17

Name: Mitch Kupchak

Position: Forward/Center

Jersey #: 21

Years: 1972-76

Honors: 1976 1st-team All-America; 1976 ACC Player of the Year; 2-time, 1st-team All-ACC in 1975 and 1976; Jersey No. 21 is honored at the Smith Center.

Notable Stats: 24th all-time at UNC with 1,611 career points; Averaged 13.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game for his UNC career; 8th highest career field goal percentage at 58.9; Shot 60.2 percent in 1975; 7th all-time at UNC with 1,006 career rebounds; 9th highest single-season rebounding average ever at UNC with 11.3 in 1976; Averaged a double-double in consecutive seasons in 1975 (18.5 ppg, 10.8 rpg) and 1976 (17.6 ppg, 11.3 rpg), respectively.

In Closing: Another one of Dean Smith’s Olympians in 1976, along with Phil Ford, Walter Davis and Tommy LaGarde. Kupchak was an outstanding player his last two seasons at UNC. He is only one of four players in Carolina history to average a double-double (points, rebounds) in consecutive seasons. One of the most fundamentally sound players Smith ever coached, Kupchak is probably best remembered for how hard he played. If a stat for floor burns was ever kept, he might be Carolina’s all-time leader. Has had a ton of success winning championships as a player and general manager in the NBA, yet none his four UNC teams ever reached a Final Four. But that shouldn’t take away from Kupchak’s greatness as a Tar Heel.

Prior Ranked Heels

30 - Brice Johnson

29 - Ed Cota

28 - Pete Brennan

27 - Mike O'Koren

26 - John "Hook" Dillon

25 - J.R. Reid

24 - Bobby Jones

23 - Brad Daugherty

22 - Raymond Felton

21 - Jerry Stackhouse

20 - Sean May

19 - Kenny Smith

18 - Joseph Forte