Jai Lucas came up with a plan to overcome Miami. In the future, hurricanes want me to prevent it from happening.
Lucas, in his role as Duke's associate coach, attracted the task of presenting the exploration report for the Blue Devils game in Miami on Tuesday night, one that No. 2 Duke won 97-60.
The teams gathered three days after the sources told Pete Thamel and Jeff Borzello de ESPN that Lucas has emerged as the focus of the search for Miami from a new basketball coach. An agreement is not completed, and the plan is that the search meets in a traditional timeline near the end of the regular season.
“Jai is a special coach,” said Duke Jon Scheyer coach, who has had Lucas in his staff for three seasons. “We have gone through a lot together for three years. He is all you could desire. Attention to detail, great with relationships, excellent on the floor, and this is a great coach. In a nutshell, he is a great coach. One of my closest friends in the world has spent a lot together.”
The sources told ESPN on Saturday night that Miami's work has not been formally offered to Lucas, nor is an agreement expected to be imminent. The hurricane season is likely to end on March 8 and the transfer window opens on March 24, so it would make sense to want someone in place for that date.
Duke, meanwhile, is a contender to the National Championship and could play until the beginning of April in the NCAA tournament.
“This is not our news to share,” said Scheyer. “We will let Miami handle that.”
Lucas was one of the first attendees on the Duke court during the heating window that began about 90 minutes before the game. He briefly greeted some people, including a couple of members of the Miami staff, before running to the players through drills.
In Miami, Lucas would assume the position of Jim Larranaga, who resigned suddenly in December and was replaced interimly by the associate coach of a long time Bill Courtney, who will end the season.
Courtney has not addressed the search for coaches with his team, and said they have not told him any decision of the Hurricane Administration.
“It's not really a great change for us,” said Courtney. “We have to stay focused and maintain the main thing. I am sure that some boys, especially younger boys, may have thought about that. It is almost impossible not to listen to the noise.”
Associated Press contributed to this report.
