Four Candidates Virginia Should Pursue to be Its Next Women's Basketball Head Coach

Who will Virginia look to hire after making a coaching change over the weekend?

South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley speaks to the media from Mortgage Matchup Center on April 4, 2026. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Virginia's Women's basketball program made a change over the weekend.

After four years as the head coach and a run to the Sweet 16 this past season, Amaka Agugua-Hamilton is not going to be leading the program going forward.

Looking ahead, who are some candidates that make sense for UVA to make a run at?

1. Dawn Staley

Apr 5, 2026; Phoenix, AZ, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley looks on in the second half against the UCLA Bruins during the National Championship game of the women's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

I know, I know, this is not very realistic (maybe?), but Virginia has to try and see if they can convince Staley to return to Charlottesville. She should be options 1,2, and 3 for UVA and they have to do their best to persuade her.

After UVA's coaching change and ahead of South Carolina's national championship loss to UCLA, Staley had this to say about the changes being made at UVA:

"Yeah, I just heard about that. I did reach out to our athletic director at Virginia. She just told me that they did part ways. I don't know why. She said, We'll talk soon. I think I reached out to Coach Mox as well just to check on her. Really haven't had time to have a conversation with her. I don't know what went wrong, but I think she had them on the right track.

I hope we get it together. We have a deeply rich tradition at UVA on this stage. We hope to get our team back there one day sooner than later."

Staley clearly as love for the program given the "we" references, but is it enough to make her leave a great job at South Carolina? She has made them a dominant program and has everything she wants there. It's not home though.

2. Kenny Brooks

Mar 28, 2026; Fort Worth, TX, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Kenny Brooks looks on from the sideline during the first half against the Texas Longhorns at Dickies Arena. Mandatory Credit: Chris Jones-Imagn Images | Chris Jones-Imagn Images

Brooks was previously the head coach at James Madison and Virginia Tech and is a Virginia native. Would it be a tough pull? Absolutely, but again, UVA should be thinking big here.

During his first season in Lexington, he instantly made UK better. The Wildcats, who earned five ranked triumphs, ranked as high as No. 8 in the Associated Press poll on the season, while they went on to earn the four seed and double bye at the SEC Tournament and the four seed and hosting privileges in the NCAA Tournament. The Cats broke or tied 12 school records before ending the season as the nation’s leader in blocks per game (7.0).

He has a good job at Kentucky, but UVA should take a swing.

3. Tim Taylor

Taylor's overall record is not overly impressive, but he is a former UVA assistant and is very respected.

Taylor came back to Charlottesville and re-joined head coach Joanne Boyle's staff prior to the 2016-17 season. In his two years with the Cavaliers, the program reached a pair of postseason events, the 2017 WNIT and the 2018 NCAA Tournament.

4. Vanessa Blair-Lewis

Blair-Lewis has done a terrific job as the coach at George Mason and has been mentioned as a candidate for other big jobs.

In 2024–25, Blair-Lewis led George Mason to its first-ever Atlantic 10 Championship and first NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. The Patriots posted a program-record 27 wins, including a best-ever 11–1 start and their first back-to-back 20+ win seasons. The team also reached its highest-ever NET ranking at No. 40 (first achieved on Dec. 4, 2024)