Hopkins Linked To College Basketball Job Opening

Two years after he was fired as the University of Washington basketball coach, Mike Hopkins could be returning to the college ranks, according to multiple reports.

Hopkins, 56. has been linked to the Siena opening, one created when Saints coach Gerry McNamara left following an NCAA Tournament appearance to take the job at Syracuse, both his and Hopkins' alma mater.

Ironically, McNamara was a Syracuse standout in 2003-2006 when Hopkins was an assistant coach at the school on Jim Boeheim's staff.

BREAKING: Former Washington head coach Mike Hopkins has emerged as the favorite in Siena’s coaching search. Sources told @mid_madness.

Hopkins went 118-106 (62-72 in P12 play) as the UW head coach. Is currently a Pelicans assistant. Longtime Cuse assistant. @AdamZagoria first pic.twitter.com/VAAkZCPZon
— Sam Federman (@Sam_Federman) March 27, 2026

Hopkins currently is a New Orleans Pelicans assistant coach after spending the previous season in a similar capacity for the Phoenix Suns.

He spent seven seasons with the Huskies, taking them to NIT and NCAA tournament berths before his program went stale for the final five years when he had no postseason appearances beyond the Pac-12 Tournament.

The UW let Hopkins go following a 17-15 season with a team that had a pair of Kentucky transfers in the starting lineup in forward Keion Brooks and point guard Sahvir Wheeler.

Just when it looked like Siena basketball was going to lose all of its 'Cuse ties, enter Hop into the conversation... https://t.co/hR87Vdt1EL
— Steve Infanti (@SteveInfantiNC9) March 27, 2026

Hopkins was a personable guy who could be overly entertaining in news conferences by slapping the table in front of him and letting out a yell.

The UW has been his first and only head-coaching job. He just didn't win enough. He was 118-106 overall, 62-72 in conference play.

After his first two teams finished 21-13 and 27-9, Hopkins had just two winning seasons over the next five.

His 2020 team finished last in the Pac-12 Conference, at 15-17 overall and in 5-13 league play, with Isaiah Stewart and Jaden McDaniels in the starting lineup as one-and-done freshmen who would become NBA first-round draft picks. That team began the season 11-4 and imploded.

Somehow, Hopkins survived a disastrous 5-21 season in 2021, with the COVID pandemic still in play, and where that UW team finished next to last in the Pac-12 standings.

If he lands the job at Siena, he'll be just 145 miles east of Syracuse, where he played in 1990-1993 and was on the coaching staff in 1995-2017.

McNamara, 42, coached at Siena for just two seasons, finishing 14-18 and 23-12. His most recent team lost 71-65 to Duke in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament.