Jai Lucas had no issue beating what is very likely to be his new program on Tuesday night.
The Duke associate head coach helped lead the Blue Devils to a dominant 97-60 win over Miami in Coral Gables on Tuesday. That game came just days after Lucas reportedly reached an unofficial deal to take over the Hurricanes next season.
“Jai is a special coach,” Duke head coach Jon Scheyer said, via ESPN. “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.”
Lucas, 36, started at Duke in 2022 when Scheyer replaced longtime head coach Mike Krzyzewski. Lucas previously worked as an assistant at both Texas and Kentucky, and he’s the son of former NBA player and coach John Lucas.
An official deal for Jai Lucas to start at Miami is not yet finalized, and for good reason. The Hurricanes’ season isn’t over. They hold just a 6-22 record and sit in last in the ACC standings heading into Saturday’s matchup at North Carolina. They will miss the ACC tournament altogether, so their season will end after their regular-season finale on March 8. Jim Larrañaga stepped down from his post in December as the Hurricanes’ coach amid his 14th season with the program.
The Blue Devils, on the other hand, seem poised to make a deep NCAA tournament run. They are currently ranked No. 2 in the country, behind only Auburn, and improved to 25-3 on the season after Tuesday’s win. They’ve lost just a single ACC game, and have won all but one of the rest of them by double digits.
It’s almost certain that Lucas will remain with Duke until after it is eliminated from the NCAA tournament — whenever that is. The transfer window opens on March 24, however, so the Hurricanes would ideally want him in by that date. According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel and Jeff Borzello, the two sides are expected to come together and come up with a legitimate timeline near the end of the regular season. When that happens, or what it looks like, remains to be seem.
“This is not our news to share,” Scheyer said. “We’ll let Miami handle that.”
Lucas and the Blue Devils will be back in action on Saturday when they host Florida State. They’ll then wrap up the regular season next week with games against Wake Forest and at North Carolina.
