Xavier expected to hire Sean Miller in coach's return after one year away from sport, sources say

Sean Miller, the former Arizona coach, is expected to return to college basketball after one season away from the sideline, according to sources.

The lure of returning to the Musketeers was too much for Miller to pass up.

The Musketeers made four NCAA tournaments during his five seasons with them, including an Elite Eight run in 2008 and a Sweet 16 appearance in 2009.

He moved to Arizona, where he led the team to five regular-season titles and three Elite Eight appearances in five years. In seven of Miller's first nine seasons, Arizona went to the NCAA tournament.

In September of last year, Arizona became entangled in the federal investigation into college basketball corruption. Miller's candidacy was thrown into uncertainty because of the fact that Arizona could have some level of punishment specific to Miller.

In March 2020, Arizona's initial notice of allegations from the NCAA indicated a hearing panel could prescribe head coach restrictions to Miller. A ruling on Arizona's case is expected next year.

Richardson was one of four assistant coaches arrested as part of the investigation. Richardson was accused of accepting $20,000 to steer Arizona players to Christian Dawkins, a sports agent.

Richardson told Dawkins that Miller was paying $10,000 per month for Deandre Ayton. Miller denied paying players to attend Arizona.

The NCAA charged Arizona with five Level I violations in March of last year, but Miller was not charged for making payments to players, but for not demonstrating that he promoted an atmosphere for compliance and monitored his staff.

Miller's final three seasons at Arizona were affected by the cloud hanging over the program. The NCAA tournament was missed and the team was banned from the playoffs for two years.

Miller was fired by Arizona in April. Due to the NCAA issues, the two sides could not agree on an extension for his contract.

Miller will replace Steele, who was let go after the NIT win over Cleveland State. Steele had different roles with the Musketeers. He was an assistant under Miller for one season before becoming an assistant under Chris Mack. Steele was promoted to the top spot when Mack left.

Steele did not make an NCAA tournament appearance in four seasons. The program had reached the NCAA tournament in 16 of the previous 18 campaigns before he took over.

The son of a legendary high school coach and the brother of a new Rhode Island coach are both from Pittsburgh. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Wisconsin and later worked under Herb Sendek at Miami. He was promoted to the top spot with the Musketeers when Matta left for Ohio State, after spending time at NC State and Pittsburgh.