Rodney Terry fired: 5 names to watch for Texas men's basketball coach

After just his second full season as the University of Texas men’s basketball coach, Rodney Terry was reportedly fired Sunday with three full seasons left on his contract.

The decision by athletic director Chris Del Conte came four after the Longhorns ended a disappointing season with an 86-80 loss to Xavier at a First Four game Wednesday in Dayton, Ohio. The American-Statesman has reached out to confirm the firing, first reported by ESPN and CBS Sports, but an official with the Texas athletics department said it could not confirm that Terry had been fired.

Now, Del Conte gets to engage in one of his favorite offseason activities: big-game hunting, especially for a revenue-producing sport like men’s basketball.

The question remains: is Texas willing to pay the market rate for one of college basketball’s elite coaches? They did four years ago, when Del Conte lured Chris Beard away from Texas Tech with a seven-year, $35 million contract.

But after taking over for the program on an interim basis following the suspension and then firing of Beard in January 2023, Terry signed a five-year, $15.3 million contract that came with a buyout estimated at $5.8 million. Texas will have to nearly triple that rate and perhaps reset the market if it wants to approach the salaries of the game’s highest-paid coaches like Kansas’ Bill Self ($9.63 million a year) and Arkansas’ John Calipari ($8.54 million).

Here are five names to watch in the search for a new Texas men’s basketball coach:

Xavier Musketeers guard Ryan Conwell, left, and guard Dailyn Swain talk with head coach Sean Miller in the first half of their 86-80 win in a First Four game March 19 at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio. Miller could be a candidate for the Texas job considering he had reported conversations with Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte in 2023.

Billy Donovan, Chicago Bulls

If Del Conte wants to make a splash, this certainly would cause some waves. Donovan spent 25 years in the college ranks and led Florida to back-to-back national championships in the 2000s.

After a decade of middling results in the NBA, he may welcome a return to the college game. And he’s on thin ice in Chicago, where he’s led the Bulls to one winning record in five seasons.

Sean Miller, Xavier

By many accounts, Del Conte flirted with Miller before removing the interim tag from Terry's job after the Longhorns' run to the Elite Eight in 2023. Miller, 56, works for a private university in Xavier, so his salary isn't public. However, he's signed through the 2028-29 season, which means Texas could have to face a hefty buyout for his services.

Miler's a proven winner in eight total seasons at Xavier and 12 at blue-blood program Arizona; he has a 486-191 record entering this year's NCAA Tournament with 15 tournament appearances and five trips to the Elite Eight.

Bill Self, Kansas

There's a splash, and then there's the tsunami-level waves that this move would create considering Self's stature in college basketball. The 62-year-old Kansas coach has had some health concerns and he's as much a legacy in Kansas as Dorothy and Toto with two national championships in his 22 years leading the Jayhawks.

But Del Conte will explore all options, even if Texas basketball has never shown the type of financial commitment it would take to lure Self away from Kansas.

Quin Snyder, Atlanta Hawks

Snyder mentored as an assistant under Mike Krzyzewski at Duke, served as Missouri’s head coach from 1999-2006 and spent three seasons coaching the Austin Toros before coaching in the pro ranks for the past 15 years. He has a good relationship with Snyder and, like Donovan, would make a splash.

Buzz Williams, Texas A&M

Perhaps Del Conte likes the kerfuffle that erupted after Texas poached Texas A&M baseball coach Jim Schlossnagle enough that he'd do it again in men's basketball. Or perhaps he knows Williams can flat-out coach with just three losing seasons in 18 years as a head coach. And rumblings out of Aggieland suggest there's some dissatisfaction with just one tournament win in six years with Texas A&M.

One source told the American-Statesman at the SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tenn., that Williams doesn't always see eye-to-eye with Texas A&M athletic director Trev Alberts and would leave the Aggies this offseason for a better opportunity.

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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas basketball: Rodney Terry replacement candidates

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