Will Wade shoots down LSU rumors, says ‘we’re going to win big at NC State.’

Will Wade shut down the rumors of him leaving N.C. State for a potential opening at LSU on Thursday afternoon. But first, he answered the question with another question.

“Is the job open there?” Wade asked when questioned about the chatter of a potential reunion in Baton Rouge.

No, the job is not open. But it’s no secret that the Tigers have struggled under coach Matt McMahon. And, as a result, the rumor mill has started swirling recently with talk of second stint for Wade at LSU. Wade coached the Tigers from 2017 to 2022 before an NCAA investigation led to his firing. He followed that with a successful run at McNeese State before accepting his latest role in Raleigh last March.

“Let me be very clear: I’m excited at N.C. State,” Wade said Thursday afternoon following the No. 7 seeded Wolfpack’s 81-74 loss to No. 2 seed Virginia. “I was hired at N.C. 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.”

“I’m not on social media,” Wade continued. “I’m not into gossip. I’m not into any of that sort of stuff.”

And neither are his players, it turns out.

“We don’t hear any rumors about it,” senior forward Ven-Allen Lubin, who finished with a 14-point double-double against the Cavaliers, said. “I don’t think that’s true... or something we pay attention to. I think what’s more important is just the season.”

“We don’t hear about it,” added freshman Matt Able, who scored 12 on Thursday. “We’re focused on this season, and we want to win as much as possible.”

Will Wade looks ahead to next year at NC State

Wade acknowledged that his first season in Raleigh hasn’t gone “exactly how we wanted it to,” but promised his program would “rally” and “work hard” moving forward.

“We’re going to have a team next year that’s ready to roll,” Wade said.

The Wolfpack are a projected No. 10 seed for the NCAA Tournament, per ESPN’s Joe Lunardi and N&O correspondent Patrick Stevens and have a 20-13 overall record this year. N.C. State finished with a 10-8 ACC record after starting 9-2 in conference play.

Still, Wade was optimistic Thursday afternoon in Charlotte — at least, when discussing the program past this year.

“Look, we’re going to win and we’re going to win big at N.C. State,” Wade said. “That’s what we’re going to do. That’s what we’re going to do moving forward. We have the resources we need. We have what we need, and it’s on me and my staff to get the job done.”

From the Final Four to missing the ACC tournament

Making the ACC tournament this year was progress for the program. The Wolfpack missed the conference tournament last season, leading to the firing of Kevin Keatts just one year after the program’s magical 2024 Final Four run.

When Wade took the Wolfpack head coaching position last March, he made his expectations clear from his introductory press conference. Wade promised to build a “consistent winner” and not a “flash in the pan.”

“We want to consistently be in the top four in the ACC starting next year,” Wade said last March. “And then we want to consistently get good seeds in the NCAA tournament. If we do that for five straight years, one of those years is going to break our way... it’s like winning the lottery. The more ping pong balls you put in there, the better chance you got to win the thing. So we’re trying to continually put deposits in there where we’re competing at that level. And eventually it’ll happen.”

Selection Sunday, the NCAA tournament’s bracket reveal, is 6 p.m. on Sunday.

This story was originally published March 12, 2026 at 3:22 PM.