Dean Smith, beyond the Medal of Freedom

Posted Sep 12, 2013
Dean Smith recruited UNC's first black scholarship athlete, a basketball player named Charles Scott, who said years later that one thing he liked about Smith was that he always showed him respect by calling him “Charles” instead of Charlie. And so Dean Smith, coach of coaches, is deserving of the latest high honor not just for wins and losses, but for being a man of conviction and humanity, who didn’t just talk about freedom but fought for it. (Raleigh News & Observer)

Related: Basketball, Basketball Recruiting

Chansky’s Notebook: The Dean Dome’s Greatest Games
Duke’s Mark Alarie made the first basket at the Dean Dome and Warren Martin dunked North Carolina’s historic first bucket. In the year before college...
Thu Jan 8, 2026

Can't Run, Can't Hide: UNC’s backcourt is a problem
One of the biggest questions around UNC entering the college basketball season was how well this backcourt would gel. So far, the results have been...
Thu Jan 8, 2026

UNC Basketball Entering Tricky 3-Game Stretch
Wake Forest, Stanford, and California are all capable of beating the Tar Heels. Wake has guards that can cause issues for UNC defensively, Stanford has...
Thu Jan 8, 2026

Indiana Pacers plan to bring back center Tony Bradley on a 10-day contract
Tony Bradley was waived before his contract was fully guaranteed, but the Pacers plan to bring back the depth center on a 10-day contract starting...
Thu Jan 8, 2026