Jai Lucas came up with a plan to beat Miami. Going forward, the Hurricanes want him to keep that from happening.
Lucas, in his role as Duke’s associate head coach, drew the task of coming up with the scouting report for the Blue Devils’ game at Miami on Tuesday night — one that No. 2 Duke won 97-60.
The teams met three days after sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel and Jeff Borzello that Lucas has emerged as the focus of Miami’s search for a new basketball coach. A deal is not completed, and the plan is for the search to come together on a traditional timeline close to the end of the regular season.
“Jai is a special coach,” said Duke coach Jon Scheyer, who has had Lucas on his staff for three seasons. “We’ve been through a lot together for three years. He’s everything you could want. Attention to detail, great with relationships, great on the floor — and so, he’s a great coach. Bottom line, he’s a great coach. One of my closest friends in the world. Been through a lot together.”
Sources told ESPN on Saturday night that the Miami job has not been formally offered to Lucas, nor is a deal expected to be imminent. The Hurricanes’ season is likely to end March 8 and the transfer window opens March 24, so it would make sense for them to want someone in place by that date.
Duke, meanwhile, is a national championship contender and could play until early April in the NCAA tournament.
“This is not our news to share,” Scheyer said. “We’ll let Miami handle that.”
Lucas was one of the first assistants on the court for Duke during the warmup window that started about 90 minutes before the game. He briefly greeted a few people, including a couple of members of the Miami staff, before running players through drills.
At Miami, Lucas would take over for Jim Larranaga, who stepped down suddenly in December and was replaced on an interim basis by longtime associate head coach Bill Courtney, who will finish the season.
Courtney has not addressed the coaching search with his team, and he said he hasn’t been told of any decision by the Hurricanes’ administration.
“It’s not really a big change for us,” Courtney said. “We’ve got to remain focused and keep the main thing the main thing. I’m sure some guys, especially the younger guys, may have thought about it. It’s almost impossible not to hear the noise.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
