NC State Basketball: Wolfpack land Kevin Keatts as next head coach
NC State basketball replaces Mark Gottfried with former Louisville assistant Kevin Keatts.
The North Carolina State Wolfpack had Sweet 16 potential in 2016-17 as their roster featured a future lottery pick and multiple other players who could be making money in basketball in the future. After ugly defensive performances, lacking effort in some areas of the game and a 15-17 (4-14 in ACC) record, Mark Gottfried was let go at the end of the season.
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Now, the Wolfpack are making their next move to try to get the program to compete at the top of a loaded ACC. Late last week, the Wolfpack hired UNC Wilmington head coach Kevin Keatts.
The 44-year old Keatts has only been a Division I head coach for three years (all at UNC Wilmington) but he has posted an impressive 72-28 overall record, a 41-13 record in the Colonial Athletic Association and two tournament appearances. While Wilmington was unable to advance past the first round in both of those Big Dances, Keatts and Co. gave the Duke Blue Devils and the Virginia Cavaliers, two high major programs, a run for their money due to their tough and aggressive defense and quick pace on offense.
Despite his only head coaching experience coming outside of the Power 5 leagues, Keatts has had experiences at an ACC program. He was assistant under Rick Pitino at Louisville from 2011-14 — the Cardinals reached the Final Four in 2012 and won the National Championship in 2013.
Keatts is known as a brilliant in-game tactician (just like his former boss, Pitino) and a terrific motivator. His ability to recruit at a Power 5 level as a head coach is still to be determined but surrounding himself with a strong staff and using his Louisville ties to his advantage could help the Wolfpack continue their strong success on the recruiting trail.
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With other elite jobs opening up in the last week or so, North Carolina State made a swift move to land one of the hottest young coaches in the business. We will see if this pays off in the end but there is no doubt this is a step in the right direction for a team that should be competing in the NCAA Tournament this weekend.