With a loss to Xavier in the NCAA Tournament First Four, Texas is expected to fire head basketball coach Rodney Terry after just three seasons. Now in search of their next coach, the Longhorns are expected to explore all options, including Houston Rockets assistant Royal Ivey.
While not likely to accept the job, Ivey is viewed as a longshot to succeed Terry, according to Lonestar Live’s Josh Newman. The Texas basketball alum recently gained steam as a potential future head coach due to his success leading South Sudan, who impressed in the 2023 World Cup and 2024 Olympics.
“[Royal Ivey is] a longshot to land the job, but a longshot worth noting given his pedigree,” Newman wrote. “Ivey played in 133 games for Texas under Rick Barnes, starting on the 2003 Final Four squad. He has since become a respected NBA assistant, while also coaching South Sudan to a respectable showing in the country’s first Olympics last summer in Paris.”
In three years with the team, Terry has led Texas to a combined 62-37 record with an NCAA Tournament appearance each season. However, he has regressed each year, going from the Elite Eight in 2022-2023 to a Round of 32 exit the following season and now a First Four loss in 2024-2025. In their first year in the SEC, the Longhorns finished 13th in the conference, barely sneaking into the March Madness bracket.
Once Terry is officially fired, Texas will seek its third head basketball coach of the last five years. Though unsuccessful, Terry managed to barely outlast his predecessor, Chris Beard, who was dishonorably released early in his second season following an assault charge.
Rockets coach Royal Ivey’s career journey
Ivey played for Texas from 2001 to 2004, starting in every game he played. He ended his career averaging 9.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists as the floor general of teams that included future NBA stars James Thomas, P.J. Tucker and T.J. Ford.
After three years at Texas, Ivey spent 10 years in the NBA before transitioning to coaching. Though drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in 2004, he most notably made it to the 2012 NBA Finals as a reserve with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
A decade into his coaching career, Ivey was given his first head coaching opportunity by Luol Deng and South Sudan. In their brief tenure with the team, Deng and Ivey have been unanimously praised for the work they have done to admirably build the South Sudan roster in an ultimate underdog story. The ‘Bright Stars’ did not advance past the regional stage of the 2024 Paris Olympics but picked up their first Olympic win in national history against Puerto Rico.
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