Dusty May’s move to the NBA in June sent a clear message to the rest of college basketball: the professional game is back in play for top college coaches.
May became the first college coach to jump to the NBA since John Beilein left Michigan for the Cavaliers in 2019, and the timing made sense. At 49, he had already pulled off a stunning two-year turnaround at Michigan, taking a program that had gone 8-24 the season before his arrival and turning it into a national champion.
He had just delivered the Wolverines their first title since 1989, but there was little room to sit back and savor it. The transfer portal was already demanding attention, and the nonstop pressure to assemble another contender made the moment harder to fully enjoy.
With college basketball’s shifting landscape and uncertainty around the Protect College Sports Act, May had an appealing exit ramp. He took it.
So who follows him?
The answer is not obvious, especially with how rare these moves have been. There was a seven-year stretch between Beilein’s departure and May’s, and in that time no NBA head coaches were hired straight from the college ranks. Still, the lure is real, and eventually another coach will make the leap.
Luke Loucks is one name to watch. The Florida State coach is only 36 and has been on the job for just one season, but his background fits what NBA teams tend to value.
He spent 2016-25 in the league with the Warriors, Suns and Kings before returning to his alma mater for the 2025-26 season. Loucks may not be headed anywhere soon, and he is unlikely to leave Florida State for another college job, but his profile makes him a natural NBA candidate down the road.
Jon Scheyer is another coach who already drew NBA attention. Marc Stein reported that after the Mavericks moved on from Jason Kidd, Scheyer could be in the mix for that opening.
His connection to Cooper Flagg only added to the intrigue, since Scheyer coached the former Duke star during the 2024-25 season. Dallas ultimately hired Dusty May, and Scheyer remained at Duke.
That may be the right call for now, but the NBA interest is clearly there. Duke reached the Final Four with Flagg in 2025 before losing to UConn in the Elite Eight after what the source described as one of the worst collapses in recent memory during the NCAA Tournament.
Scheyer has once again built a loaded roster, and the Blue Devils could have the deepest team in college basketball this season. If he gets Duke over the top, the NBA pull becomes even easier to imagine.
Todd Golden also belongs in the conversation. Florida’s coach won a national championship at 39 with zero top-100 recruits on the roster, a first in the modern era, and that kind of success gets noticed.
Golden has no reason to rush out of Gainesville, but there is a competitive edge to his situation. The source notes that he surely sees the chatter about Dusty May being the best coach in the country, and that kind of noise can fuel a coach.
Golden also helped push roster-building toward skilled size, which lines up neatly with the modern NBA game.
There are other names worth keeping on the radar, too. Boston College’s Luke Murray and Illinois assistant Tyler Underwood were mentioned as possible offensive coordinators at the next level. But among the current head coaches, Golden stands out as the pick.
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Mike Norvell Pressure At Florida State Just Hit A New Level
Mike Norvells run at Florida State still carries the memory of 2023, when he guided the Seminoles to a 13-1 record and an ACC championship, but that success now feels increasingly distant. The conversation around the program has shifted hard in the other direction, with the Seminoles recent slide putting a very different kind of spotlight on the coach who once looked like he had the whole thing pointed back up.
Florida States on-field struggles have been paired with recruiting concerns that only add to the unease, as the 2027 class sits at No. 59 nationally and does not yet look like the kind of group that can quickly reset the trajectory. Even among ACC coaches, Norvell is being viewed through a harsher lens now, and the longer the results lag behind the standard he set, the harder it becomes to ignore the pressure building around him. [Read more 🡒]
Can FSU Finally Trust Its Linebackers In Year Two Under Norvell
Florida States linebacker room looks a lot different heading into the second year of the 3-3-5, and that is by design. The Seminoles have turned to transfers Ernie Sims, Chris Jones and Mikai Gbayor while also keeping a core that includes Blake Nichelson, Omar Graham Jr., Caleb LaVallee and AJ Cottrill, with freshman Izayia Williams adding another layer of competition. After a season of shuffling and uneven play at the position, the hope is that a cleaner fit in the scheme and a deeper group will finally give the defense more stability in the middle.
Jones arrives with a strong track record from Southern Miss, while Gbayor brings familiarity with Tony White after previous stops and a productive year at Nebraska. LaVallees return from a leg injury should matter too, because Florida State needs bodies it can trust, not just names on the depth chart. The bigger question is whether all of those pieces can settle in quickly enough to make the linebacker spot a strength instead of a weekly concern, especially with so much riding on how the new-look group handles the demands of year two. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Just Hit A Familiar Roadblock With Elite In State QB
Florida State is back in the familiar position of trying to hold its ground with an in-state quarterback who has plenty of options. Hudson West, a 2028 target for the Seminoles, is drawing interest from Florida, North Carolina and Georgia Tech, and his recruitment already has the feel of a long one. For a program that still sells itself on staying home and winning big in Florida, landing a player like West would matter well beyond one class.
West has made relationships a major part of his decision-making, which gives Florida State a clear opening if it can keep building trust over time. The challenge is obvious, though: Mike Norvells uncertain tenure and the programs recent struggles to consistently secure top in-state talent hang over this pursuit, and those are the kinds of questions that can linger deep into a quarterback recruitment. [Read more 🡒]