Michael Malone landed the North Carolina job last spring thanks to his extensive basketball coaching experience.
On Wednesday, though, he experienced something different: Welcome to the Atlantic Coast Conference Tipoff.
The former NBA champion coach with the Denver Nuggets is continuing to encounter the vast difference between his previous roles and his new one with the Tar Heels.
“In the NBA, all you do is coach,” Malone said. “It’s all basketball. In college, the last thing you get to do is coach. You’re doing so many other things to kind of build your program.”
Now he’s in charge of a storied program where winning at a higher level is demanded. That’s what cost North Carolina alum Hubert Davis his job after a first-round March exit in the NCAA Tournament.
The ACC men’s basketball media days were held Tuesday and Wednesday in Charlotte. Boston College (Luke Murray), Georgia Tech (Scott Cross), North Carolina State (Justin Gainey) and Syracuse (Gerry McNamara) also have new coaches.
Malone said he respects the history that has taken place in Chapel Hill, but his blueprint won’t necessarily be the same. Still, some of what he wants are the basics.
“If you defend at a high level and you rebound at a high level, you’re going to give yourself a chance to win a lot of games,” he said. “And that’s been a huge point of emphasis for us.”
Duke’s reloading
Duke has won three ACC tournament championships in coach Jon Scheyer’s four seasons. The past two years, the Blue Devils had Cooper Flagg and then Cameron Boozer as super freshmen. There is a different crop of newcomers in Durham, N.C., but Duke might not have as much star power.
Get to know the names Cameron Williams and Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, just in case.
Miami’s movement
Miami has Shelton Henderson and Dante Allen back on what is otherwise a rebuilt roster. The Hurricanes, who went 26-9 last season and finished third in the ACC, look to be a team to contend for top honors under second-year coach Jai Lucas.
“We have some similarities, but it almost feels like a year one all over again, so it gives me the excitement every day to come to the gym to be able to coach them,” Lucas said.
Henderson, who averaged 13.8 points per game in 2025-26, said he wants to expand his perimeter offense, so that might mean shooting more 3-pointers after he hit 25.5% from long range last season.
“I think it’s going to create a lot more for me being able to stretch the floor out a lot more for myself and my teammates,” Henderson said.
Back with the ‘Cuse
McNamara has generated excitement upon his return to the Orange. He was a player on a national championship team and an assistant coach for two Syracuse teams that reached the Final Four.
However, the Orange haven’t even been to the NCAA Tournament the past five seasons.
“I think for us trying to move the program back in the direction we know it’s capable of going, you got to get the right group, the right core group, together,” McNamara said.
He directed Siena to a near first-round upset of top-seeded Duke in March. Now he is back in the same league as the Blue Devils.
But McNamara said he understands it’s a process, particularly with the unknown nature of college athletics.
“Right now, I think the hardest part of our job is forecasting the future ahead of time,” he said. “I think that the most difficult thing for the coaches right now is we don’t — I don’t know who is going to be here next year.”
