Will Wade's Jump from NC State to LSU Should Surprise Nobody

The former Wolfpack head coach reaffirmed where his allegiances are

Mar 16, 2026; Dayton, OH, USA; NC State Wolfpack head coach Will Wade speaks with the media during a practice session ahead of the first four of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at University of Dayton Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Will Wade has always been about one thing – Will Wade.

It’s never about a school, or a program, or a player, it’s always been about him and if anybody thought that would change after one season at NC State, then he fooled you.

Wade officially bolted from the Wolfpack on Thursday to return to LSU, a move that he was desperate to make since he returned to coaching at McNeese three seasons ago. Yet this was different.

Last year at McNeese he was very open about leaving the school for NC State while he was in the NCAA Tournament with the Cowboys, and he was justified. After taking the program to back-to-back tournaments, he was ready to return to power conference basketball.

Everyone understood where he was coming from.

But now he sold NC State and its fans his bag of good and they bought it.

“Is the job open there? No?” he said at the ACC Tournament when NC State got eliminated by Virginia about the LSU job.

“Listen, let me be very clear: I'm excited at NC State. I was hired at NC State to do a job. This wasn't going to take one year. I've already met with our administration about next year and some of the changes that we need to make and some of the things that we need to do to put this program where it deserves long-term.”

But that was the problem. There was already conversation between Wade and LSU at that moment. There were many things to iron out but he already had an idea of what was going to happen.

In a disastrous end to the season, NC State lost eight of ten games to close the year which culminated in a First Four loss to Texas, who was able to advance to the Sweet 16 before being upended by Purdue.

Will Wade’s social media post bidding farewell to the Wolfpack and explaining his reasoning for returning to LSU was easy to see coming and it was perfect for him.

If you believe anything he says going forward, that’s on you. Now, he apparently is back at the school he always wanted to be and will try to bring them back to the NCAA Tournament.