UNC-Wilmington Basketball: Most likely candidates to become the next head coach

Monday evening UNC-Wilmington Basketball released C.B. McGrath from his duties as Head Coach of the Seahawks. Who are the early front runners to replace him?

C.B. McGrath has struggled throughout his entire tenure in Wilmington so this sudden change shouldn’t come as a surprise. Here are some candidates that I would take a strong look at if I were UNC-Wilmington Basketball’s AD, Jimmy Bass.

Takayo Siddle

Siddle is no stranger to Wilmington as he was an assistant coach in Wilmington while Kevin Keatts was head coach from 2014-2017 and has since joined Keatts in Raleigh as an assistant coach for N.C. State. When Keatts first took the job for the Wolfpack Siddle served as the Interim Head Coach of the Seahawks. Siddle’s current contract which expires after this season is worth nearly $315,000 per year so if UNC-Wilmington is willing to pay what they were paying McGrath then they could reach a deal to make Siddle the next Head Coach of the Seahawks, again.

Joel Justus

Like Takayo Siddle, Joel Justus is no stranger to Wilmington as he played 3 seasons for the Seahawks and was a member of back to back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2002 and 2003 before graduating in 2004. Joel Justus has served on the staff under John Calipari at Kentucky since 2014. Justus’ contract expires at the end of June and is worth $270,000 annually.

LeVelle Moton

LeVelle Moton is one of the most respected low major coaches in the country and should be considered for many openings this offseason. Moton has served as the Head Coach of his alma mater, NC-Central since 2009 and has been to the NCAA Tournament 4 times in this span. His base salary is worth $250,000 annually and runs through 2022, so the Seahawks will likely have to pay $100,000 plus for his buyout.

Brett Blizzard

This seems like a no-brainer option which will make many Seahawk fans very happy. The Seahawk’s all-time leading scorer, who has his number 11 uniform hanging in Trask Coliseum just recently retired from his long pro career overseas and would be a perfect fit. Blizzard has no coaching experience but definitely brings a wealth of knowledge for the game of basketball. Sometimes these types of hires blow up in schools’ faces but if UNC-Wilmington would give him the resources of hiring an experienced staff it could very easily work out.

UNC-Wilmington has plenty of options and gave themselves months to make a decision. Due to the timing of releasing McGrath UNCW will be one of the first programs with a shot at picking their next head coach.