Jerry Stackhouse, a former North Carolina standout and longtime NBA star, has voiced his disappointment after his alma mater declined to interview him for its head coaching vacancy—a role that ultimately went to Michael Malone. Speaking on The Jim Rome Podcast, Stackhouse, now in his second season as a Golden State Warriors assistant, revealed that UNC informed him he wouldn't be considered to replace Hubert Davis.

"With what was going on there with Hubert, I think nobody really liked how that went down for him," Stackhouse said. "Being part of the family and then to not have an opportunity to talk about it—I think that was the most disappointing thing for me. They were like, ‘We’re not going to interview you.’ I feel like I have a resume that can stand up to anybody. I’ve won Coach of the Year in the SEC, I had a team that finished fourth in the SEC when we weren’t even participating in NIL. I mean, I whooped all their ass."

Stackhouse pointed to his track record of player development as a key reason he deserved a shot. "From an Xs and Os standpoint and being able to develop guys—guys that didn’t get all the four-star, five-star guys, but we developed them and they became all-league players. Scotty Pippen’s a pro, Aaron Nesmith is a pro. These are guys that I helped to develop while they were there. Saben Lee. So I think those are the things that was disappointing, that I didn’t get a chance to at least state my case for why we shouldn’t have to go out of the family."

While Stackhouse's Tar Heel roots and NBA pedigree made him a natural talking point, his record as Vanderbilt's head coach from 2019 to 2024 told a different story. He went 72–93 with just one winning season and no NCAA Tournament appearances, though he did earn SEC Coach of the Year honors in 2023 after guiding the Commodores to a second straight NIT quarterfinal run. Meanwhile, his successor Mark Byington has found immediate success, giving UNC ample reason to look elsewhere despite Stackhouse's loyalty to the program.