The expectation is that former longtime Syracuse basketball assistant coach Mike Hopkins will be the next head coach at Siena, according to Rodger Wyland, the sports director at WNYT NewsChannel 13 in the Albany, N.Y., area.
Per Wyland, citing sources, "Hopkins will be officially named coach in the coming days with terms being finalized over the weekend. A press conference is planned for the week of March 30."
Per Sources: Former Syracuse Assistant and Washington head coach Mike Hopkins will be named Siena’s new mens head basketball coach in the next couple of days. Terms being finalized this weekend. Press conference next week.
— Rodger Wyland (@RodgerWyland) March 27, 2026
Assuming that Hopkins does, in fact, end up being the Saints' next head coach, he would replace Gerry McNamara at the helm of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference ("MAAC") school, which went 23-12 overall in the 2025-26 season and made the NCAA Tournament, almost stunning No. 1 overall seed Duke in the first round of the East Region.
Last week, GMac was named the new head coach of the Orange, replacing Adrian Autry, who struggled through a 49-48 overall record at the 'Cuse over three campaigns, including a 15-17 mark in 2025-26.
McNamara is planning to hold his first official press conference as the Orange's head coach on Monday.
Coach Hop appears to be returning to the college game.
Currently, Hopkins is an assistant coach with the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans. The San Mateo, Calif., native, a former shooting guard at Syracuse basketball, was on the Phoenix Suns' staff last season.
When Autry was fired earlier this month, there was speculation that Hopkins could emerge as a significant candidate for the Orange's head coaching vacancy, although other candidates' names came up more frequently, including GMac.
Under the legendary Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim, who served as SU's head coach for 47 seasons, Hopkins was an assistant coach with the program for more than two decades. In 2015, Hop was named the team's head coach-designate; however, nearly two years later, he became the head coach at Washington.
Twice, Hopkins was the Pac-12 Conference coach of the year with the Huskies, taking them to the NCAA Tournament in 2019 and compiling an overall mark of 118-106. If he does end up running the Siena program, and Hop fares well with the Saints, it could propel Hopkins back to the power conference level, if that's something he desires.