UNC Fires Hubert Davis. Now, Things Get Interesting

UNC sent out a press release on Tuesday night, confirming that Hubert Davis will no longer coach UNC’s basketball team. In his statement, Davis said he wanted to keep coaching at UNC, and hopes to be coaching again soon. Carolina said that it will commence a nationwide search, all but confirming a break with the 74-year tradition Dean Smith built in Chapel Hill.

The next coach, whoever it is, has a lot of work to do, on and off the court. The UNC Family, the UNC Way, whatever you want to call it, is a big deal for a lot of people associated with UNC, either as players, coaches, donors, alum, or just fans. It’s been a very stable system for a long time.

As Davis’s future has been discussed, there have been two main camps: the traditionalists, and those who insisted that change was really important. Dean Smith built an impressive legacy, but it was based around a world that even Davis acknowledged was slipping away. For those who argued that the UNC Family should be preserved, it’s easy to understand, but part of that was culture, and part of it was about coaching and a style of play.

And unfortunately for Davis, he was not able to maintain what Smith, Bill Guthridge, and Roy Williams did. You can argue the numbers. Yes, he got to the championship game in his first year.