The 18 greatest UNC basketball players of the Roy Williams era
By Jordan Falls
No. 6: Kendall Marshall
Roy Williams was known for always having great point guards, and Kendall Marshall was one of the several who came through Chapel Hill during his 18 seasons. Unfortunately for UNC Basketball fans, we only got two seasons of Marshall facilitating the offense for the Tar Heels.
Of all the point guards to come through the program, Marshall is by far the best passing point guard we ever saw. In his two seasons, he averaged 8 assists to just 2.6 turnovers per game. During his last season, he averaged 33 minutes per game, scoring 8.1 points per game and dishing out 9.8 assists per game.
Marshall led the 2011-2012 UNC Basketball team to a 32-6 record, including a 14-2 ACC record that claimed the ACC Regular Season Championship. Unfortunately, after earning the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, Marshall suffered a season-ending injury in the second round versus Creighton in a game that Tar Heel fans still don’t want to talk about. Carolina felt destined for a National Championship, but Marshall’s injury was too much to overcome as they eventually lost to Kansas in the Elite Eight.
He won the Bob Cousy Award in 2012, which is awarded to the best point guard annually. A National Championship and Marshall may have found himself higher on this list.
No. 5: Harrison Barnes
Harrison Barnes was one of the most highly touted recruits to commit to the Tar Heels during the Roy Williams era, as he was ranked as the No. 1 recruit out of high school in 2010. He was an expected one-and-done when he stepped foot on campus, but Barnes spent two seasons on campus, putting up monster numbers.
He led the team in scoring during both seasons in Chapel Hill and provided the Tar Heels with a go-to option. He played in 75 games, starting 73 of them and averaging 29.3 minutes per game throughout his career. He averaged 15.4 and 17.1 points per game during his two seasons, respectively, while rebounding effectively with 5.5 rebounds per game as well.
In 2011, he was named ACC Rookie of the Year, ACC All-Freshman Team, and Second-Team All-ACC. In 2012, he was named First-Team All-ACC and a Second-Team All-American. This is the third player from the 2011-2012 team on this list, which is arguably the greatest team to never win a National Championship – obviously, Marshall’s injury had a huge impact.
No. 4: Raymond Felton
The first point guard under Roy Williams lands in the top five on this list. Again, as with McCants, Felton wasn’t a recruit of Williams but was brought in by Matt Doherty. However, he played two seasons under Williams, the most important one in 2005, when he led the Tar Heels to the National Championship.
Felton learned to push the tempo in his last two seasons in Chapel Hill and play the fast style of play that Williams wanted. Under Roy Williams, he averaged 33.2 minutes per game while averaging 12.2 points per game. A key trait of point guards in the Roy Williams system is facilitating the offense effectively, and Felton did just that, distributing seven assists per game and managing a 2:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
In 2004-2005, he led the team in three-point field goal percentage, making 44% of his attempts and averaging 1.9 makes per game. His best season was 2004-2005, when he racked up plenty of accolades running the Tar Heel offense: First-Team All-ACC, Third-Team AP All-American, and he was named the Bob Cousy Award Winner.
He was also named the team MVP of the 2005 National Championship team, voted on by the team, which earned the right to his No. 2 Jersey being honored in the Rafters.
No. 3: Sean May
The 2004-2005 team won the National Championship because of the talent that was on that team. Four players from that team found their way onto this list, and while only one of them was a true Roy Williams recruit, Marvin Williams, he inherited them and developed each player from disappointing seasons to form a National Championship team.
Sean May averaged 27.9 minutes per game and a double-double under Roy Williams, with 16.4 points per game and 10.3 rebounds throughout the two seasons. May’s 26-point, 10-rebound performance against Illinois in the 2005 National Championship was one of the most legendary performances we’ve ever seen, which included a 10-11 shooting performance. He averaged 22.3 points and 10.7 rebounds throughout the entirety of the 2005 NCAA Tournament, helping the Tar Heels to their first National Championship in twelve years and first under Roy Williams.
His outstanding performance in the 2005 Final Four earned him the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player Award, and he was also named First-Team All-ACC and consensus Second-Team All-American in 2005. His No. 42 jersey is honored in the rafters of the Smith Center.