It did not take long for the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels to pivot in their search for their next men’s basketball head coach.
After Bryan Hodgson was stolen from under their nose by the University of South Florida, UNLV found a new candidate within hours, agreeing to a deal with former Georgia Tech and Memphis head coach Josh Pastner.
Pastner had been serving as a college basketball analyst for ESPN prior to accepting the UNLV job.
“We are thrilled to welcome Coach Pastner to the UNLV Family as he takes the helm of the Runnin’ Rebel Basketball program,” UNLV athletic director Erick Harper said in a news release. “I have had the pleasure of knowing Josh for over 20 years, following his remarkable career from Arizona to Memphis and Georgia Tech.”
Harper was part of Arizona’s athletic department prior to joining UNLV, and his time there overlapped with Pastner serving as assistant coach under Lute Olson. He would stay at Arizona until 2008, when he would accept an assistant coaching role under John Calipari at the University of Memphis. When Calipari left the following year, Pastner took over the head coaching position.
Across 14 seasons as a head coach (seven with Memphis, seven with Georgia Tech), Pastner amassed a 276-187 record in his coaching career. He also has five NCAA Tournament appearances under his belt (2-5 record).
“I am truly enthused about becoming the head coach of the Runnin’ Rebels,” Pastner said. “This has always been a dream job for me, and I fully recognize the significance of UNLV in the landscape of college basketball. The program holds great importance for both the Las Vegas community and the region, and I am eager to unite Rebel Nation with the goal of restoring the program to national prominence.”
How should UNLV feel about this hire?
On the surface, and especially after the disappointment of missing out on Hodgson, Pastner will not garner any immediate excitement.
Pastner struggled towards the end of his tenure with Memphis, and he never gained traction in the ACC with Georgia Tech. Georgia Tech was also hit by recruiting violations during Pastner’s time as head coach, resulting in a postseason ban in 2020 (that year’s tournament was canceled by the COVID-19 pandemic). It is rare for a coach to get a third chance, especially with a team that needs some level of stability like UNLV does.
However, those programs have struggled since moving on from Pastner. Memphis went from four tournament appearances in Pastner’s seven seasons to three in the nine years since, including this year’s upset by 12-seed Colorado State. Georgia Tech’s tournament appearance in 2021 has been their only berth in the last 15 years, meaning Pastner has worked with programs struggling to maintain national relevance.
This is all before going into what Pastner provides UNLV going forward.
Something that stands out about Pastner is his up-tempo style of play, which is a direct antithesis to the slow pace of former head coach Kevin Kruger’s teams. Pastner has also enjoyed major success in recruiting, fielding top-two classes twice with Memphis (2010 and 2013) and two of his players at Georgia Tech (forward Josh Okogie and guard Jose Alvarado) serving as NBA regulars. UNLV has needed an upgrade on both aspects, and Pastner’s history suggests he should provide that.
UNLV has their new head coach, and the hope is that he makes this odd coaching search saga an afterthought.
The transfer portal flood gates open at UNLV after coach’s firing
