Today, we begin looking into North Carolina's fabled basketball history, as over the course of this offseason, we will focus on various aspects of Tar Heels lore, including many statistical areas.
All information throughout this series is either dug up by our staff at THI or provided by UNC Athletics Communications.
In our first entry, we look at the depth of UNC's history. Straight numbers as they apply to the prorgam:
1 Carolina has been ranked No. 1 in the final Associated Press poll six times, the fourth most nin college basketball history (1957, 1982, 1984, 1994, 1998 and 2008).
1 First overall selection in NBA Drafts (James Worthy 1982 and Brad
Daugherty 1986).
1 Marvin Williams was the first player to leave college after one year, play in the NBA and return to college to earn his degree.
2 Hubert Davis is the second individual to play in a Final Four and be the head coach of the same school in the Final Four (Dick Harp of Kansas is the other; Harp was also an admininistraive assistant to Dean Smith when Davis was a freshman at UNC in 1988-89).
2 Danny Green and LeBron James are the only two players in NBA history to start for three different teams that won NBA championships (Green in 2014 San Antonio, 2019 Toronto
and 2020 Los Angeles Lakers).
2.4 Average ACC regular-season finish, best all-time.
3 Bob Cousy Award winners (Raymond Felton 2005, Ty Lawson 2008, Kendall Marshall 2012). UNC is the only school with three.
3 & 5 Roy Williams won the third-most games by a Division I coach in NCAA history (903). Dean Smith is fifth (879).
4 Tar Heel players with NCAA and NBA championships (James Worthy, Michael Jordan, Danny Green, Justin Jackson).
4 Hubert Davis is the fourth former Carolina player to be head coach of the Tar Heels (Reynolds Cuthbertson, Monk McDonald, Matt Doherty and Davis).
4 Tyler Hansbrough is the only player in ACC history to earn first-team All-America honors four times.
4 NBA Draft Lottery picks in 2005. Carolina was the first school to have four Lottery picks in the same draft.
4 Luke Maye, Marcus Paige, Tyler Zeller and Henrik Rodl won Academic All-ACC honors four times among the 67 occasions Tar Heels have earned that distinction (RJ Davis in 2023).
5 Most Outstanding Players in the Final Four (James Worthy in 1982, Donald Williams in 1993, Sean May in 2005, Wayne Ellington in 2009, Joel Berry II in 2017).
5 NBA Rookies of the Year (Bob McAdoo, Walter Davis, Phil Ford, Michael Jordan, Vince Carter).
6 Tyler Zeller (2011, 2012), Marcus Paige (2015, 2016) and Luke Maye (2018, 2019) have won six Skip Prosser Awards, given to the ACC’s top scholar-athlete.
6 National Coaches of the Year (Frank McGuire in 1957, Dean Smith four times, Bill Guthridge in 1998, Matt Doherty in 2001, Roy Williams five times, Hubert Davis 2022).
7 National Championships (NCAA Tournament titles won in 1957, 1982, 1993, 2005, 2009 and 2017 and the 1924 team that was selected by the Helms Foundation)
7 Carolina is 7-0 in games matching the No. 1 vs. No. 2 teams in the Associated Press poll (most recent, 2005 NCAA final when No. 2 UNC beat No. 1 Illinois).
7 James Worthy is one of seven to win Final Four & NBA Finals MVP honors w/ Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Magic Johnson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Isiah Thomas and Bill Walton.
8 Retired jerseys/number: 10 Lennie Rosenbluth, 12 Phil Ford, 20 George Glamack, 23 Michael Jordan, 33 Antawn Jamison, 50 Tyler Hansbrough, 52 James Worthy and Jack Cobb (no number).
