Former North Carolina standout Vince Carter was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame this past weekend, celebrating his historic career.
Before he played 22 seasons in the NBA, Carter played three years at North Carolina where he a two-time All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection and an All-American selection in his career. Carter will go down as an all-time great with the Tar Heels’ program and UNC fans can thank a legendary former coach for the assist.
During his speech, Carter brought up former UNC head coach Roy Williams who helped the Tar Heels land the talented recruit out of Florida while he was at….Kansas.
And Williams helped Carter pick UNC over Duke in his recruitment.
“Roy Williams, not only are you a diehard Tar Heel, but you are one hell of a person,” Carter said, pointing to Williams. “I never played for you, but you reach out to me if I’m one of your own. I thank you for that. He recruited me when he was at Kansas and came to my house. Halfway through the visit, Coach realized he may not be able to get me to come to Kansas. Then the conversation changed. I won’t reveal all that happened, but I ended up a Tar Heel. I didn’t go to Duke.”
That’s pretty awesome.
Williams is a Tar Heel but while he was at another school he helped his alma-mater land a big recruit. And more importantly, pull him potentially away from Duke.
Carter also thanked his former coach Dean Smith in his induction speech as it was a big night for the forward.
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