Gainey Continues Building NC State Staff With Two More Additions
NC State men’s basketball continues to take shape under first-year head coach Justin Gainey, who is steadily rebuilding the program ahead of the 2026-27 season.
Since taking over in early April, the former Wolfpack player has moved quickly to assemble his coaching staff and reshape the roster through the transfer portal. While much of the staff was put together during the opening weeks of his tenure, Gainey made two additional hires official on Tuesday to further strengthen the program’s infrastructure.
NC State announced the additions of assistant coach Ognjen Vasiljević and director of scouting Matt Holt, moves that appear to complete the Wolfpack’s basketball staff heading into the next phase of the offseason.
Vasiljević Brings International Experience and Recruiting Potential
Vasiljević joins NC State after serving last season at South Alabama as both an assistant coach and director of basketball operations. The Jaguars finished runner-up in the Sun Belt Conference and earned a berth in the NIT during his tenure.
Prior to South Alabama, Vasiljević worked as an assistant coach at Life University, an NAIA program, making his move to NC State a major step forward in his coaching career.
Originally from Serbia, Vasiljević played Division II basketball in the United States before spending two seasons at Ohio Valley University. His international background and European basketball connections could become valuable assets for the Wolfpack, particularly as more prospects from Eastern Europe look toward playing college basketball in the United States.
He will join Alvin Brooks, Matthew Driscoll, Riley Collins, and Antony Goins on Gainey’s coaching staff for the upcoming season.
Holt Adds Valuable Scouting and Evaluation Experience
Matt Holt will take over as NC State’s director of scouting, a key support role as Gainey balances coaching responsibilities with recruiting efforts.
Although the Wolfpack retained Pat Stacy in a general manager capacity after his previous work under Will Wade, Holt’s arrival adds another experienced evaluator to the program’s recruiting operation.
Before joining NC State, Holt spent three seasons at Georgia Tech as director of player development and previously worked in multiple roles at Nebraska over a six-year stretch. His experience in scouting and video coordination should provide important support as the Wolfpack continue building both their roster and recruiting pipeline.
Holt is expected to work closely with Stacy and director of operations Bill Comar as NC State finalizes preparations for Gainey’s first season at the helm.
With the latest hires in place, the Wolfpack now appear fully staffed as Gainey prepares to lead the next era of NC State basketball.
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