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No, it’s not an April Fool’s joke. North Carolina’s Roy Williams is retiring, ending an illustrious 33-year career as a head coach in NCAA men’s basketball. Williams spent 48 total years as a coach, serving as the head coach at Owen High School (NC), 10 years as an assistant at UNC, 15 years as the head coach at Kansas, and 18 years in the same role at North Carolina. A 2007 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, Williams led UNC to NCAA titles in 2005, 2009, and 2017.
After 33 years as a Hall of Fame head coach, our beloved Tar Heel Roy Williams is announcing his retirement.
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) April 1, 2021
Thank you for all you have done and meant to everyone who plays and loves our game.
Release : https://t.co/l6y5tRjB2I pic.twitter.com/FzTUmbx3v1
Williams is finishing his career with 903 wins, and his Tar Heels have won nine regular season ACC titles and three ACC tournament titles since 2005.
Virginia has had the Tar Heels’ number as of late, winning the last seven straight against UNC. This was already going to be a fascinating offseason with the added freedoms around the transfer portal, but now that big name programs like North Carolina and Texas are looking for new head coaches, it could get crazy.
Several North Carolina players — including big man Walker Kessler and Sterling Manley — have announced that they are entering the transfer portal, but talented point guard Caleb Love shared that he would be returning to Chapel Hill for his sophomore season. Talented freshman Day’Ron Sharpe is entering the NBA Draft, and fellow forward Armando Bacot has not announced anything either way. As of now, the Tar Heels have two four stars in their incoming 2021 class, and no commits for 2022 (per 247 Sports).
It will be interesting to see who the Hoos might be facing in Chapel Hill going forward. Stay tuned for updates!