NC State reportedly hiring top-level NBA scout for basketball GM role

NC State is wasting no time setting up the next era of Wolfpack basketball.

The next head coach for NC State is still coaching for a different program. That school, McNeese, is still dancing in March Madness after beating 5-seed Clemson on Thursday. The Cowboys will face 4-seed Purdue on Saturday. A win would send them through to the Sweet 16, which won’t take place until March 27.

If McNeese’s run continues, NC State would be in a pinch. The transfer portal opens on Monday. New coach Will Wade has work to do rebuilding NC State after a 12-19 season.

To that end, the Wolfpack are reportedly hiring a new general manager from the front office of the top seed in the NBA’s Western Conference.

According to a report from North Carolina sports insider Joe Giglio, NC State is hiring Andrew Slater to be the basketball program’s next GM. Slater comes to Raleigh after spending 2 years with the Oklahoma City Thunder as a scout.

Slater was viewed as a major addition to the Thunder when he joined the organization as someone with deep connections to the college, AAU, and high school levels. OKC has blossomed into one of the brightest young squads in the NBA over the last few seasons.

NC State figures to be active in the portal when it opens on March 24. The Wolfpack struggled this season, going just 5-15 in a weak ACC and finishing 16th. A year after winning the ACC Tournament and running to the Final Four, coach Kevin Keatts was fired.

But the Final Four run masked issues in Keatts’ program. After going 21-12 in his first season, Keatts would go on to post just 2 winning records in ACC play over his final 7 seasons.

Wade has led McNeese to consecutive NCAA Tournaments, consecutive Southland regular-season titles, and consecutive Southland tournament titles.

Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.