UNLV Discusses Buyout With Massimino : College basketball: Coach has been under fire since it was disclosed he had a secret supplemental contract with former administrators.

Rollie Massimino’s future as Nevada Las Vegas basketball coach was on the line Monday, with university officials trying to negotiate a buyout of his contract.

Only five days before the Runnin’ Rebels are to start practice, Massimino met with UNLV interim president Kenny Guinn and athletic director Jim Weaver to discuss whether he would remain coach.

Sources told The Associated Press that Guinn has decided Massimino should leave, and efforts were being made to structure a buyout before the start of practice Saturday.

Massimino, who has three years remaining on a five-year contract, confirmed after the meeting a buyout had been proposed.

“We talked about it, but it was a very preliminary discussion,” he said. “We talked in generalities about the whole situation.”

Weaver called the meeting “very amicable” and said another one will be held in the next few days.

“We didn’t reach a specific conclusion,” Guinn told KLAS-TV. “There’s a few things to resolve during the next 24 to 48 hours.”

The negotiations come amid reports ticket sales were down 30% from last year and UNLV’s athletic programs are facing a financial crunch.

Massimino has been under fire since it was disclosed in August he had a secret supplemental contract with former UNLV administrators that paid him $375,000 a year in addition to his $511,000 base salary.

“We need to put to rest if he’s going to be here or not,” Guinn said.

Guinn said he wants to make sure any buyout doesn’t cost taxpayers a lot of money.

The Las Vegas Sun reported that former UNLV assistant coach Tim Grgurich, now with the Seattle SuperSonics, was the prime candidate to succeed Massimino if an agreement could be reached for him to leave.

Grgurich was the top assistant under former coach Jerry Tarkanian, and his wife and children still live in Las Vegas.

Massimino said he intended to be at practice Saturday.

“I’m the basketball coach,” Massimino said. “I intend to honor my contract.”

A buyout could be costly for UNLV, which hired the former Villanova coach to replace Tarkanian in 1992.

Although Guinn has refused to pay Massimino any of the money promised under the secret supplemental contract, the university would still owe him up to $511,000 a year under the three remaining years of his contract.

The length of that contract could be in dispute. A clause in the contract allows it to be extended if UNLV was placed on probation for past violations during Massimino’s tenure. UNLV received a two-year probation last year for NCAA violations while Tarkanian was coach.

Guinn said he called the meeting with Massimino after he reviewed information that paints a grim picture for Rebel basketball.

The program is projected to lose money this season, and only 3,059 season tickets had been sold as of last week.

Last season, the Rebels drew crowds of only about 5,000 in the 19,000-seat Thomas & Mack Center. They had consistent sellouts under Tarkanian, who built the program into a powerhouse and won the national championship in 1990.

Massimino took over in the 1992-93 season after Tarkanian resigned under pressure following a turbulent 20-year career at UNLV marked by various NCAA infractions.

The Rebels were 21-8 in Massimino’s first year and 15-13 last season, the school’s worst record in two decades.