Shaka Smart has been the head coach of the Texas Longhorns basketball team for only one season, but that’s plenty of time for the school to like what they see.
Smart has received a one-year contract extension that includes a pay bump. The entire deal will keep him in Austin until after the 2022-23 season has concluded. Smart’s base salary for the upcoming season will be about $3 million, with a $100,000 raise baked in for every season thereafter.
“I’m very appreciative of the support from Chancellor Bill McRaven, President Greg Fenves and Men’s Athletics Director Mike Perrin,” Smart said in a statement. “I’m really happy at Texas and am excited about being here for a long time.”
Smart joined the Longhorns from VCU before the start of last season, and his first season in Austin was relatively successful. He guided the team to a 20-13 record, which was good for fourth in the Big 12 and an NCAA Tournament bid. There, they famously lost to Northern Iowa on a half-court buzzer-beater in the first round.
Smart has a 183-69 record in his seven seasons as a college basketball head coach.
Good for Smart and for Texas, as it now seems like their basketball program, which had hit some wayward times before Smart arrived, is back on the right track and looking positively towards the future.
[SI]
