6/3/2021 basketball Edit

No. 23: Brad Daugherty

Brad Daugherty might be the most efficient offensive player ever to play at UNC, a reason he's here in our rankings. (UNC Athletis)

Andrew Jones • TarHeelIllustrated

Publisher

Andrew Jones has covered sports for 26 years, including all major college & professional sports for daily newspapers & national sites. He's done radio and TV & is entering his seventh year at THI.

*Publisher's note: THI is ranking the top 25 basketball players in UNC history, gauging each player solely on their careers as Tar Heels. NBA accomplishments do not factor into these rankings.

No. 23

Name: Brad Daugherty

Position: Center

Jersey #: 42

Years: 1982-86

Honors: Consensus First-team All-America in 1986; First-team All-ACC 1985 & 1986; All-ACC Tournament 1985; NCAA All-Southeast Region team 1985; ACC 50th Anniversary team; Jersey honored in the Dean Dome.

Notable Stats: Ninth all-time at UNC in scoring with 1,912 career points; Ninth all-time with 1,0003 career rebounds; Third all-time highest FG percent for a career with 62 percent (760-1,226); Eighth most field goals made in a UNC career with 760; 12th highest single-season rebounding total with 349; 11th all-time at UNC with 146 blocked shots; career per game averages of 14.2 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.1 blocks; averaged 20.2 points and 9.0 rebounds per game in 1986.

In Closing: Daugherty arrived at UNC at just 16 years of age, but still averaged 23.3 minutes per game as a freshman on a team that including Michael Jordan and Sam Perkins and advanced to the Elite 8. By the time he was a 19-year-old late-season junior, Daugherty was an outstanding college player. And as a senior, he was one of the best in the nation and was later the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft.

He led the ACC in scoring and rebounding in 1986 and still holds the ACC record for most consecutive field goal attempts converted at 16, a mark former Tar Heel Brice Johnson tied in 2016.

Daugherty wasn’t flashy but he was extremely efficient and as fundamentally sound as any big man in UNC history. Excellent at keeping the ball high, he often preferred to lay the ball in instead of dunking it, but 2 points were 2 points, and he knew it. The Tar Heels owned a 111-26 record during his four seasons, including an unbeaten ACC mark in 1984.