NC State to hire Tennessee assistant Justin Gainey as next head coach

NC State is set to hire Tennessee associate head coach Justin Gainey as its next head coach per On3’s Pete Nakos. He would replace Will Wade, who left to return to LSU after one year with the Wolfpack.

Gainey has been on Rick Barnes’ staff at Tennessee since 2021 and moved up to associate head coach in 2022. He previously held that role at Marquette in 2020-21 after two seasons on the staff at Arizona from 2018-20.

Tennessee put together a second straight run to the Elite 8 this season, taking down No. 2 seed Iowa State on March 27 to return to the Midwest Regional final. All the while, Gainey’s name became a hot one in the NC State coaching search, and The Wolfpacker’s Noah Fleischman reported he interviewed with the Wolfpack March 28.

Ahead of the Sweet 16 matchup against Iowa State, Gainey addressed the speculation around the NC State job. Speaking with Volquest’s Mike Wilson, he made it clear his focus was on the task at hand, though he acknowledged his connection to the Wolfpack. Gainey played for NC State from 1996-2000 and was on staff from 2006-09.

“We have been so locked in here and you kind of see the noise and not really knowing what is real and what is not,” Gainey said. “NC State is a great place. It is home. I don’t know what they’ll do or what direction they’ll go in. I hadn’t really heard much.”

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Following a brief professional career, Justin Gainey got his coaching start at NC State from 2006-09 before joining the staff at Elon in 2009-10. He then worked as an assistant at Appalachian State from 2010-14 and headed to Marquette as director of operations from 2014-17.

Following a season at Santa Clara from 2017-18, Arizona brought Gainey aboard from 2018-20 under Sean Miller, and he returned to Marquette for the 2020-21 season. That’s when Barnes brought him to Rocky Top.

NC State began its coaching search in late March after Wade departed for a return to LSU, where he worked until his firing in 2022 amid an NCAA investigation. The Wolfpack made the First Four of the NCAA Tournament this season, where they fell to Texas in Dayton to end the year.

From there, LSU’s pursuit of Wade picked up, and a deal came together March 26. All the while, the Tigers had not yet informed Matt McMahon of his departure, On3’s Pete Nakos reported. Ultimately, LSU made the change and hired Wade back as head coach.