(cache)Syracuse basketball continues search for head coach: An updated list of candidates

Syracuse, N.Y. ― Adrian Autry was dismissed as Syracuse’s basketball coach nine days ago.

One day after Autry was let go, Syracuse announced the hiring of Bryan Blair as the school’s new athletic director.

On Thursday, Blair was formally introduced as SU’s athletic director during an event at the JMA Wireless Dome.

Despite being on the job for such a short amount of time, Blair said he had already taken up the search for a new coach.

“The reality is that process is well underway,” Blair said. “We’ve got a great pool of candidates. We’re really excited about the progress, and then I think we’ll have something to share here relatively soon.”

Blair knows he needs to move fast.

The NCAA’s transfer portal opens on April 7, the day after the NCAA championship game.

Who are those coaches in that pool of candidates? There are some names being mentioned, but Blair kept his cards close to his vest on Thursday.

“I don’t want to go into depth on that piece of it,” Blair said. “I respect the many of the coaches that are still playing in the tournament, but I hope we’ll be able to share that with you shortly.’’

Here is a list of coaches who might be on Blair’s radar. This list is based on the coaches’ backgrounds, ties to Syracuse, coaching success and even connections to Blair.

Gerry McNamara, Siena

As a former Syracuse player and assistant with head-coaching experience, McNamara was always going be on Syracuse’s short list of coaching candidates.

But McNamara has elevated his profile over the past two weeks after leading Siena to its first NCAA Tournament since 2010 and then pushing the Saints to a near-upset of No. 1 overall seed Duke on Thursday.

The NCAA Tournament bid was the culmination of Siena’s turnaround under McNamara over the last two years.

Siena went 4-28 the season before hiring McNamara away from Syracuse, where he had been assistant since 2011.

Siena won 17 games in McNamara’s first year and then put together a run to the MAAC tournament title, which brought an NCAA bid along with it.

Josh Schertz, Saint Louis

Wait a second, you’re saying to yourself. Didn’t Schertz recently get a new contract to stay at Saint Louis?

Yes, there have been reports that SLU officials rewarded Schertz for leading the Billikens to this year’s NCAA Tournament with a contract extension.

However, we don’t know if Schertz has actually signed that new deal.

If that’s the case, his name will be among the most coveted in this year’s coaching carousel.

Could Syracuse get involved here? It’s a maybe.

He’s worked his way up the coaching ladder, starting at Division II Lincoln Memorial in Harrogate, Tenn.

He went 66-50 in three seasons at Indiana State before moving to Saint Louis in 2024.

The Billikens smoked Georgia in a first-round NCAA Tournament game on Thursday and face No. 1 seed Michigan on Saturday in Buffalo.

Here’s the thing: If Schertz hasn’t signed that new deal, he could wait and see if a big-time job comes open at power program either through a coach getting fired or retiring.

Mike Hopkins, New Orleans Pelicans assistant

Hopkins, a former SU player and assistant coach, was supposed to succeed Jim Boeheim as Syracuse’s head coach after the 2017-18 season. However, he left a year early to take the head-coaching job at Washington.

He was named Pac-12 Coach of the Year in each of his first two years at UW, but then things went sideways. Washington fired him in 2024.

Hopkins has been an assistant in the NBA the last two years, first with Phoenix and this year with New Orleans.

Hopkins would bring a familiarity with the Syracuse program, head-coaching experience and a couple years of soaking up knowledge at the NBA level.

Tony Skinn, George Mason

Skinn has been the head coach at George Mason for the last three years. He played there for Jim Larranaga and was part of the school’s Final Four team in 2006.

The 43-year-old Skinn has been an assistant at Louisiana Tech, Ohio State, Seton Hall and Maryland.

George Mason has won at least 20 games in each of his three years, but has yet to make it to the NCAA Tournament.

George Mason signed him to a five-year deal in 2023, then extended him through 2030. According to published reports, he is making $1.7 million this season. The Augusta Free Press reported the buyout for Skinn sits at $1.2 million if he leaves in March, and drops $200,000 a year through the duration of the deal.

John Groce, Akron

This is a guess based on new Syracuse athletic director Bryan Blair’s history in the Mid-American Conference. Blair was previously the AD at Toledo, while Groce has been the coach at Akron since 2017.

Groce has over 300 career coaching wins with stops at Ohio, Illinois and Akron. His Akron teams have been to the NCAA Tournament in four of the last five years, including this season.

The downside to Groce’s resume are his five years at Illinois, where the Illini never finished above .500 in conference play.

Akron, which was seeded 12th, lost to Texas Tech, 91-71, in the first round of this year’s NCAA Tournament on Friday.

Speedy Claxton, Hofstra

Speedy Claxton, a star player at Hofstra, has guided his alma mater back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 26 years.

Syracuse fans will remember Hofstra’s win over the Orange this past season. Hofstra also beat Pittsburgh this year.

Curiously, Claxton’s name hasn’t been circling within the coaching rumor mill. Perhaps, he’ll get some buzz with a win in the NCAA Tournament.

The No. 13 seed Pride take on Alabama on Friday in Tampa.

Travis Steele, Miami (Ohio)

Here’s another name on the list due to ties to the MAC and, thus, Blair.

Steele, who formerly coached at Xavier, is in his fourth year as the head coach at Miami (Ohio).

And what a year it’s been. The Redhawks went undefeated in the regular season, sweated out Selection Sunday, got sent to the First Four and promptly beat SMU.

Miami plays Tennessee in the first round on Friday.

Phil Martelli Jr., Virginia Commonwealth

Martelli’s name was already creating some buzz, but he leapt into the national picture with VCU’s overtime win over North Carolina on Thursday.

The Rams rallied from a 19-point deficit to stun the Tar Heels.

This is Martelli’s third year as a head coach with two years at Bryant and one year at VCU. He took Bryant to the 2025 NCAA tournament and he’s guided the Rams to the second round of this year’s tournament.

He started his coaching career in 2003 and he’s been an assistant at Central Connecticut, Manhattan, Niagara, Delaware and Bryant.

Luke Murray, UConn

Murray’s name will be rumored for a lot of jobs, but it’s hard to imagine that Blair would go with a candidate with no head-coaching experience.

Still, Murray gets a lot of credit as the mastermind behind Connecticut’s offense under Dan Hurley.

Connecticut’s success means that eventually some of Hurley’s assistants will get head-coaching opportunities. Watch for Murray and Kimani Young to take that step soon.