Although the Dean Smith era is over, it certainly does not mark the end of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's dominance in basketball.
In fact, this year's Tar Heel squad is as good as ever. With four out of five starters returning and six of its top seven players back from a team that won the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament and advanced to the Final Four, the Tar Heels are viewed as one of the nation's top teams, with a No. 4 preseason Associated Press ranking.
Chief to the Tar Heels' success will be the play of its trio of juniors, All-American power forward Antawn Jamison, swingman Vince Carter and forward/center Ademola Okulaja. All have played important roles in the Tar Heels' success during the past few seasons and will be looked upon even further to carry the load.
Fortunately for the Tar Heels, Jamison decided to bypass the NBA draft and come back for his junior season. As last year's scoring, rebounding and field-goal percentage leader, Jamison was dominant in the paint. His 33-point, 11-rebound performance helped UNC beat Duke in their second matchup of the season. With the graduation of center Serge Zwikker, Jamison will be UNC's only established inside threat.
Providing a boost in the paint will be Okulaja. With Zwikker now departed, the center position is a question mark for the Heels. Okulaja, who already has a reputation as one of UNC's top defenders, and 7-foot freshman Brendan Haywood will share time in the pivot. According to the Tar Heel coaches grading system, Okulaja was the squad's top defensive player in 18 of its games last season and his presence will be needed even more this season.
Defensively, swingman Vince Carter started showing flashes of his potential during his sophomore campaign. Carter finally began to emerge as the much hyped player he was coming into Chapel Hill. Carter's defensive play was instrumental in UNC's January victory over Clemson, as Carter held the Tigers' point guard Terrell McIntyre to 3-of-13 shooting in the Tar Heels' 61-48 victory. Offensively, Carter also emerged as UNC's third-leading scorer, with 13.0 points per game. Although he is looked upon as one of the team's stars, Carter said he is entering this season with a very simple mindset.
"I'm not doing anything different," Carter said. "I'm just trying to contribute as much as I can and do whatever is needed."
Not only are Carter and his fellow juniors going to have to step up this season, but the other veteran players will also have added responsibility. Rounding out the Tar Heels' top six players are senior guard Shammond Williams, sophomore guard Ed Cota and senior center Makhtar Ndiaye.
Part of the reason why UNC started off its ACC schedule with a dismal 0-3 record was its backcourt. With an extra year under their belts, Shammond Williams and Ed Cota, the ACC rookie of the year, should give the Tar Heels a solid backcourt. Williams, who averaged 14.1 points per game and shot 41.9% from beyond the arc, was UNC's hottest player in the post-season, as he was named MVP of the ACC tournament and Cota's improved play at the point helped turn around UNC's season.
But questions still linger for this squad.
While UNC does have one of the most talented teams in the nation, whether the Tar Heel's 60-year old rookie coach Bill Guthridge will be up to the task of coaching in such a tough conference is up is a major question. He realizes that there are the inevitable high expectations after following a coach as accomplished as Dean Smith.
"Of course Dean did an unbelievable job," Guthridge said. "I'm following him, I can't replace him-no one can replace Dean Smith."
Dean Smith is the total embodiment of not only UNC basketball, but also basketball as we know it today. Many of his former players have played NBA basketball, and many of his former assistants are currently head coaches. Some of his prized pupils include Michael Jordan, Sam Perkins, Brad Daugherty, Phil Ford, Larry Brown, Roy Williams, George Karl, Mitch and the list goes on and on.
Smith also is the NCAA's all-time winningest coach, a record he set with his 877th victory over Colorado in this past spring's NCAA tournament. Under Smith's guidance, the Tar Heels have recorded 27 consecutive seasons with at least 21 wins. In addition, UNC has been in the NCAA tournament an NCAA record 23 consecutive seasons, a mark that begun in 1975.
However, one thing people often forget is that Guthridge has been at Smith's side for years of coaching at Carolina.
"Instead of me having to give him suggestions and he deciding whether to accept them or not, he can give me suggestions and I have to decide whether to accept them or not," Guthridge said.
Although Guthridge has never been a head coach, he knows his X's and O's and has been able to learn from a legendary coach and teacher. He realizes that winning isn't something that is easily achieved-it will require effort from everyone involved.
"It was pretty certain that Dean Smith would do a great job coaching," Guthridge said. "Now we'll have to see how this coaching staff and these players can respond to the coaching staff. Of course I'm hoping it'll be good."
Although this is Guthridge's first season at the helm, expectations for UNC basketball are still very high-and rightfully so.
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