Nate Oats shoots down rumors linking him to North Carolina opening: 'I'm not a guy looking to get out of here anytime soon'

Ahead of Alabama‘s Sweet 16 clash against Michigan on Friday, Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats was asked about rumors linking him to the head coaching vacancy at North Carolina.

Oats has been pitched as one of the leading candidates for the prestigious job. Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd, Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger, Florida head coach Todd Golden, and Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan have also been tossed out as potential names to fill the vacancy in Chapel Hill.

“It’s not the first time,” Oats said. “Look, lot of respect for the other programs that might open. They’ve got great basketball tradition. As a young high school coach, look, I didn’t think I’d ever be in this spot, to be honest with you. If you’ve gotten to know me, I’m not a guy that’s always trying to jump around. The grass is not always greener. I love Alabama. My girls love Alabama. They’re here with me. I love working with the administration I work with. I think Greg Byrne is the best AD in the country and I love working with him. It would be great if I could work with him the rest of my career.

“They’re doing everything they can to make sure that we’ve got a competitive program. As long as we’re able to compete to win championships here, SEC and National Championships, we haven’t done that here yet. I’d love to be the coach to bring us our first National Championship. We got to a Final Four. To me, there’s absolutely no reason to leave here. While it’s flattering that a high school guy that caught a couple of breaks would be mentioned for some of these jobs because they’ve got a lot of tradition, I’m not a guy looking to get out of here anytime soon.”

Along with this, Oats revealed that he is in ‘close’ discussions with Alabama on a contract extension. However, he stated that he doesn’t have an ‘offer in hand’.

If North Carolina were to make a serious play at poaching Oats, it would have to pay $18 million to get the head coach out of his contract at Alabama. However, the number goes down by a significant amount on April 1 — $10 million. However, it would still be a massive fee for UNC to pay. Along with this massive number, Hubert Davis is still owed over $5 million by the program.

Since taking over at Alabama ahead of the 2019-20 season, Oats has blossomed into one of the most heralded coaches in all of college basketball. In that span, the Wisconsin native has led the Crimson Tide to a 170-72 (87-38) record with appearances in the past six NCAA Tournaments. That includes five Sweet 16 appearances, two Elite Eight appearances, and one Final Four appearance.

T.J. Otzelberger, Tommy Lloyd shot down rumors linking them to opening on Wednesday with Oats

Nate Oats is not the first candidate to speak out against rumors linking him to the opening. Iowa State‘s T.J. Otzelberger and Arizona‘s Tommy Lloyd, who also have their respective programs in the Sweet Sixteen, vehemently shut down rumors on Wednesday.

“Any speculation with me and any other jobs or opportunities is not true,” Otzelberger said. “I’m the coach of the Cyclones, thrilled to be the coach of the Cyclones. And what I can say to you, even more, as we move forward together, is the alignment on our campus – with Dr. Cook, Jamie Pollard – is amazing. We’re thrilled and excited about our future together.”

While Otzelberger directly shut down speculation, Lloyd declined to talk about anything other than his team’s Sweet 16 clash against Arkansas.

“I already have one of the best jobs in the country,” Lloyd said. “And one thing we talk about in our program all the time — and I think I’ve gotten better at and I think our team’s been crushing it this year — is just the ability to have full focus and be present in the moment. I think we have a great team. I think we have a chance to advance in this tournament, game by game. But I’m not delusional.”

There’s no question that North Carolina is one of the most coveted jobs in all of college basketball. The program boasts 2,419 wins all-time (third most in NCAA history) and six National Championships (T-third most in NCAA history). Following Davis’ shortcomings at the program, a slam-dunk hire is crucial for Cunningham and Carolina’s administration.