Break News: TAR Heels head coach terminate contract with team after a background Argument with manager concerning….
A famed basketball program in North Carolina is making headlines with the hire of its newest head coach.
Hubert Davis will be the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s first African American men’s basketball coach.
Three former Tar Heel men’s basketball players – a Final Four Most Outstanding Player, a captain who was one of the school’s most accurate shooters ever and a captain and defensive stalwart on a national championship team – headline the staff changes made by University of North Carolina head coach Hubert Davis.
Davis, himself a Tar Heel captain in 1991-92 and 12-year NBA player, has elevated Sean May to assistant coach, brought in Jeff Lebo as an assistant coach and hired Jackie Manuel as director of player and team development. In addition, Brad Frederick will return for his ninth year on the basketball staff and fifth as assistant coach.
Eric Hoots, assistant to the athletic director for men’s basketball and now director of basketball operations, Jonas Sahratian, director of strength and conditioning, and Doug Halverson, head athletic trainer, will also remain on staff.
This will mark the first time the UNC men’s basketball head coach and all three primary assistant coaches are former Tar Heel players (it’s the second time the three assistant coaches were former UNC players with Phil Ford, Dave Hanners and Pat Sullivan serving under head coach Bill Guthridge from 1997-2000).
“I wanted a staff that went to North Carolina and played at North Carolina,” says Davis. “I think you have a great opportunity to do this job well if you’ve experienced it as a player. It’s not the only way, of course, but given there are so many former players who are coaching, it’s a great way to build my first staff as the head coach. It was important for each of the assistants to have a connection with Coach Smith, Coach Guthridge, Coach Doherty and Coach Williams. It connects each of the former head coaches’ personalities to our current team, which was a huge incentive for me in constructing this staff. Carolina Basketball is all of them and I wanted a staff that had that diversity of experiences to give the most to our players.
“Jeff, Sean, Brad and Jackie all played for one or more of them and Hoots has been on the UNC staff for 20 years. Each of the coaches and Jackie have played, coached or worked in college basketball for a long time, but they connect with today’s generation of players, as well. And that’s critically important, too.
