Published Sep 24, 2024
10 Best Players that Transferred from North Carolina
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Andrew Jones  •  TarHeelIllustrated
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While not many players transferred into North Carolina before the portal era, plenty have left over past decades.

Competition for playing time with so much talent on rosters will lead to lead to some departures. Most of the players that left UNC did so because of playing time, and others were at a point where it was best for all involved that they find a new school.

So, here are the top 10 transfers to leave UNC for another program:

Note: Criteria is how they produced at UNC, but more so how they played at the other schools.

Clifford Rozier (1990-91)

Rozier transferred after his freshman season at UNC, ending up at Louisville. He averaged 4.9 points and 3.0 rebounds in 9.3 minutes per game with a Tar Heels team that reached the Final Four.

In two seasons at Louisville, he averaged 15.7 and 18.1 points, respectively, and 10.9 and 11.1 rebounds, respectively. Rozier was named Metro Conference Player of the Year in 1993-94 and was also first-team All-America.

Pros: He played four seasons in the NBA averaging 4.8 points in 173 games.

Caleb Love (2020-23)

Love started as soon as he stepped on campus and was a key part of three UNC teams before transferring to Arizona prior to last season. In order, Love averaged 10.5, 15.9, and 16.7 points and 3.6, 3.6, and 2.8 assists per game. He hit one of the biggest shots in program history in the 2022 Final Four, and was honored multiple times.

He was a two-time All-ACC honorable mention, and made the 2022 All-NCAA Tournament team.

Last season at Arizona, Love averaged 18.0 points and 3.4 assists per contest, made first-team All-America, and was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year. He is back at Arizona for his final season of college.

Larry Drew II (2008-11)

In two-and-a-half seasons at UNC, Drew averaged 1.4, 8.5, and 4.4 points per game, respectively. He averaged 1.9, 5.9, and 3.9 assists as well. In 2009, he was a reserve on a Tar Heels team that won the national championship.

Drew left UNC in the middle of his junior season, transferring to UCLA, where he played for one campaign. That year, Drew averaged 7.5 points and 7.3 assists. he was named first-team All-Pac12 that season.

Pros: Drew played 22 games over two seasons in the NBA. He scored 63 total points and handed out 55 assists.

Larry Davis (1992-94)

Davis was on some loaded UNC teams and just couldn’t get much playing time, so he left.

He averaged 3.5 minutes in 21 games as a freshman, and 2.9 minutes in 17 games as a sophomore. He scored 84 points as a Tar Heel and was a member of Carolina’s 1993 national championship team.

However, in two seasons at South Carolina, Davis averaged 18.0 and 16.0 points and made 152 three-pointers. He was second-team All-SEC in 1996 and first-team All-SEC in 1997. The Gamecocks won 24 games and the SEC championship in his final season.

Pros: NBA summer league for two season, did not make a roster.

John Brownlee (1981-83)

Brownlee spent two seasons with the Tar Heels, and was a member of UNC’s 1982 national championship club. He played in only 13 games that season scoring nine points and grabbing 14 rebounds.

As a sophomore, he averaged 5.0 minutes in 33 games averaging 1.3 points and 1.1 rebounds.

At 6-foot-11, Brownless spent his last two college seasons starring for Texas averaging 13.9 points and 5.3 rebounds as a junior and 17.0 points and 8.2 boards as a senior. He was named Southwest Conference Player of the Year that season.

Pros: Brownlee played in France and Belgium.

Steve Krafcisin (1976-77)

A 6-foot-10 forward, Krafcisin spent one season at UNC, but was on a Carolina team that reached the national championship game losing to Marquette in 1977. He scored two points in that game as a freshman.

He averaged 2.9 points and 1.5 rebounds that season before transferring to Iowa, where he played his final three seasons.

As a Hawkeye, Krafcisin averaged 7.2, 12.3, and 11.4 points, respectively, as well as 5.6, 6.4, and 6.4 rebounds. He started all three seasons at Iowa, including on the program’s 1980 Final Four team making him a rare player to appear in Final Fours with two different programs.

Pros: Opted to not play overseas.

Matt Brust (1984-85)

The younger brother of Chris Brust, who was a rotation player on UNC’s 1982 national championship team, Matt Brust played one season at UNC.

He saw action in just eight games, playing 18 minutes and scoring two points to go with four rebounds.

Brust transferred to St. John’s and was a regular with the Redmen. He averaged 5.5, 9.8, and 11.4 points per game, respectively, along with 4.7, 5.4, and 4.5 rebounds. Brust averaged 3.7 assists his senior season.

Pros: Was in camp with the Chicago Bulls but did not make the roster.

Alex Stepheson (2006-08)

A native of California, Stepheson played two seasons with the Tar Heels averaging 2.1 points and 2.2 rebounds, as well as 4.3 points and 4.5 boards, respectively. He averaged 14.5 minutes as a sophomore on UNC team that won 36 games and reached the Final Four.

Stepheson transferred to Southern Cal for his final two college seasons. He averaged 8.4 points and 7.2 rebounds as a junior, and 9.8 points and 9.2 boards as a senior.

Pros: Stepheson played four games with the Memphis Grizzlies and four games with the Los Angeles Clippers before spending eight years playing overseas and in the NBA D-League, where he was an all-star.

David Wear (2009-10)

In one season at UNC, Wear played 10.2 minutes a game scoring 2.9 points while snaring 1.7 rebounds.

He transferred to UCLA for his final three seasons starting 76 of the 103 games he played. Wear averaged 10.2, 7.1, and 6.5 points with the Bruins, respectively, and 4.3, 3.4, and 2.4 boards per contest.

Pros: Wear played two games with the Sacramento Kings in 2015.

Travis Wear (2009-10)

The more productive of the Wear twins, Travis averaged 3.5 points and 2.2 rebounds in 10.1 minutes in his one season in Chapel Hill.

He also transferred to UCLA for his final three seasons. There, in order, he averaged 11.5, 10.9, and 7.2 points per game, as well as 5.9, 5.2, and 3.2 rebounds per game.

Pros: Wear played one season each with the New York Knicks and Los Angeles Lakers appearing in 68 total games.