WVU Basketball
Poll: Should WVU Offer Darian DeVries an Extension This Early in Tenure?
Aside from WVU falling to Arizona on the heels of being nationally ranked, the major headline after the game became what was said about Darian DeVries.
Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd was quick to sing DeVries’s praises following the Wildcats’ 75-56 win over the Mountaineers on Tuesday night.
“Darian’s doing such a good job, he’s done an amazing job in his first year,” Lloyd said. “I know they’ve had some crazy injuries and he’s dealt with it. To be honest with you, their start has been pretty magical. You beat Arizona, you beat a Gonzaga, Kansas, are you kidding me?”
Lloyd went as far as to say that DeVries has already done enough to deserve a contract extension.
“If I were that guy’s agent I would have two more years on that contract right now,” Lloyd said. “They’ve got off to an amazing start.”
So we will now ask you, the WVU fan, if you have seen enough and think Wren Baker needs to act to avoid losing him to another program?
The Mountaineers have gotten off to an 11-3 start in DeVries’s first season with ranked wins over the aforementioned Arizona, Gonzaga and Kansas.
What’s made WVU’s start even more impressive is the injuries the Mountaineers have had to deal with. Tucker DeVries missed his sixth-straight game on Tuesday with an upper-body injury. Freshman guard KJ Tenner also missed Tuesday’s game. Jayden Stone hasn’t played all season with an undisclosed injury. Amani Hansberry has missed a few games, as has Eduardo Andre.
“Their coach is doing great work,” Lloyd said. “He’s putting them in the right positions and he’s been doing a great job managing games, picking matchups and calling the right set.”
DeVries signed a five-year deal with WVU in the summer worth an average of $3 million per year. His current contract runs through the 2028-29 season.
For a related story, WVU doesn’t lose much ground in KenPom despite the loss.
John Burdette
January 8, 2025 at 7:36 pm
This is how schools get themselves in to hefty buyout$. Coach D has a FIVE YEAR contract. This team is off to a great start but still has a full BIG 12 schedule to play. Hopefully we won’t lose key players to the portal at the end of the year. I hope he stays for the duration of his contract but extending it now seems almost like desperation. Let’s make the Dance, eh?
Carter Williams
January 9, 2025 at 9:33 am
Having endured 5 seasons of Bob in the bag followed by Eilert’s deer in the headlights approach to coaching, Devries seems like the savior of a crumbling program but, I agree an extension should at least wait to the end of the season.