Ranking the top 5 UNC basketball backcourts over the last 40 seasons

What are the five best Tar Heel backcourt duos since the 80s?

Michael Jordan blocking Sleepy Floyd in 1982 National Championship
Michael Jordan blocking Sleepy Floyd in 1982 National Championship | Wally McNamee/GettyImages
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This iconic duo coming in at No. 3 speaks to just how uber-talented UNC backcourts have been over the years. The only thing the top two backcourts have over this tandem is a national championship. And even though they came so painfully close to winning one, they never got over the hump, being upset in back-to-back Final Fours.

Cota and Williams were on loaded teams featuring All-Americans Antawn Jamison and Vince Carter. Cota was everything you’d want in a point guard, playing selflessly and always looking to get his teammates the rock. He was good for at least one jaw-dropping, flashy pass per game, guaranteed to get the crowd electrified. That season, Cota scored 8.1 points and dropped an ACC-best 7.4 assists per game. He’s in the conversation as Carolina’s best passer of all time.

Williams had about as complete of an offensive game as we’ve seen for a guard at Carolina. He averaged 16.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game, along with shooting 40% from beyond the arc and 91.1% from the stripe, leading the entire ACC.

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