The Tar Heels’ rebuilding plan would be incomplete if they gave Michael Malone the bag and not the tools for him to succeed. He had an open floor to bring in any assistant coach after signing a six-year, $50 million contract, making him the second-highest-paid coach in college basketball, behind only Kansas’ Bill Self. One of his hires was Kim English, who arrived after coaching Providence in the Big East. However, to add some chaos to their roster planning, English has taken a u-turn.
“Sources: Kim English has informed UNC officials that he’s decided not to pursue an assistant coach position at North Carolina,” Pete Thamel reported. No reason was offered for the decision. English was in Chapel Hill for almost the entire last week. He arrived after spending three seasons with Providence and his last five overall as a head coach, closing 82-81 with the Friars and George Mason.
Advertisement
English was Malone’s second hire after snagging Arkansas assistant Chuck Martin. English’ recruiting abilities and the “Friars Connection” seemed to have made them a perfect match. But it wasn’t to be and the fans aren’t happy with this reversal.
Unprofessional Or Clean Cut? Kim English’s UNC Decision Invites Criticism
“Decided not to pursue”… This is disingenuous. He was already on campus doing the job. Just report it how it is. He had a change of heart and made an unprofessional move,” wrote a fan. “I’ve literally never seen this before — how do you work for a week and then just….leave? Really bad look for English,” pitched in another.
The entire program is already in a big transition. They are entering a new era under Malone, who is navigating the college basketball transfer portal after being an NBA coach for years. The program has a lot riding on this hire after multiple years of mediocre results. It’s already chaos and Kim English just added fuel to the fire. Now, Malone has to look for another hire for a position he considered to be covered. So, the optics of this move do not look very good for English as other programs might think twice before bringing him in.
Advertisement
“If this is English’s idea of professionalism, UNC dodged a massive bullet here,” wrote another fan. Nevertheless, there is a catch in this narrative. There is no reason mentioned as to why English is not taking the UNC job. This is more about perception than his character. English might have a valid reason that both Malone and UNC understand. In addition, things would have been only worse if he had waited more to take this call.
“Guess he had second thoughts smart to walk away clean,” commented another fan. Even if it was for a simple reason like a bad fit or a difference in ideas, it is always better to take that call early rather than force it. It could have compromised the program’s performance and caused an internal problem. That is something the team wants to avoid. Maybe this is a good thing for the Tar Heels.
“English has been a head coach before so it’s probably tough for him to take a step back now. maybe he’s waiting for a better job to open up,” theorized another. English has been a head coach for five years now, 3 at the Friars and 2 at George Mason. Yet, being an assistant coach under an NBA Champion at one of the biggest programs in college basketball history is not a step down. But head coaching salaries are on the rise and English could be looking for one. Regardless, North Carolina now has another hire on their checklist.
