Will Wade Starts His Press Conference Taking Jabs at 247Sports’ Grant Hughes

NC State Head Men’s Basketball Coach Will Wade met with the media yesterday for a press conference, and Wade’s personality didn’t disappoint from the moment he stepped into the room.

As Wade approached the microphone, he was already asking if 247Sports’ Grant Hughes was in attendance to ask the first question.

Before we get to what Wade had to say — and why he said it — some context is needed.

After the transfer portal had been open for one month, Hughes had some significant critiques of the team Wade had built up to that point.

On April 22, Hughes ranked NC State’s transfer portal class as one of the eight most underwhelming classes.

Twelve Power Four programs made a head coaching change this offseason. As of Tuesday, Will Wade and NC State have the second-worst portal class of the dozen, ahead of only Utah at No. 50. There’s still plenty of irons in the fire for the Wolfpack, but time is quickly running out, and there’s concern the program’s NIL isn’t up to snuff after several portal targets, including Mackenzie Mgbako, went elsewhere. Down the road, Duke reloads its roster with another elite high school class, while UNC has assembled one of the nation’s best portal classes. (247)

The next day, Hughes shared a tweet that has since been deleted, but I kept the receipt. Here’s what he said:

Twelve Power 4 teams made a head coaching change this offseason.

NC State and Will Wade have the second-lowest-ranked transfer portal class of the dozen, trailed by only Utah.

87 of the top 100 transfers are off the board. The portal is closed to new entrants.

It’s worth noting that Hughes’ only job at 247Sports isn’t just working for the National News Desk. He’s also the Content Editor and Social Media Manager for Inside Carolina, the 247Sports site that covers UNC athletics. Hughes is a UNC alum.

One day after Hughes’ tweet, Butler’s Colt Langdon committed to NC State, and the next day the Wolfpack picked up commitments from FSU’s Jerry Deng and Houston’s Terrance Arceneaux.

NC State General Manager Andrew Slater replied to Hughes’ tweet on the 25th after the commitments of Deng and Arceneaux:

Need to check back on this one a few more times @CoachWadeNCSU https://t.co/1BJluLOQg5 pic.twitter.com/jkZHlg1dF9

— 𝒜𝓃𝒹𝓇ℯ𝓌 𝒮𝓁𝒶𝓉ℯ𝓇 (@Andrew__Slater) April 26, 2025

After that, Wade went on to reel in transfer commitments from UNC forward Ven-Allen Lubin and Texas Tech forward Darrion Williams.

Currently, NC State’s 2025 transfer class ranks 14th nationally and 2nd in the ACC, according to 247Sports.

With that context clearly laid out, here’s Wade’s sarcasm-laced diatribe directed at Hughes from yesterday:

Hughes responded shortly after Wade’s comments with the following tweet:

Good finish for NC State in the portal/recruiting by program standards.

Wolfpack incoming freshman class ranks No. 40 nationally, No. 10 in ACC.

Portal class ranks No. 14 with 8 commits. No. 23 in average rating per commit (91.88) behind LVille (97.33), SMU (92.33) and UNC… pic.twitter.com/i4vzJEmn2d

— Grant Hughes (@GrantHughesNC) July 9, 2025

When your opponent puts you in checkmate, the only thing you can do is concede and compliment the victor.

Anytime Will Wade steps up to a microphone, go ahead and grab a soda and some popcorn.