With North Carolina legend Charlie Scott’s recent ascent into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, we thought it would be fun to evaluate the candidacy of some other former Tar Heels not yet enshrined.
We selected eight players and will run this series in eight segments. Today is our final entry. Understand that the Naismith Hall of Fame isn’t an NBA hall, it’s for all of basketball. Dean Smith and Roy Williams, as examples, are in.
So are players such as Bill Walton and Bill Bradley. Walton was one of the greatest college players ever, but aside from a couple of very good NBA seasons, his pro numbers may not measure up to most players inducted. His career was massively affected by injuries, but they are part of the game, and he was a bit overrated after returning from missing a lot of time.
That he won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award in 1986 averaging 7.6 points and 6.8 rebounds is an example. The media liked him and propped him up, this building up his aura.
Bradley was an outstanding college player and a good NBA player. But his numbers weren’t that great, yet he played for the New York Knicks and the media loved him, too. And one has to wonder if there was some element of bias in his induction, give his post-basketball career in politics.
So, with all of that in mind, we're looking at eight former Tar Heels and their candidacies for the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. We will explore one player a day,
So far we’ve done:
(Note: We want your thoughts on each player, as well)
*This is our last entry of the series
Walter Davis
Incredibly, Walter Davis didn’t make any All-America teams while at UNC, though he was All-ACC a couple of times. He averaged 15, 7 points per contest in 119 games as a Tar Heel, and in four seasons never averaged less than 14.3 or more than 16.6. He was the model of consistency.
He was a key component to UNC’s 1977 run to the national title game, though had he not played injured, Carolina may have won the championship. He also won a gold medal in the 1976 Olympics.
In the NBA, however, Davis was a star. He made six NBA All-Star teams, was the NBA Rookie if the Year in 1978 and averaged 18.9 points scoring 19,521 points during his 16-year career. He averaged 20-plus points per game six times, and in 78 playoff games, he averaged 18.6 points.
His jersey No. 6 has been retired by the Phoenix Suns.
Davis was a surprise great player early in his NBA career, but he was no flash in the pan. He kept it going for some time. He could score many different ways and should get in based on his pro resume alone.
