North Carolina Tar Heels: Top Five Dean Smith Teams (w/ video)

4. 1967-68

Though he has accomplished a lot on the basketball court, Smith’s great contributions came outside of the gym. Before he was winning national championships, Dean Smith was breaking barriers. In 1967, Smith was coming off a year where he took the North Carolina Tar Heels to their first Final Four under his leadership.

Outside of the basketball court, there were other battles that were being waged in the United States Supreme Court, where the Civil Rights Movement was in its final stages. Smith did his part by giving a scholarship to Charlie Scott, making him the first African-American to get an athletic scholarship from the university.

Scott was not just there to be a first anything. He became a heavily depended on contributor for the team, averaging 17.6 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. With his numbers added to the production of Larry Miller and Rusty Clark, North Carolina won their second straight ACC title and were the No. 1 team in the country.

Smith also took to this team to their first National Championship game under his tenure, but they fell to a UCLA team that had Lew Alcindor manning the pivot. Despite the loss, Smith showed that equal racially integration can work and can lead to beautiful, cohesive basketball.

Next: 1971-72