It's the interview we've all been waiting for!
Legendary head coach Roy Williams joined Theo Pinson on his podcast, Tidal League's 'Run Your Race Podcast.' Of course, as you would expect, the duo, who won a national championship together for the UNC basketball program, put together a riveting conversation that all Tar Heel fans need to take a listen to!
One of the craziest stories that Williams told was how he actually earned a spot on Dean Smith's coaching staff at North Carolina. We don't want to spoil it before you watch the clip, but let's just say that Williams took a chance on himself that not many would've done.
Plus, the amount of money he was paid is truly INSANE to think about!
As Theo Pinson says everso often... "ROLL THE CLIP!"
Coach Roy Williams was making $2700 PER YEAR once upon a time at UNC. 🤯 Check out the episode, his journey is crazy. ‼️ https://t.co/KCSoWWKncx pic.twitter.com/wSnfMDq4La
— Run Your Race Podcast (@RunYourRaceTL) November 6, 2024
During his time as a high school coach, Smith asked Williams to work his annual basketball camp. Williams worked the camp for five consecutive summers, ultimately resulting in Smith offering him a job on his staff.
As Williams notes, North Carolina was the last school in the ACC to hire a third assistant coach (which was a full-time job with part-time pay).
"I'll never forget coming back after camp my fifth year and saying Coach Smith is offering me a job. It's the part-time assistant, I'll have to find some other things to make money. I'll make $2,700 for the whole year (which was the equivalent of a full scholarship for an in-state student. $2,700 for the year.
The first day we got to Chapel Hill, we took the job, but she said this that night that I'll never forget:
"Let me get this straight: if you stay at Owen this year, you're going to make $16,000. I'm going to teach at Tusco and I'm going to make $14,000. So that's $30,000, and we've got a one-year-old little boy, and you're thinking about going to Chapel Hill, and I don't have a job, and you're going to make $2,700, and we still have the one-year-old boy?
I said, "Yeah, that's about it," and she said, "When do we leave?" because she had confidence in me. "
What a story!
For starters: to take that big of a financial risk is crazy in itself, especially with a newborn baby in the household. Williams knew deep down that it was the right decision to be made, and his loving wife Wanda was fully supportive of that and encouraged him to pursue his dreams.
Now, the rest is history!
Check out the entire episode of the Run Your Race Podcast with special guest Roy Williams below.