Six candidates to replace Mike Hopkins as UW men’s basketball coach
SEATTLE – The last time Troy Dannen went looking for a head coach, the Washington Huskies athletic director moved with incredible pace to fill the void in the football program.
It took him just two days to lure Jedd Fisch away from Arizona and replace Kalen DeBoer, who left for Alabama.
Two months later, Dannen, who began his tenure at Montlake in October, is now tasked to fill the soon-to-be head coaching vacancy with the UW men’s basketball team after announcing Friday that Mike Hopkins will not return next season.
“As we transition to the Big Ten Conference this August, we do so with tremendous momentum, passionate fans and supporters, as well as a proud basketball tradition,” Dannen said in a statement released by UW. “I am confident we will identify a phenomenal leader for our men’s basketball program who will embrace our institution’s high expectations for academic, social and competitive success.”
Just don’t expect Dannen to move as quickly as he did before.
For starters, most of the reported top candidates are in the midst of leading their programs to conference tournaments followed by the NCAA Tournament.
The last time Troy Dannen went looking for a head coach, the Washington Huskies athletic director moved with incredible pace to fill the void in the football program.
It took him just two days to lure Jedd Fisch away from Arizona and replace Kalen DeBoer, who left for Alabama.
Two months later, Dannen, who began his tenure at Montlake in October, is now tasked to fill the soon-to-be head coaching vacancy with the UW men’s basketball team after announcing Friday that Mike Hopkins will not return next season.
“As we transition to the Big Ten Conference this August, we do so with tremendous momentum, passionate fans and supporters, as well as a proud basketball tradition,” Dannen said in a statement released by UW. “I am confident we will identify a phenomenal leader for our men’s basketball program who will embrace our institution’s high expectations for academic, social and competitive success.”
Just don’t expect Dannen to move as quickly as he did before.
For starters, most of the reported top candidates are in the midst of leading their programs to conference tournaments followed by the NCAA Tournament.
However, it’s believed Dannen has his sights set on a candidate with current head-coaching experience and it’s extremely uncommon for a head coach to take another job while his team is in the postseason.
Still, the transfer portal might play a role in UW’s hiring timeline considering Monday begins a 45-day window for players to enter the portal.
The Huskies might also be motivated to move quickly considering the very real possibility several other schools will likely be looking for a new coach. Stanford’s Jerod Haase, Arizona State’s Bobby Hurley and Oregon State’s Wayne Tinkle are believed to be on the hot seat, and Oregon’s Dana Altman recently shutdown retirement rumors.
At that moment, Washington, Ohio State, West Virginia and DePaul are the major schools without a men’s basketball coach, which begs the question: Is UW a good job?
Well, it’s complicated.
Before delving into this, it must be noted Washington is historically a football school while the Husky men’s basketball – even in the best of times – competes for attention in a metropolitan city that offers an array of entertainment and sports options.
That’s a nice way of saying, college hoops isn’t as important around here as it in places like Kansas, Kentucky and North Carolina.
In the past 12 years, the Huskies have made just one appearance in the NCAA Tournament, which partly explains why they’re looking for their third coach in seven years.
Hopkins’ predecessor, Lorenzo Romar, had the longest sustained success in school history when he made six trips to the Big Dance during an eight-year span (2004-11).
But since 1978, Washington has captured just five regular-season conference titles and there’s no indication that life in the 18-team Big Ten will be any easier.
Depending on how you spin it, moving to the new conference will help and hurt the Huskies.
There’s no doubt, Washington will be adversely affected by travel to small-town hoops hotbeds like East Lansing, Michigan; Champagne, Illinois; and West Lafayette, Indiana.
On the other hand, Washington’s membership in a conference that extends from Piscataway, New Jersey, to Los Angeles helped land Minnesota-based Casmir Chavis, a four-star prospect who cited UW’s Big Ten affiliation as a reason why he signed with the Huskies.
Historically, the Seattle/Tacoma area has been fertile grounds for high-school recruiting and regularly produced top prospects who became Husky legends like Brandon Roy and Isaiah Thomas.
Washington has six former players playing in the NBA (Markelle Fultz, Justin Holiday, Jaden McDaniels, Dejounte Murray, Isaiah Stewart and Matisse Thybulle), not including eight in the G League and seven playing professionally overseas.
Hopkins’ $3.1 million salary this season is just below what most Big Ten coaches are making based on research from news organizations across the conference. Eight coaches are reportedly earning between $3.6M and $3.2M.
Seemingly, UW’s next coach will have robust NIL support last year that helped Hopkins attract a bevy of high-profile transfers and high-school recruits, including Keion Brooks Jr. and Zoom Diallo.
A decade ago, Washington enjoyed a waiting list for season-ticket holders before fan interest in the program waned. Still, the Huskies sold out 9,294-capacity Alaska Airlines Arena three times this season.
And last week, UW began construction on a donor-funded $60 million basketball-only practice facility that will open in 2025, representing a long-awaited investment that will benefit the Huskies’ next coach.
So, there’s plenty of advantages and disadvantages when it comes to Washington’s ability to compete in the Big Ten.
Now it’s up to Dannen to find the right person for the job.
Here’s a look at a few early candidates (in alphabetical order).
Randy Bennett, Saint Mary’s
Almost every time there’s a coaching vacancy with a West Coast Power Five team, his name is thrown in the mix. Last year, he reportedly rebuffed overtures from California. During his 23-year tenure at Saint Mary’s, Bennett has built a basketball powerhouse and the Gaels (24-7) are poised to make their 10th appearance in the NCAA Tournament in the past 20 years.
Darian DeVries, Drake
The 48-year-old DeVries has never won fewer than 20 games in a season during his six years with the Bulldogs. This season, Drake is 26-6 and on the verge of its third NCAA Tournament under DeVries. Son Tucker, a 6-foot-7 junior guard, is the two-time Missouri Valley Conference player of the year.
Dusty May, Florida Atlantic
Arguably the hottest name among mid-major coaches, who is reportedly one of the top two candidates for the Ohio State job along with Xavier’s Sean Miller. May is 124-67 over six seasons at Florida Atlantic and surprisingly he returned to the Owls for this year after guiding them to a 35-win season and the Final Four.
Niko Medved, Colorado State
Much like May, Medved has been a rising star among midmajor coaches since guiding the Rams to four 20-win seasons in the past five years. However, since making his only trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2022, the Ram have finished eighth and seventh in the Mountain West.
Kyle Smith, Washington State
Smith is beloved in Pullman after guiding the Cougars to a 23-8 record, second-place Pac-12 finish and an expected NCAA Tournament appearance, which would snap their 16-year postseason drought. But Washington would be foolish not to explore his interest. Besides, the last coach who left WSU for UW turned out pretty good for the Huskies: the legendary Marv Harshman.
Danny Sprinkle, Utah State
Several college basketball pundits believe it’s his job if he wants it. Sprinkle led Montana State to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and during his first year at Utah State, the 22nd-ranked Aggies are 22-5 and headed to the Big Dance. Sprinkle is a Pullman native whose father played football at UW.