Interim basketball coach turns his long-awaited shot into a revival at Providence Day
Jonathan McIntyre said he never expected to be the head boys’ basketball coach at Providence Day School.
“But it’s been a lot of fun,” he said. “The first game, I was pretty amped up, but as the season has gone along, I’ve gotten into my rhythm, I think.”
McIntyre, 49, knows the job, one of the best in North Carolina, comes with expectations.
Two of the last three coaches at Providence Day School — Brian Field and David Carrier — built N.C. powers that won three state championships. Field built a dynasty like few N.C. schools had done before him, developing the Chargers into a bona-fide national power in the 2010s and ultimately being named one of the best Charlotte coaches of the past 40 years.
But McIntyre knew all of that, too.
He was Field’s assistant for 15 years. After Field retired, he sat on the bench with Ron Johnson, who’s been Providence Day’s head coach since the 2021-22 season and is on leave, and watched as Johnson’s teams went 94-33.
Johnson missed part of the 2024-25 season due to a health issue and is on personal leave this season. McIntyre, after 19 seasons as the assistant, was named interim coach in September.
He finally got his turn.
He convinced Field to come out of retirement to be his assistant, in a bit of role reversal, as well as another former Chargers’ assistant coach and former star, Ryan Conrad. Also on the staff is former Duke All-American and NBA champ Shane Battier, whose son, Zeke, is the Chargers’ star this season.
“I never expected to be the head coach here,” he said, “but with coach Johnson having to step away, it worked itself out.”
‘I think he was built for this’
Johnson constructed a difficult schedule for his team, which included bringing back a wealth of talent from a unit that finished 27-5 in the 2024-25 season. He also added Lancaster star guard Columbus Parker, whose father, Chris, is one of the best players in Johnson C. Smith history.
McIntyre lost his first game, to NCISAA state championship contender Davidson Day, by 18 points. He lost his next three, too.
Providence Day was 0-4. Dead end.
“We talked a lot during that time,” said Carrier, the former Providence Day coach who is now at Charlotte Country Day. “That was hard. My first year at Country Day, we started 0-11. It wasn’t fun. But he stayed the course and believed in what he was doing. He would say, ‘Man, I hope we can get this one.’ But every day, he learned from his losses. He told me at the end of the year, he thought they could be a solid team. But for him to stay the course and keep believing, that was huge, especially for a first year coach.
“Honestly, it’s amazing. I think he was built for this.”
Since that 0-4 start, Providence Day has had a seven-game win streak and a 12-game win streak. Heading into Thursday’s state quarterfinal home game with Cary Academy, the Chargers are 21-6 overall, and McIntyre’s first team won the CISAA conference championship.
“I think he gets us,” said Zeke Battier, the Chargers’ 6-foot-7 junior wing. “He coaches us hard, but he lets us have fun. It’s just fun playing for him.”
What’s next? A title run?
Providence Day hasn’t won a state title since Field’s 2016 team beat future NBA All-Star Bam Abebayo in the finals and eventually played in the DICKS’ Nationals in New York.
McIntyre’s team, No. 8 in The Observer’s Sweet 16 poll, is the No. 2 seed in this year’s NCISAA state 4A playoffs. They are three wins away from a title.
McIntyre played in high school at South Mecklenburg and Charlotte Christian, and after graduating from UNC-Greensboro, he took a job working for the then Charlotte Bobcats. He’s been around basketball all of his life.
Winning, he said, would mean the world to him.
“I think we’ve got a chance,” he said, before rattling off the teams that could prevent the Chargers from winning.
“We’ve got a lot of good teams to get past,” he said. “But it’s possible.”
Carrier, whose team lost in the playoffs Tuesday, is pulling for his longtime friend.
“I mean, he’s been an assistant for nearly 20 years, and what he’s done filling in this year is nothing short of amazing,” said Carrier, who has more than 500 career wins. “And he does it with humility. How many guys, with a real job and family, jump in and do this for the love of his players and program? He’s one of the best coaches I’ve ever seen, since I’ve been in coaching. He should get the job full-time. That’s a done deal. I mean, look at what he’s done. Who could’ve done a better job?
“Absolutely nobody.”
McIntyre hopes he has three more games before his job, this year, is finished. Providence Day athletic director Nancy Beatty said the school hasn’t made any decisions about Johnson’s future as boys’ basketball coach yet.
So for now, for McIntyre, there is just this year, and just these next few weeks.
He said he’s more than ready.
“Coaching for 20 years now,” he said, “I don’t know if anything surprises me. Every day, I’m pretty excited to get to the gym. We have a really good group of kids. They’re fun. They’re talented. They make it all worth it.”
