Though Michael Jordan obviously takes the cake as the greatest NBA player to ever come out of UNC, there’s been several solid stars in MJ’s following.
The list is pretty long, especially considering that trash talkers say North Carolina doesn’t put players in the NBA. Former pro Tar Heels include Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and Tyler Hansbrough from the 2009 NCAA Championship-winning team, Rasheed Wallace and Harrison Barnes, the latter of whom is amongst the NBA’s best small forwards.
Barnes, a model of consistency since being chosen seventh overall in the 2012 NBA Draft, won his lone NBA Finals with the Golden State Warriors in 2015. Barnes started 913 of the 982 games he’s already appeared in, averaging a regular-season best 19.2 points per game in 2016-2017 (his first with the Dallas Mavericks) and a postseason-best 16.1 per game in 2013 – with Golden State.
The move worked out for both teams, with both Sacramento (DeMar DeRozan) and the Spurs adding much-needed veteran presences. Barnes played a major impact in the Kings’ success of recent, helping them snap a 16-year playoff drought in the 2022-2023 NBA season. He started all 82 regular-season and seven playoff games that campaign, averaging 15 points per game and 4.5 assists per game.
Sacremento’s front office did a great job going out and acquiring Barnes midway through the 2019 season, although rather in a bizarre manner, as the trade occurred while Barnes was halfway through a game. Barnes started all 371 regular-season games and nine postseason games as a King, highlighted by his 2023 postseason, in which Sacramento took Golden State to seven games in the First Round.
Most importantly, Barnes brought the much-needed veteran presence to a young Kings squad, which includes the likes of Domantas Sabonis, Iowa’s Keegan Murray and Kentucky’s DeAaron Fox.
Without Barnes in northern California, though, how will the Kings play in the 2024-2025 NBA campaign?
The main need Barnes brings to the Spurs’ roster is veteran talent, something the Spurs had none of last year.
San Antonio’s oldest player last season was Cedi Osman, the 29-year-old reserve small forward who only started three games last year. Let that sink in – no one was over 30.
Having a young team is good, in the sense that you’ll likely have those players together for years to come, but it also causes some uncharacteristic mistakes veteran teams make less often.
Adding Barnes, who’s 32 and still in his prime, should bring the Spurs back to a more relevant team in the Western Conference. Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.