8 ACC Player-of-the-Week awards won by Tyler Hansbrough in 2007-08, most in a season in league history.
8 Ty Lawson set the NCAA championship game record with eight steals in 2009 vs. Michigan State.
9 NCAA Tournament wins over No. 1 seeds (including Baylor in 2022), which ties the all-time NCAA Tournament record.
9 ACC Rookies of the Year (Sam Perkins 1981, Michael Jordan 1982, J.R. Reid 1987, Ed Cota 1997, Joseph Forte 2000, Marvin Williams 2005, Tyler Hansbrough 2006, Brandan Wright 2007, Harrison Barnes 2011)
9 Nine consecutive decades with at least one appearance in the Final Four (1940s through 2020s) and championship game.
10 Gold medals won by Tar Heels in the Summer Olympics, more than any other school.
10 First-team Academic All-Americas, including Tyler Zeller in 2011 and 2012, when he was the National Academic All-America of the Year, and Marcus Paige in 2016. That’s the sixth-most in college basketball history.
10 School records (assists, free throw shooting and three-point shooting) held by current assistant coach Jeff Lebo when he concluded his Tar Heel playing career in 1989.
11 Final Fours by Dean Smith, third most all-time.
12 NCAA championship games, second most all-time.
12 ACC Player-of-the-Week honors won by Antawn Jamison, which equals the ACC record.
13 National Players of the Year (Jack Cobb 1926, George Glamack 1940 and 1941, Lennie Rosenbluth 1957, Phil Ford 1978, James Worthy 1982, Michael Jordan 1983 and 1984, Kenny Smith 1987, Jerry Stackhouse 1995, Antawn Jamison 1998, Sean May 2005,
Tyler Hansbrough 2008).
14 Naismith Basketball Hall of Famers (Ben Carnevale, Frank McGuire, Larry Brown, Dean Smith, Billy Cunningham, Bob McAdoo, James Worthy, Roy Williams, Michael Jordan,
Charlie Scott, Bobby Jones and George Karl, Walter Davis, Vince Carter).
14 Tar Heels have played in the Summer Olympics, including Michael Jordan, who won gold medals in 1984 and 1992.
14 Wins over the No. 1 team in the Associated Press poll, most in college basketball history.
16 ACC Players of the Year (Lennie Rosenbluth 1957, Pete Brennan 1958, Lee Shaffer 1960, Billy Cunningham 1965, Larry Miller 1967 and 1968, Mitch Kupchak 1976, Phil Ford 1978, Michael Jordan 1984, Antawn Jamison 1998, Joseph Forte 2001, Tyler
Hansbrough 2008, Ty Lawson 2009, Tyler Zeller 2012, Justin Jackson 2017, RJ Davis 2024).
17 Record number of regular-season ACC titles won by Dean Smith.
18 NCAA Tournament No. 1 seeds, the most in college basketball history (1979, 1982, 1984, 1987, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1997, 1998, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2024).
18 ACC Tournament championships, second most in ACC history.
19 Tar Heels have won multiple first-team All-ACC honors, including Armando Bacot in 2022 and 2023.
20 Joel Berry II became the first player since UCLA’s Bill Walton (in 1972 and 1973) to score 20 points in consecutive NCAA title games (20 vs. Villanova in 2016 and 22 vs. Gonzaga in 2017).
21 Final Fours, most all-time (1946, 1957, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1977, 1981, 1982, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2016, 2017, 2022).
21 Carolina’s halftime lead over Michigan State in the 2009 NCAA title game, the largest halftime margin in NCAA finals history.
22 NBA-record seasons played by Vince Carter.
23 Michael Jordan: six-time NBA champion and NBA Finals MVP, five-time MVP, ESPN’s Greatest Athlete of the 20th Century
24 AP poll finishes in the top five, tied for the second most all-time.
25 Carolina has won 25 or more games an NCAA-record 41 times.
25 Donald Williams is the last player in college basketball to score 25 points in the national semifinal (1993 vs. Kansas) and championship game (vs. Michigan).
27 Consensus first-team All-America seasons, tied for the second most all-time (most recent Justin Jackson in 2017).
31 Sweet 16s, most in NCAA history (NCAA began calling the regional semifinals Sweet 16s in 1975; UNC will be playing in its 38th regional semifinals in 2024).
