| Dean Edwards Smith February 28, 1931–February 7, 2015  |
Dean Smith contributed this piece to the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame upon his induction in 1981. The cartoon depicts highlights of his career up to 1979. Source: North Carolina Museum of History collection, 1981.203.96 (LARGER IMAGE AT BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE)
Champion of college basketball During his career of 36 years with the UNC Tar Heels (1961–1997), Smith’s key stats included:
In addition, he led more than 50 players to compete in the NBA or ABA and others to play overseas, he ran a program that was never accused of an NCAA violation, and he inspired close to 97 percent of his players to graduate.
Champion of racial equality While growing up in Kansas, Smith learned from his father to “value each human being,” and in his 1999 book, A Coach’s Life, he recalled that “racial justice wasn’t preached around the house, but there was a fundamental understanding that you treated each person with dignity.” In practicing that innate understanding, Smith recruited young Charlie Scott in the late 1960s. Scott was a high school guard and forward who played in New York City and Laurinburg (Scotland County) and became the first African American basketball star in the Atlantic Coast Conference. He later played in the National Basketball Association. Smith also introduced racial equality to his favorite Chapel Hill restaurant, an establishment that his teams frequently patronized. The introduction came one night in the 1960s, when he accompanied a visiting theology student to the restaurant. In Smith’s company, the African American student was served without incident. Champion, all-around! Dean Smith will be missed by North Carolinians. He will be remembered for being a true leader, an innovator, a teacher, a role model, and a man of conviction. We thank him for all that he did and all that he was.
- North Carolina Museum of History
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Gone but never forgotten!
