Contract Details: The numbers inside Luke Loucks' deal with FSU

New men’s basketball head coach Luke Loucks officially agreed to contract terms with FSU on March 9, according to a letter of understanding released to Warchant and other media outlets Tuesday morning. The letter of understanding was dated March 8, 2025.

Loucks’ agreement with Florida State is for five years, with a starting salary of $2 million in 2025-26. The salary will increase in year two to $2.175 million, then to $2.35 million, $2.55 million and $2.75 million in years three through five, respectively. The five-year deal runs through April 30, 2030.

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FSU has provided Loucks with a $1.7 million salary pool for staff.

Loucks would be owed a $50,000 retention bonus if he is employed at FSU on June 30, 2027 and a $100,000 retention bonus if employed on June 30, 2029.

Other bonuses include $100,000 for an ACC regular season championship (or co-championship), $100,000 for an ACC Tournament championship, $150,000 for an NCAA Tournament appearance, $50,000 for back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances and $50,000 for a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament.

FSU would pay Loucks the following for success in the NCAA Tournament:

• $50,000 for advancing to second round (not a first four win), or
• $175,000 for a Sweet 16 berth, or
• $200,000 for an Elite 8 berth

If the Seminoles make it to the Final Four, Loucks would be due $275,000. That number increases by $150,000 for making the championship game and $500,000 if FSU wins the national championship.

Loucks also has structured bonuses for regular season win totals (at and above 20 wins), top-10 and top-20 finishes in the USA Today poll and a $100,000 incentive for winning AP ACC Coach of the Year ($150,000 for winning AP National Coach of the Year).

Lastly, Florida State has incentivized GSR (graduation success rate) at or above 85% and APR (academic progress rate) at or above 960. Loucks would be owed $25,000 for meeting GSR rate and $15,000 for hitting the APR mark.

Buyout terms for Loucks are relatively straightforward; if he is terminated without cause over the term of the contract, he would be owed 85 percent of the remaining salary — including scheduled increases — in his deal. Buyout payments would be processed in equal monthly installments.

If Loucks were to leave Florida State for another job prior to April 1, 2026, he would owe the university $2.5 million. If prior to April 1, 2027, Loucks would owe FSU $1.75 million. Those buyout figures drop down to $1 million, $500,000 and $0 over the next three years.

The former FSU point guard, who has most recently served as an assistant coach with the NBA’s Sacramento Kings, replaces longtime head coach Leonard Hamilton, who is stepping down after 23 seasons at Florida State.

Loucks was a point guard at Florida State from 2008-12 and played a key role on four consecutive NCAA Tournament teams. One of his claims to fame at FSU was delivering the pass that set up Michael Snaer’s buzzer-beating, game-winning 3-pointer at Duke in 2012.

After his college days, Loucks played professional basketball overseas for four years before beginning his NBA coaching career with the Golden State Warriors in 2016. Over the next five years, Loucks moved progressively higher in the Warriors’ organization before taking a similar position with the Phoenix Suns in 2021-22. Since the summer of 2022, he has been an assistant coach with the NBA’s Sacramento Kings.

Loucks also was an assistant coach for the Nigerian national team in 2020-21 and helped coach that team in the Olympics. Coming from a family with strong Seminole ties, Loucks has remained close to the Florida State program since his playing days. His wife, Stevi, is also a former Seminole swimmer.

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