31 Armando Bacot’s double-doubles in 2021-22, an ACC record which tied Navy’s David Robinson NCAA single-season record.
32 The 1956-57 Tar Heels went 32-0 to win the first of UNC’s six NCAA championships. The 32 wins ties the NCAA record for wins in a perfect season (with Indiana 1975-76).
33 ACC regular-season championships, 13 more than any other school.
34 Cole Anthony’s points in his 2019-20 debut vs. Notre Dame, the ACC scoring record for a player’s first collegiate game.
34 Bill Guthridge, in his first season as head coach after 30 as an assistant to Dean Smith, won 34 games in 1997-98, the NCAA record for wins by a first-year head coach.
35 Consecutive post-season appearances from 1967-2001, most all-time.
36 ACC Tournament championship game appearances, the most all-time
36 NBA championships won by 18 former Tar Heel players (24 more than any other ACC school through the 2023 NBA Finals).
38 AP poll finishes in the top 10, third most all-time.
39 Al Wood’s points vs. Virginia in 1981 Final Four, the NCAA record for the national semifinals.
40 Tar Heels have earned first-team All-America honors 64 times, including RJ Davis in 2024.
40 Regular-season conference championships (33 ACC, seven Southern Conference), the third most all-time.
40 Consecutive double-doubles by Billy Cunningham, the ACC record and second-longest streak in college basketball history.
42 Smith Center-record points by RJ Davis vs. Miami on 2/26/2024.
51 Seasons ranked in the final AP poll, tied for the second most all-time.
53 NCAA Tournament appearances, second most all-time.
53 Jerseys of former players that hang in the rafters of the Dean E. Smith Center. Eight numbers are retired, 45 are honored.
54 First-round NBA Draft picks, second most all-time.
59 Consecutive home wins over Clemson before a loss, the longest streak in college basketball history.
63.7 Brendan Haywood’s career field goal percentage, the ACC record.
73.1 NCAA Tournament winning percentage, second highest all-time.
73.4 Winning percentage, second highest all-time.
79 NCAA Tournament wins for Roy Williams, second-most in college basketball history. Dean Smith is third with 65.
81 First-team All-ACC selections by 53 Tar Heels. The 81 first-team honors are the most in ACC history.
81 1,000-point scorers, most in college basketball history.
86 UNC-record double-doubles by Armando Bacot, the second most in ACC history and tied for the third most in NCAA history.
84.1 Home court winning percentage (1,051-198 all-time home record).
108 ACC Tournament wins, second most all-time.
113 Weeks ranked No. 1 in the AP poll, the fourth-most all-time.
123 Wins in games played by Danny Green from 2005-09, most by a Tar Heel.
133 NCAA Tournament wins, the most in college basketball history. Only four other programs have played in more NCAA Tournament games than UNC has won.
133 Double-figure scoring games by Tyler Hansbrough, the all-time ACC record.
168 ACC-record games played by Armando Bacot.
179 Tar Heel players in the Final Four, more than any other school in NCAA history.
182 NCAA Tournament games, second most all-time. 511 Rebounds by Armando Bacot in 2021-22, the UNC single-season record and fourth-most in ACC history (most since 1956).
704 Weeks in AP top 10, third most in college basketball history
758 ACC regular-season wins, No. 1 all-time.
879 Wins by Dean Smith, which set the NCAA record in 1997 (since broken).
903 Wins by Roy Williams, third-most by a Division I coach in college basketball history.
956 Weeks in the AP poll, second most in college basketball history.
982 NCAA record free throws made by Tyler Hansbrough.
1,000 Ed Cota is the only player in college basketball history with 1,000 points, 1,000 assists and 500 rebounds.
1,703 UNC-record for career rebounds by Armando Bacot, the second-most in ACC history and 13th most in NCAA history.
2,372 Wins, ACC best and third most in college basketball history.
2,872 ACC scoring record by Tyler Hansbrough.
