North Carolina Finalizing Hire Of Top Mike Malone Assistant

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - FEBRUARY 11: Head coach Michael Malone of the Denver Nuggets looks on during their game against the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center on February 11, 2023 in Charlotte, North Carolina. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)

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North Carolina is finalizing a deal to make Arkansas assistant coach Chuck Martin the associate head coach under new head coach Mike Malone, according to Jon Rothstein.

Malone and Martin were assistants together under Bobby Gonzalez at Manhattan College during the 1999-2000 season.

“Obviously there’s a lot to learn and I’m going to surround myself with the best people possible to get a grasp on it so we can attack it,” the 54-year-old Malone said at his introductory press conference on Tuesday.

The transfer portal opened Tuesday and there are already close to 2,000 players in it, including former Arkansas guards DJ Wagner and Karter Knox, both of whom have ties to Martin.

Martin, 56, has long been an assistant under Hall of Fame coach John Calipari, working with him at UMass, Memphis, Kentucky and Arkansas.

“Chuckie will turn over every rock and be relentless on the recruiting trail for Michael,” Gonzalez said by text.

Among 16 players on this year’s North Carolina roster, seven are already in the portal, per ESPN, two are graduating and Caleb Wilson is a projected top-5 NBA Draft pick.

That leaves six returnees, only three of which played more than five games, as of Wednesday morning.

Malone, who won an NBA championship with the Denver Nuggets, is entering college basketball at a time when it more and more resembles the pro game. He won’t have to do much in-person recruiting. He and Tanner and the staff will have to hit the portal hard, talk to agents and players and find those who are the right fit and want to do for North Carolina what the transfers at Michigan did.

“Every time I said no [to North Carolina], I was regretting that,” Malone said. "I think I’m making a mistake. Jobs like North Carolina do not come [often]….

“It’s now or never. I didn’t come here to be second best. I didn’t come here to lose in the first round of the ACC Tournament. I came here to win and and win at a big level and win at a high level.”

This article was originally published on Forbes.com