Brad Stevens quickly removes himself from consideration in North Carolina's coaching search
Not even one of the three best jobs in college basketball is moving Stevens out of Boston
The most popular man in every high-profile coaching search still isn't interested in returning to college hoops.
Less than 12 hours after news broke that North Carolina fired Hubert Davis on Tuesday night, an expected but notable bit of clarity to the university's coaching search has already been communicated: Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens has removed his name from consideration for the Tar Heels job, sources told CBS Sports.
CBS Sports first reported on Tuesday that -- 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.
As for Stevens, the news is anything but surprising yet still an important public update that allows North Carolina to sharpen its focus on realistic candidates. An Indiana native, Stevens has turned down the Hoosiers job the past three times it opened since he left Butler for the Celtics. The 49-year-old hasn't strutted the sidelines as a coach since 2021, when he pivoted to the organization's front office as its chief decision-maker.
Should he ever return to coaching, his options at the NBA level would be plentiful.
With Stevens off the board, outgoing athletic director Bubba Cunningham and incoming AD Steve Newmark (who comes from the NASCAR world and will officially take over this summer) are undertaking what will be one of the most speculated-on searches in college basketball this decade. North Carolina is royalty in the sport; the expectation is that Cunningham and Newmark will inevitably wind up landing one of the four or five priority names on their list.
The search could draw even more buzz if another top-tier job soon opens: Kansas.
It's unclear whether Hall-of-Fame coach Bill Self will opt to retire in the coming days, but the 63-year-old publicly acknowledged the possibility on Sunday after his fourth-seeded KU team lost at the buzzer to No. 5 St. John's in the second round. Self has endured numerous heart problems in recent years, though he told CBS Sports earlier this month that he believed he'd continue coaching after this season.
"I think so," Self said on the Eye on College Basketball podcast. "As long as I feel good, I don't know why I wouldn't keep doing it. I've had my personal health issues in some way that I've dealt with, and has it been a handicap in me doing my job? I don't think so. But has it been a pain in the butt to get through somet of things? Yeah, it has been. ... I still love it, I still love the kids, I want to keep doing it. But I'm only going to keep doing it as long as I feel well, I'll be honest with you. And right now I feel well, so I don't see any reason to stop when things are at least going well from a health standpoint."
Regardless of whether Kansas opens, the UNC job alone is a sport-shifting turn of events, and given every target is still coaching this season, it is expected to take a full week before there is advancement in North Carolina's pursuit.
