How’s The New Guy Doing At UNC?
No one knows how the Mike Malone experiment will work for UNC, but early signs are promising
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 19: Head coach Michael Malone of the Denver Nuggets cheers after a play during the second quarter against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto. com Arena on March 19, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.
(Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images) | Getty Images Mike Malone has only had the job for a few days, but so far, he seems to be doing reasonably well. The smartest thing he’s done has been to hire experienced college personnel. Malone was by all accounts a superior NBA coach, but there are real differences between the two levels of the sport.
He wouldn’t be the first guy to go from the NBA to college, only to fail. He has lured Chuck Martin, a key assistant at Arkansas, and Kim English, who was until recently the head coach at Providence, to help in Chapel Hill. Martin is an outstanding recruiter who helped Calipari build great classes at Kentucky and then Arkansas.
He and English will give him two guys who can advise him on the finer points of college basketball. He also retained Hubert Davis assistants Sean May, Pat Sullivan, and staffer Eric Hoots. UNC has lost seven players to the portal.