NC State is set to hire former Wolfpack player Justin Gainey as the program’s next head men’s basketball coach, according to multiple reports.
Gainey returns to Raleigh after spending the last five seasons as an assistant coach at Tennessee, where he has been part of the Volunteers’ staff during a sustained stretch of high-level SEC competition.
The move brings an alumnus back to lead the Wolfpack, with Gainey stepping into his first head-coaching role after building his résumé on a major-conference bench. His hiring continues a common trend in college basketball, where programs look to blend familiarity with the school’s identity and culture with experience gained at the highest levels of the sport.
NC State has not yet announced the hire.