DeCock: Ex-UNC star Tommy LaGarde builds career around unexpected
Posted Aug 19, 2012
A big man on some of the best UNC teams of the ’70s, his No.?45 is one of the honored numbers hanging from the roof of the Smith Center. Tommy LaGarde joined teammates Phil Ford, Walter Davis, Mitch Kupchak, John Kuester and Mike O’Koren in the NBA, and like many professional athletes, his life and career moved on to a second act. Except LaGarde’s second acts have second acts.
(Charlotte Observer)
Related: Basketball, Tar Heels in the NBA
Video: Big Hitters Podcast - State of UNC Basketball with Brendan MarksThe Athletic’s Brendan Marks joins Big Hitters Only to discuss UNC Basketball without Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar, what the remainder of the season could...
Fri Feb 20, 2026Derek Dixon's Cold Stretch Comes At Tough Time For UNC Basketball
Derek Dixon has hit the freshman wall. There have been memorable high points to the start of Dixon’s tenure as the Tar Heels’ starting point...
Fri Feb 20, 2026
Flashbacks To Other Infamous Basketball Late-Season Injuries
UNC forward Caleb Wilson has put together one of the most sensational freshman seasons in the program’s history. Unfortunately for the Tar Heels, Wilson is...
Thu Feb 19, 2026
Does One-and-Done Fit in NIL Era?
If there are college basketball players just coming to college to bide their time as a bridge to the NBA, and they’re still drawing a...
Thu Feb 19, 2026