Keeping It Heel
Fansided

UNC Basketball: The 15 Tar Heels opposing fans hated most

By Blake Cockrum

DETROIT - APRIL 06: Tyler Hansbrough #50 of the North Carolina Tar Heels celebrates with his teammates after they won 89-72 against the Michigan State Spartans during the 2009 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship game at Ford Field on April 6, 2009 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
DETROIT - APRIL 06: Tyler Hansbrough #50 of the North Carolina Tar Heels celebrates with his teammates after they won 89-72 against the Michigan State Spartans during the 2009 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship game at Ford Field on April 6, 2009 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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UNC Basketball
GREENSBORO, NC – MARCH 21: Danny Green #14 of the North Carolina Tar Heels reacst after a basket against the Louisiana State University Tigers during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum on March 21, 2009 in Greensboro, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

Danny Green

I’m not completely sure why fans disliked Danny Green so much, but they did. Maybe it was the confidence and swagger that he displayed, combined with the fact that he never put up monstrous numbers in a North Carolina uniform.

Maybe it was the pre-game dancing that he did during House Of Pain’s ‘Jump Around’ at the Dean Smith Center. No matter how much the Carolina faithful loved it, opposing teams and their fans never seemed to favor it all that much.

For my money, though, Green’s pre-game sideline ritual was pretty awesome. So awesome, in fact, that I missed it when he became a starter in 2008, and was no longer available to choreograph warm-ups on the UNC bench.

The hatred he received from Duke fans, on the other hand, is slightly more understandable. For starters, they hate pretty much any player in a North Carolina uniform. Then there’s the fact that Green and his Tar Heel teams played really well against Duke, going an unprecedented 4-0 against the Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Lastly, there’s that famous dunk over Greg Paulus in front of the Cameron Crazies that didn’t exactly make him any friends, either.

Whatever the case, Green had a nice career at North Carolina. He always played his role, and never tried to do too much. Used primarily as an ancillary piece in his first three seasons, Green still averaged 8.1 points and 3.9 rebounds per game.

After earning a spot in the Tar Heels’ starting five as a senior, though, Green started each of the team’s 38 games during their national title-winning season. He scored 13.1 points per game to go along with 4.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.8 steals and 1.3 blocks.

In the years since, Green has carved out a nice space for himself in the NBA, playing 10 seasons — eight with the San Antonio Spurs — and winning two championships (2014, 2019). He was also a member of the NBA All-Defensive second team in 2017. The career 40.4 percent three-point shooter signed a free agent contract with the Los Angeles Lakers this summer.

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