and get what you need,’ you’ve lost,” Berry said. “You’ve lost. There’s nothing you can do at that point. And that’s where things were headed. When you get to that point and if you’re the AD or the administration, when you hear language like that, there has to be movement because at the end of the day, we all know in this new era, if you don’t have the cash to go get what you need, you can’t win ballgames and you can’t even put yourself in the position to go out and get what you need.

“So I really think, when you look at all of this and what’s going on, I really do think that was the common factor in why they made this decision. Because the boosters were the one who had the power in this because if you don’t have the money, you can’t get what you need.”