Tommy Lloyd is staying in Arizona on a new contract despite being heavily linked to the North Carolina vacancy, he announced Friday.
“My Michael Jordan is Steve Kerr, and I’m proud to be an Arizona Wildcat,” Lloyd said during his Final Four press conference.
“This wasn’t meant to be a leverage deal,” the head coach added. “I appreciate our administration and I think we’ve made great progress on the vision of what Arizona Basketball can be.”
Lloyd’s new five-year deal — which will need approval from the Arizona Board of Regents — will make him one of the five highest paid coaches in college basketball, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel and Jeff Borzello.
The agreement comes after Lloyd was viewed as one of the Tar Heels’ top early targets, along with Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan.
North Carolina fired Hubert Davis on March 24, which led Lloyd to be reported as a frontrunner for the vacancy.
Lloyd was hired by former Arizona athletic director Dave Heeke and there are reported differences between Lloyd and Heeke’s successor, Desiree Reed-Francois.
Lloyd’s representatives were reportedly in talks over a new contract since before the start of the NCAA Tournament, Reed-Francois told CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein ahead of Arizona’s Sweet 16 game against Arkansas.
Lloyd’s buyout at Arizona was reportedly between $9 million and $12 million, depending on timing (of the possible deal).
Prior to the extension, Lloyd’s previous contract at Arizona saw him earn $4.4 million in base salary in 2025-26 and 2026-27 before annual increases of $250,000.
Additional duties compensation from public appearances in media or at promotional and advertising events stood at $700,000 annually for Lloyd.
He also earned an additional $200,000 annually from partnerships with Nike and Arizona Sports Enterprises.
Under the old deal, Lloyd also would reportedly receive a $2 million retention bonus if he remained with the program and is in good standing as of April 1, 2028.
Tommy Lloyd’s tenure at Arizona
After serving as an assistant coach at Gonzaga for 22 seasons under Mark Few, Lloyd was hired by Arizona ahead of the 2021-22 season to replace previous head coach Sean Miller (2009-21), who was fired.
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Lloyd initially signed a five-year contract upon being hired and later agreed to a five-year contract extension in 2024. He signed an additional extension the following year, keeping him under contract with Arizona until after the 2030 season.
Lloyd took Arizona to its first Final Four in 25 years, and the Wildcats are 148-35 (.809) under Lloyd, including trips to at least the Sweet 16 in four of his five seasons.
Lloyd’s 148 wins are an NCAA record for the most by a coach in his first five seasons, and he is the third coach in NCAA history to make the Sweet 16 in four of his first five seasons (Steve Lavin – UCLA and Steve Fisher – Michigan).
Arizona has won six combined conference regular-season and tournament titles under Lloyd, and against Top 25 teams during Lloyd’s tenure, the Wildcats are 35-15 (.700) — the best winning percentage in the country and tied for the most wins in that span (Tennessee – 35).
Lloyd has won his conference’s award for Coach of the Year twice (2021-22, 2025-26) and was named AP Coach of the Year in 2022.
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