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) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
8 of 16
Next
UNC Basketball
CHAPEL HILL, NC – MARCH 3: Sean May #42 of the North Carolina Tar Heels dunks the ball over Al Thornton #12 of the Florida State Seminoles on March 3, 2005 at the Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The Tar Heels defeated the Seminoles 91-76. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

Sean May

When Sean May committed to the University of North Carolina in the early 2000’s, it came as a bit of a shock to the college basketball world; particularly those based in Bloomington, Indiana. Hoosier fans though it was a mere certainty that May would join the program that both his father and brother played for, but it didn’t turn out that way.

May spurned the hometown Hoosiers, and headed to the East Coast to play for the Tar Heels and head coach Matt Doherty. May’s decision to pave his own way at another school upset the Indiana fan base so much that they basically hated him from that moment on. So much so that they ridiculed him during a December 2004 game that the Tar Heels played at Assembly Hall.

Fans booed May during pre-game warm-ups and when he touched the ball during the game. They held signs that read “Sean May = Traitor”, and “May you must be adopted.” Some fans even wore crowns to the game, and called May the “Burger King”, poking fun at his weight.

Needless to say, it was an ugly environment for the Indiana native to play in. He didn’t respond to all the extra-curricular activity particularly well, either, recording just eight points in 18 minutes of play. He had as many fouls (4) and more turnovers (5) than he did rebounds in the game, but his Tar Heels still managed to come away with the early season road victory.

Although May missed much of his freshman season at North Carolina due to injury, there’s no denying how good he was during his sophomore and junior seasons in Chapel Hill. Under newly-minted head coach Roy Williams, May averaged 16.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game from 2003 to 2005. His junior season earned him second team All-American honors, averaging 17.5 points and 10.7 rebounds per game en route to the 2005 National Championship, where May was named Final Four Most Outstanding Player.

Check out this clip of May and the Tar Heels finishing off their NCAA title game victory against Illinois in 2005, bringing Roy Williams his first career national championship, and North Carolina’s first in 12 years.

May hung around the NBA for a little over five years, but with very little success along the way. He battled injuries and inconsistency while playing for the Bobcats and Kings, before going overseas to pursue a professional career in Turkey. He actually found a tremendous amount of success there, winning titles in both the Turkish and French leagues, as well as being named French Cup Final MVP and top scorer.

May has been back in the states for a few years now, and is currently serving as director of player development under his former head coach at the University of North Carolina. It’s been 14 years since May donned his UNC basketball jersey, but he remains one the school’s best ambassadors to this day. The Tar Heels are a better program for having him on the staff, and we wish him luck as he continues to work his way up the Tar Heels’ coaching ranks.

Home/UNC Basketball