University of Connecticut men’s basketball coach Kevin Ollie signed a new five-year contract on Thursday. He is now signed through May 2019.
The new deal is worth $15 million. Ollie will get paid $2.8 million a year, but that could go up to $3 million a year with incentives. That means that his salary will be more than doubled with the new deal. In September 2012 he replaced Jim Calhoun and was given a seven-month contract. Three months into that contract he was given a five-year contract that was worth $7.5 million, according to ESPN.
''It's a humbling experience to be around the UConn fans and the UConn family and to know that I am their basketball coach for the foreseeable future,'' Ollie said.
He went on to add, "My heart is here at UConn. I want to stay invested in the student-athletes' lives on and off the court. I want to be here."
Ollie spent 13 years as a NBA journeyman before returning to UConn. While with the Huskies he has a 52-18 record, according to the Associated Press. This season he led the Huskies, who were 8-1 in the postseason and 6-0 in the NCAA tournament, to the national title. It’s the fourth national title for the Huskies since 1999.
Ollie had been linked to several coaching jobs in the NBA. He was linked to the openings with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Cleveland Cavaliers. However he decided to stay with UConn despite being linked to jobs in the NBA.