North Carolina has hired NBA championship-winning coach Michael Malone to lead the Tar Heels' basketball program, signing him to a six-year deal worth $50 million in base compensation.
The school announced Malone's hiring on Tuesday and scheduled an introductory news conference for later in the day. Malone will replace Hubert Davis, who was fired on March 24 after five seasons as the successor to retired Hall of Famer Roy Williams.
In a statement, UNC executive associate athletic director Steve Newmark described Malone as a “selfless teacher and innovator.”
“He is a brilliant coach who will deliver a modern and disciplined approach to leading our men’s basketball program, which is critical in the current landscape of college athletics,” said Newmark, who will succeed Bubba Cunningham as AD on July 1. “Carolina basketball is unique and special — and we have hired a leader well-suited to continuing our championship tradition.”
The 54-year-old Malone spent 12 seasons as a head coach in the NBA, including a 10-year run in Denver. He led the Nuggets to the 2023 championship behind three-time league MVP Nikola Jokic.
The Nuggets fired Malone last spring with less than a week left in that regular season. Almost a year to the day, in another surprise move, Malone is taking over a blue-blood program with six national titles, a record 21 appearances in the Final Four and alums including Michael Jordan, James Worthy Vince Carter and Atlantic Coast Conference career scoring leader Tyler Hansbrough.
“Carolina is one of the most historic programs in college basketball, and I am honored to be the head coach of the Tar Heels,” Malone said in a statement. “It is humbling to follow so many legends in Chapel Hill.
“I know from the many Tar Heels in the NBA how special the Carolina basketball family is, and I will do everything I can to continue UNC’s championship legacy while preparing our players for professional careers and life after basketball.”
Malone’s six-year deal starts at $7.5 million in base compensation next year and rises to $9 million by the 2031-32 season. Malone can also earn incentives worth up to nearly $1.5 annually, while he has a buyout that starts at $8 million through April 1 and drops to $6.5 million in 2028 and $5 million in 2029 as it continues to decline over the life of the deal.
Additionally, the agreement requires a $4 million salary pool for assistant coaches and support staff, as well as for the school to commit no less than $6.75 million of its revenue-share allotment to men's basketball.
Davis' firing opened one of the top jobs in college basketball for only the fourth time since the late Hall of Famer Dean Smith's retirement after 36 seasons in October 1997. The job had stayed in the "Carolina Family" ever since. Longtime assistant Bill Guthridge replaced Smith, followed by former UNC player Matt Doherty, former Smith assistant Williams and then Davis, who played under Smith and worked on Williams' staff.
Malone has never been a college head coach and has spent most of his career in the NBA. His primary connection to UNC athletics is the presence of daughter Bridget on the Tar Heels' volleyball team. He told the UNC athletic department's "Carolina Insider" podcast in October that he had attended multiple recent basketball practices — with Davis even asking him to speak to the team at least once.
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