Will the Florida Gators be in the market to hire a new basketball coach?

Todd Golden, who guided the Gators to the national championship last season and a No. 1 seed this year, is considered the top candidate to replace the recently fired Hubert Davis as the head coach at North Carolina.

Golden, 40, prefers an up-tempo style of basketball, which would suit fans of the blue-blood program in Chapel Hill. However, unlike past hires for the Tar Heels, Golden does not have a connection to the program.

When legendary head coach Dean Smith retired following the 1997 season, his top assistant, Bill Guthridge stepped in. Guthridge was followed by former North Carolina player Matt Doherty and then former UNC assistant coach Roy Williams. When Williams retired, Davis, a former Tar Heel star, stepped in.

So for the last 30 years, someone with deep ties to the program has been the head coach.

There is another obstacle to Golden’s supposed candidacy: his current contract with the University of Florida. Golden’s buyout is believed to be $16 million, which a program like North Carolina could pay. But in a situation where Golden and another candidate are neck and neck, the buyout could tip the scales.

Finally, Golden would have to decide if the move from a program capable of winning a national championship to a blue-blood program that played in the national title game in 2022 but has not won a championship since 2017 would be worth it.

In the new era of the transfer portal and name, image and likeness (NIL) deals, the landscape of college basketball is changing. There are more programs able to compete for championships than ever before because of NIL money that can lure players to programs that may not have been as attractive as North Carolina, Kansas, Duke, or others in the past.

If Golden is not the pick for North Carolina, there is another coach with a Florida connection who has been mentioned as a candidate. Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan, who led Florida to national championships in 2006 and 2007, could be in the mix. Donovan has not coached college basketball since 2015. Donovan gave a vague answer when asked about his candidacy for the job on Wednesday.

“My main focus is on these guys and this new team,” Donovan said. “I understand that there’s stuff out there, and I understand that there is going to be certain speculation. But I have to concentrate on this group, and really, my focus is on what we’re doing here in Chicago and having a game tonight and traveling to go and play in a back-to-back.”

The Bulls are not likely to earn a playoff spot this season, making the timing for Donovan to be hired more appealing.

One other domino that could impact the search is the uncertainty at another blue blood, Kansas. Jayhawks head coach Bill Self dismissed rumors of his retirement, but there has been no definitive statement made that Self, 63, will be back on the bench next season.