Keeping It Heel
Fansided

The 18 greatest UNC basketball players of the Roy Williams era

By Jordan Falls

ST. LOUIS - APRIL 04: Sean May #42 of the North Carolina Tar Heels celebrates after defeating the Illinois Fighting Illini 75-70 to win the NCAA Men's National Championship game at the Edward Jones Dome on April 4, 2005 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
ST. LOUIS - APRIL 04: Sean May #42 of the North Carolina Tar Heels celebrates after defeating the Illinois Fighting Illini 75-70 to win the NCAA Men's National Championship game at the Edward Jones Dome on April 4, 2005 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
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DETROIT – APRIL 04: Ty Lawson #5 of the North Carolina Tar Heels moves the ball against the Villanova Wildcats in the second half during the National Semifinal game of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship at Ford Field on April 4, 2009 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

No. 2: Ty Lawson

To be honest, you could have made an argument that Felton or May could go in this slot in the ranking, but Lawson’s talent and skill level places him here. He may not have scored as much as May or recorded as many assists as Felton, but we must remember the teams he was on.

The 2007-2009 portion of the Roy Williams era was absolutely loaded with talent. Lawson is the second player on this list, and honestly, you could’ve made a case for Danny Green, too (Spoiler alert: Green isn’t No. 1). Lawson averaged 12.4 points per game in 26.4 minutes per game during his three-year career in Chapel Hill.

His final season was his best by far, averaging 16.6 points per game and making 1.5 three-pointers per game at a 47.2% rate. During the 2009 NCAA Tournament, he played in five games (you may remember he missed the first game with a toe injury), averaging 20.8 points per game while dishing out 6.8 assists per game to just 1.4 turnovers. He also was able to force 3.2 steals per game and create havoc for defenses.

His defense, combined with his speed and ability to push the tempo at an excessively high rate, lands him at No. 2 on this list. In 2009, he was named First-Team All-ACC, ACC Player of the Year, Consensus Second-Team All-American, and named the Bob Cousy Award winner. His No. 5 jersey is honored in the rafters of the Smith Center.

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