Brad Stevens swiftly bows out as North Carolina head coach candidate

There is a job opening in North Carolina right now after Hubert Davis was fired as coach on Tuesday. The decision came just a few days after the Tar Heels were eliminated in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

The high-profile vacancy is expected to garner a lot of interest. It was reported that North Carolina is looking to hire a “superstar” coach to replace Davis.

Well, the Tar Heels can now take Brad Stevens out of the equation. Stevens, who serves as the president of basketball operations of the Boston Celtics, has “removed his name from consideration,” according to a report from CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander.

“Although it was always a prayer, Stevens sat atop North Carolina’s principal list of candidates, which also includes the likes of Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd, Michigan’s Dusty May, Iowa State’s TJ Otzelberger and Hall of Famer Billy Donovan, who’s currently with the Chicago Bulls but, unlike Stevens, would be willing to at least consider the opportunity at UNC if the school comes calling,” wrote Norlander.

The 49-year-old Steven has not coached in college since calling the shots for Butler in 2013. He memorably led the Bulldogs to back-to-back runner-up finishes in the NCAA Tournament in 2010 and 2011.

He tallied a 166-49 record and five appearances in March Madness in his six years at Butler. He was hired as coach by the Celtics in 2013, amassing a 354-282 record and three trips to the conference finals, before jumping to the front office in 2021.

Following the firing of Davis, North Carolina noted that the program “must move forward” to “compete more consistently at an elite level.”

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