Tommy Lloyd responds to potential North Carolina interest: ‘(Arizona) deserves my full focus’
SAN JOSE, Calif. – Tommy Lloyd’s name has been linked to one of the premier coaching jobs in college basketball.
That probably wasn’t news to the former Gonzaga assistant by the time he arrived at SAP Center for media obligations ahead of No. 1 Arizona’s Sweet 16 matchup with No. 4 Arkansas, but Wednesday’s news conference gave Lloyd an opportunity to address reports he’d become a target of North Carolina’s coaching search.
A question directed to Lloyd about the vacant North Carolina job arrived at the end of a new conference that began with a reporter humorously asking the fifth-year coach about his interest in becoming a disc jockey.
“I preferred the first question about Mix Master Mike,” Lloyd said. “I already have one of the best jobs in the country. One thing we talk about in our program all the time, and I think I’ve gotten better at, and I think our team has been crushing it this year, is just the ability to have full focus and be present in the moment.
“So 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. I know we could lose tomorrow.”
Lloyd’s name was one of the first to surface when North Carolina announced the termination of fifth-year coach Hubert Davis on Tuesday. A Kelso, Washington, native, Lloyd spent 20 years as an assistant coach at Gonzaga under Mark Few, spearheading the Zags’ international recruiting efforts and playing a big role in the school’s ongoing NCAA Tournament streak.
The 51-year-old Lloyd left Gonzaga for Arizona after the Zags’ national championship appearance in 2021 and has since won three conference tournament championships, including two in the Pac-12 (2022, 2023) and one in the Big 12 (2026).
The 2025-26 Wildcats spent time ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll, beating No. 7 Iowa State and No. 5 Houston on their way to the Big 12 Tournament championship. Lloyd is 146-35 in five seasons at Arizona, earning AP national coach of the year honors in 2022.
Other names have surfaced in UNC’s coaching search, but The Athletic reported Tuesday that Lloyd and Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan were the Tar Heels’ “present priorities.”
“This team deserves my full focus, so there’s not one thing that is going to knock me off my path,” Lloyd said. “I’m 100 percent focused on Arizona basketball and this program, and I can’t wait until the ball gets thrown up tomorrow, and then can’t wait to try to figure out a way to come out on top.”