Inside Justin Gainey’s first 6 weeks as NC State men’s basketball coach
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- Justin Gainey attended the student‑athlete graduation and presented stoles to players.
- Gainey retained assistant Patrick Stacy and credited him for recruiting transfer RJ Keene.
- Gainey plans to blend pace, spacing and analytics into N.C. State’s program.
There’s something to be said about showing up when it’s not required.
N.C. State head coach Justin Gainey attended last week’s student-athlete graduation ceremony, where he presented a graduation stole to Jordan Snell and Tre Holloman.
Snell spent four years with the program as a walk-on, joining the team while his father was an assistant coach on Kevin Keatts’ staff. He was a captain last year.
Holloman transferred to N.C. State for one season after spending time at Michigan State.
Gainey, when asked about his appearance, didn’t pat himself on the back or make it a big deal. For him, that’s what a head coach should do.
“They’re N.C. State, they’re Wolfpack,” Gainey said Thursday during his first media availability since taking the job. “They’ve worn the uniform, and regardless of how long it was or who was the coach, it doesn’t matter. We’re all the same, we come from N.C. State.”
In the month and a half he’s been back in Raleigh, Gainey has spent time with both players while recruiting, hiring his staff and building a schedule.
He talked extensively with Holloman about finishing his education now and not waiting to earn his degree.
“I was proud of him that he got it done,” Gainey said. “I was proud that he tried to make it to both graduations; his college’s graduation and [he] made it over late to the student-athlete one with his mom and his stepdad.”
Gainey already had a relationship with Snell, whose father recruited Gainey during his playing days. The beloved guard spends time at the basketball offices, and the two developed a relationship in a short time.
“I felt like as the leader of this program, I owed it to those guys to be there,” Gainey said. “It’s something that both of us will remember for the rest of our lives and have pictures to show of it.”
Other highlights from Justin Gainey’s first six weeks as the N.C. State men’s basketball coach.
Retaining Patrick Stacy
Most of Will Wade’s staff left the program when he did, either taking new jobs or following him to LSU. Patrick Stacy, who was hired last season, was not one of them.
Stacy was always expected to stay at N.C. State, assuming Gainey would keep him, quickly making a positive impression on his new boss.
Gainey didn’t know Stacy prior to his arrival, but the assistant general manager was one of the few people left. Tennessee assistant Amorrow Morgan previously worked with Stacy and provided a glowing review.
He worked with Gainey and assistant coach Riley Collins during the initial transition period.
“I was impressed with how hard he worked, how prepared he was to be able to shift gears and understood my vision as we kind of entered the portal,” Gainey said. “We spent a lot of late nights together, a lot of late-night phone calls, and he made himself always available. Through that process, you know, he was very impressive.”
Gainey began to consider retaining Stacy. Once additional staff hires were made, the other assistants validated Gainey’s positive feelings about the young analytics and scouting guru. That made his decision easy.
Stacy received full credit for finding Boise State transfer RJ Keene. Keene, considered by top analytics professionals as one of the best low-scoring players in college basketball, committed to the Wolfpack last month.
“He’d been telling me about [Keene] for a couple days. And I’m just like, ‘OK, we’ll get to it. Let’s try to get this starting five set,’” Gainey said. “He kept coming back to him. Then one night, late night, he wore me down.”
Gainey said he watched Keene’s offensive clips and wasn’t wowed. When Stacy showed him Keene’s defensive highlights, that’s when the transfer popped. They contacted Keene that night. Stacy heard what Gainey wanted for the team and already had someone in mind.
“I think he’s a rising star in this business,” Gainey said. ”I really do.”
Wolfpack roster building philosophy
N.C. State doesn’t have the highest-ranked roster on any of the recruiting websites. That’s OK.
Neither Gainey nor his staff went looking solely for the top-rated players. They wanted talent, of course, but the number of stars next to a guy’s name wasn’t the end all-be all.
“I wanted pieces that really complemented each other and really fit,” Gainey said.
He feels good about where the program is at. The players who have committed can shoot the ball efficiently, possess toughness and have been a part of winning in their careers. Those players know what it takes to mesh, and the sacrifices needed to have success.
Additionally, the program sought players with multiple years of eligibility. Gainey has sent clear messaging about his desire to build a solid program, not just build a team from year to year.
“I’m trying to build a program of people that feel the same way about N.C. State that I do,” Gainey said. “I think to get to that, you’re going to need some guys that have the opportunity to be here for multiple years.”
He’s not naive enough to ignore the impact financial compensation plays in the current landscape or to ignore the portal. Nothing is guaranteed. However, the staff was intentional about finding players who fit together and have a chance of staying.
Preston Edmead, Christian Hammond, Darius Adams and Kingston Whitty are players with multiple years of eligibility remaining. Paul McNeil has two years left, including the upcoming season.
“I firmly believe if you’re here in this program — you get to run out in front of 19,700 at the Lenovo center, you walk around town and everybody knows who you are, and you feel the pride of being at N.C. State — that you’ll want to be here.”
Analytics aren’t going anywhere
N.C. State Athletic Director Boo Corrigan made a comment at Gainey’s introduction that some fans found concerning.
“In an era of basketball, the analytics are playing such a big role right now,” Corrigan said. “Coach Gainey’s teams will be built on the basics. We’ll score the ball, we’ll defend at a high level. We will rebound. We will dive for loose balls. We will get steals. We will show toughness every step of the way, because that’s who N.C. State is.”
It will be both. Gainey wants to play with pace, space the floor and be aggressive. He also plans on implementing data into everything the program does.
Gainey said Thursday that it has taken time for him to adjust to the influx of detailed numbers, but he’s become more aware of them and studied them over the last several years. (It’s still hard for him to accept that midrange shots are considered bad shots.)
“From analytics to AI, all of that stuff is in there. You’ve got to figure out ways to make you more efficient. That’s the end goal of it all, is to become as efficient as you possibly can. We will do it, and I’ve got a great staff of guys that understand it way better than I do, and are even better at explaining it to me and allowing us to implement it into our philosophies.”
This story was originally published May 15, 2026 at 5:45 AM with the headline "Inside Justin Gainey’s first 6 weeks as NC State men’s basketball coach."
