North Carolina basketball is hiring Michael Malone to become the 20th head coach of North Carolina basketball.Â
UNC is a storied program that demands a serious coach. When the North Carolina athletic department’s top rumored names weren’t available, the Tar Heels decided to make another unconventional hire by reaching into the ranks of the professional leagues.Â
Like Bill Belichick, Mike Malone is the former head coach of a championship team. Unlike Belichick, he’s not the oldest coach in his sport and potentially preoccupied by inconsequential distractions.Â
The Malone hire could end up working well – especially in an ACC that looks as top-heavy as it’s ever been.
But regardless of whether the Malone hire works well or not, it’s undoubtedly an unconventional approach. In the entire history of the NBA, there have only been 14 coaches who have moved directly from NBA head coach to college basketball head coach with no other interim coaching jobs.
Head Coaches Who Moved From the NBA to College Basketball
| Head Coach | NBA Team (Final Season) | College Basketball Team (First Season) |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Malone | Nuggets (2024-25) | North Carolina (2026-27) |
| Fred Hoiberg | Bulls (2017-18) | Nebraska (2019-20) |
| Mike Dunleavy Sr. | Clippers (2009-10) | Tulane (2016-17) |
| Avery Johnson | Nets (2011-12) | Alabama (2015-16) |
| Jeff Bower | Hornets (2009-10) | Marist (2013-14) |
| Larry Brown | Bobcats (2009-10) | SMU (2012-13) |
| Isiah Thomas | Knicks (2007-08) | FIU (2009-10) |
| Mike Montgomery | Warriors (2005-06) | Cal (2008-09) |
| Jeff Bzdelik | Nuggets (2003-04) | Air Force (2005-06) |
| Tim Floyd | Hornets (2003-04) | USC (2005-06) |
| Jerry Tarkanian | Spurs (2002) | Fresno State (1995-96) |
| Paul Westhead | Nuggets (1991-92) | George Mason (1993-94) |
| Rick Pitino | Knicks (1988-89) | Kentucky (1989-90) |
| Larry Brown | Nets (1982-83) | Kansas (1983-84) |
| Larry Brown | Nuggets (1978-79) | UCLA (1979-80) |
| John Kundla | Lakers (1958-59) | Minnesota (1959-60) |
Observations On Head Coach Movement
One of the most common scenarios I saw while reviewing names for this list was coaches going from NBA head coach, to NBA assistant, to college basketball head coach.Â
That may be the NBA job market quietly telling former head coaches that they’re just not good enough to get a second shot in the pros. Inevitably, they pivot to college basketball, where there are way more head coaching jobs available.Â
It’s more unusual for a head coach to bounce straight to college, with no intervening seasons as an assistant. Sometimes, they move straight down. Other times, there may be a year or two in between, as is the case with Malone.Â
Several of these names, like Jerry Tarkanian or Rick Pitino, are primarily known as college coaches anyway. However, a random NBA job somewhere on the CV happened to qualify them for this list when they inevitably returned to an NCAA coaching job.
There’s also Larry Brown, who somehow qualified for this list three separate times.
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