Jai Lucas Set to Become Miami’s Next Head Coach
CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Duke associate head coach Jai Lucas has agreed to take over as the next Miami Hurricanes head coach, pending the finalization of contract negotiations, a source confirmed Saturday night.
While an official announcement has yet to be made, both sides are working toward completing the deal in the coming weeks, according to a source who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity. One of the key details to be ironed out is the timing of Lucas’ departure from Duke and his start date with Miami, as the Hurricanes’ regular season concludes on March 8.
Miami, now 2-14 in ACC play and 6-21 overall, is unlikely to see postseason action after another tough loss to Virginia Tech on Saturday night. Meanwhile, Duke, led by player of the year candidate Cooper Flagg, is a national title contender and could play deep into April. The transfer portal opens on March 24, and Miami is expected to want its new coach in place by then to begin rebuilding the roster.
Adding intrigue to the situation, Duke travels to Miami on Tuesday night, though negotiations between Lucas and the Hurricanes are not expected to be finalized before the matchup. Lucas will be taking over for Jim Larrañaga, who stepped down suddenly in December, with Bill Courtney serving as Miami’s interim coach in the meantime.
Following No. 3 Duke’s dominant 110-67 victory over Illinois at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night, Duke head coach Jon Scheyer praised Lucas’ coaching ability but did not indicate awareness of an agreement.
“I can tell you, 100%, Jai’s an amazing coach,” Scheyer said. “He’s been great for these guys, and we’ll continue to move forward together and figure all of that out. He’s terrific, man. All across the board, he’s great.”
Miami’s program has taken a sharp downturn over the past two seasons. After reaching the Final Four two years ago and starting last season with an 11-2 record, the Hurricanes have since gone 10-36 overall and 6-29 in the ACC—the worst record among all Power Conference programs in that span.
Duke is currently ranked No. 3 in the AP Top 25, and the news of Lucas’ agreement was first reported by CanesInsight.
At 36 years old, Lucas is seen as a rising coaching talent, following in the footsteps of his father, former NBA coach John Lucas. He has been part of Jon Scheyer’s staff at Duke for the past three seasons, the last two as associate head coach. Known for his elite recruiting skills, Lucas played a pivotal role in Duke securing twin brothers Cameron and Cayden Boozer, two of the top high school prospects in the country. The Boozer twins—sons of former Duke and NBA star Carlos Boozer—are Miami natives and were heavily pursued by the Hurricanes before committing to Duke last fall.
In addition to recruiting, Lucas also serves as Duke’s defensive coordinator. Before his tenure at Duke, he spent two seasons at Kentucky as a recruiting coordinator and assistant coach under John Calipari. Prior to that, he spent seven years at Texas, his alma mater, where he worked his way up from special assistant to assistant coach.
As a player, Lucas began his college career at Florida, where he started 36 games in the 2007-08 season before transferring to Texas. He later had a brief professional career, including a stint with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the Miami Heat’s G League affiliate.
