Source: Kings asst. Loucks the top candidate for Florida St. job

Sacramento Kings assistant and Florida State alum Luke Loucks has emerged as the leading candidate to succeed Leonard Hamilton as Seminoles head coach, a source told ESPN on Friday.

A deal is expected to come together over the weekend.

Loucks, 34, has spent his entire coaching career in the NBA, including the last three seasons as an assistant with the Kings. He started out as a video coordinator and player development coach at Golden State in 2016.

Though Loucks has no head coaching experience, he has a deep understanding of Florida State basketball. Loucks played at Florida State under Hamilton from 2008 to 2012. During his time there, Florida State made four straight NCAA Tournament appearances and won its only ACC Tournament championship in 2012.

Hamilton announced his retirement last month, leaving Florida State as the winningest head coach in school history after 23 seasons at the helm. But the Seminoles have missed four straight NCAA tournaments and struggled to find the consistency that had once been a hallmark of the program.