Timeline of Arizona State's Basketball Coaching Search Revealed

The Sun Devils might settle on a new head coach by next week - much of it hinges on how tournament teams perform this weekend.

Sep 13, 2025; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Arizona State Sun Devil Athletic Director Graham Rossini during a game against Texas State Bobcats at Mountain America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Arianna Grainey-Imagn Images | Arianna Grainey-Imagn Images

TEMPE -- Arizona State men's basketball is set to have their third leader of this century in the weeks ahead after officially parting ways with head coach Bobby Hurley following the end of the 2025-26 season last Wednesday.

Graham Rossini is being tasked with making another massively consequential hire during his tenure, as he made an incredible hire in women's basketball leader Molly Miller last March.

Mar 3, 2026; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils forward Allen Mukeba (23) with head coach Bobby Hurley against the Kansas Jayhawks in the first half at Desert Financial Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

More clarity arose as far as where the search is on Wednesday, with a potential inflection point in the process being named to cap everything off.

Timeline of Coaching Hire Revealed

SunDevilSource's Chris Karpman reported that there will not be a hire this week - citing a mix of focusing on the impending women's basketball tournament run and on waiting for candidates that are still in charge of teams that are alive to see their season come to an end.

"Sources: ASU won't hire a new basketball coach until at least early next week. Molly Miller's NCAA Tournament team warrants focused attention, and some potential candidates whose teams are in the men's NCAA bracket will not speak with another school until they are eliminated."

Nov 7, 2009; Tempe, AZ, USA; General view of the exterior of the Wells Fargo Arena on the campus of Arizona State. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The thought process here is sound at the surface, as making a hire in the imminent future would be taking shine away from the women's team that shouldn't be. Beyond that reasoning, it would be malpractice from the athletic department to rush into making a hire just for the sake of making one.

While there are numerous major points of the offseason that are rapidly approaching, it doesn't make sense to hire a candidate that isn't in the proverbial "inner circle" of the process simply to get a jump start of a few days.

Mar 18, 2026; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Saint Mary's Gaels head coach Randy Bennett speaks to reporters during a practice session ahead of the first round of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | William Purnell-Imagn Images

The presumption that Arizona State is waiting for Utah State's Jerrod Calhoun and Saint Mary's Randy Bennett to become available - for good reason.

Calhoun is expected to lean towards taking a job in the midwest/east, but getting a chance to speak with the Bob Huggins desciple has to be a priority for Rossini. As for Bennett, there appears to be fire to the smoke in the link between the two sides. The 63-year old is a native of Mesa and has real incentive to depart Saint Mary's for the first time.

Mar 11, 2026; Kansas City, MO, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Joshua Jefferson (5) protects the ball from Arizona State Sun Devils center Massamba Diop (35) during the first half at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | William Purnell-Imagn Images

New Mexic head coach Eric Olen and Portland State Jase Coburn remain in the conversation, but there has to be conversations with who are likely the "top" candidates of the search before any pivot can be comfortably made.