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After ranking the top five point guards in North Carolina men’s basketball history, the focus now shifts to the best wings to play in Chapel Hill.
In basketball terms, a wing can be a shooting guard or a small forward. These players are usually versatile scorers who can hit from deep, get to the rim and defend several positions.
With that in mind, here’s a look at the top five.
Bobby Lewis remains one of the most prolific scorers in Tar Heel history, one of just six UNC players to average over 20 points per game across their career.
Lewis averaged 22.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game while shooting 49% from the field. His best season came in 1965–66, when he posted 27.4 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting 53% from the field and 81% from the free-throw line. He also recorded a true shooting percentage of nearly 60%.
A two-time first-team All-ACC selection (1966, 1967), Lewis still holds the school record for most points in a single game — 49 against Florida State in December 1965. He was also a key contributor on Dean Smith’s first Final Four team in 1967.
Miller was named ACC Player of the Year and the ACC Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player in both 1967 and 1968. He averaged 21.9 points and 9.3 rebounds per game in 1967, and 22.4 points and 8.1 rebounds in 1968.
He remains the only player in UNC history to win ACC Player of the Year twice. Miller also was one of the program’s first players to appear in two Final Fours (1967, 1968), the first two of the Dean Smith era.
Charlie Scott was a trailblazer as North Carolina’s first African American varsity basketball player and one of the program’s all-time greats.
He averaged 22.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per game, earning two consensus second-team All-America honors and three first-team All-ACC selections.
His peak came in 1969–70, when he averaged 27.1 points, 8.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists and was named ACC Athlete of the Year. Scott’s 40-point performance in the 1969 ACC title game against Duke remains one of the greatest in rivalry history.
He followed that up with a 32-point effort in the East Regional final against Davidson, including a buzzer-beating jumper that sent UNC to its third straight Final Four and etched his name into March lore.
Lennie Rosenbluth was the star of North Carolina’s first championship team, leading the Tar Heels to a perfect 32–0 season in 1956–57 and a 54–53 triple-overtime win over Wilt Chamberlain’s Kansas team in the national title game.
That season, Rosenbluth averaged 28.0 points and 8.8 rebounds per game — his scoring mark still stands as the highest single-season average in ACC history.
He swept the major awards that year, winning National Player of the Year, ACC Player of the Year and ACC Tournament Most Outstanding Player. Only Christian Laettner and Antawn Jamison have since matched that achievement.
Rosenbluth was posthumously inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame on Dec. 31, 2024.
This one was obvious.
Michael Jordan first became a national star when he buried the game-winning jumper in North Carolina’s 1982 national title win over Georgetown, securing Dean Smith’s first championship.
It only went up from there as he earned two consensus All-America nods, twice made first-team All-ACC, and captured ACC Player of the Year, the Naismith and the Wooden awards.
For his career, he averaged 17.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.8 assists on 54.0% shooting. His peak season came in 1983–84, when he posted 19.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game while shooting 55.1% from the field and 77.9% at the line.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: Who are the five best wings in UNC basketball history?
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In basketball terms, a wing can be a shooting guard or a small forward. These players are usually versatile scorers who can hit from deep, get to the rim and defend several positions.
With that in mind, here’s a look at the top five.
5. Bobby Lewis (1964–67)
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Bobby Lewis remains one of the most prolific scorers in Tar Heel history, one of just six UNC players to average over 20 points per game across their career.
Lewis averaged 22.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game while shooting 49% from the field. His best season came in 1965–66, when he posted 27.4 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting 53% from the field and 81% from the free-throw line. He also recorded a true shooting percentage of nearly 60%.
A two-time first-team All-ACC selection (1966, 1967), Lewis still holds the school record for most points in a single game — 49 against Florida State in December 1965. He was also a key contributor on Dean Smith’s first Final Four team in 1967.
4. Larry Miller (1965–68)
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Miller was named ACC Player of the Year and the ACC Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player in both 1967 and 1968. He averaged 21.9 points and 9.3 rebounds per game in 1967, and 22.4 points and 8.1 rebounds in 1968.
He remains the only player in UNC history to win ACC Player of the Year twice. Miller also was one of the program’s first players to appear in two Final Fours (1967, 1968), the first two of the Dean Smith era.
3. Charlie Scott (1967–70)
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Charlie Scott was a trailblazer as North Carolina’s first African American varsity basketball player and one of the program’s all-time greats.
He averaged 22.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per game, earning two consensus second-team All-America honors and three first-team All-ACC selections.
His peak came in 1969–70, when he averaged 27.1 points, 8.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists and was named ACC Athlete of the Year. Scott’s 40-point performance in the 1969 ACC title game against Duke remains one of the greatest in rivalry history.
He followed that up with a 32-point effort in the East Regional final against Davidson, including a buzzer-beating jumper that sent UNC to its third straight Final Four and etched his name into March lore.
2. Lennie Rosenbluth (1954–57)
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Lennie Rosenbluth was the star of North Carolina’s first championship team, leading the Tar Heels to a perfect 32–0 season in 1956–57 and a 54–53 triple-overtime win over Wilt Chamberlain’s Kansas team in the national title game.
That season, Rosenbluth averaged 28.0 points and 8.8 rebounds per game — his scoring mark still stands as the highest single-season average in ACC history.
He swept the major awards that year, winning National Player of the Year, ACC Player of the Year and ACC Tournament Most Outstanding Player. Only Christian Laettner and Antawn Jamison have since matched that achievement.
Rosenbluth was posthumously inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame on Dec. 31, 2024.
1. Michael Jordan (1981–84)
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This one was obvious.
Michael Jordan first became a national star when he buried the game-winning jumper in North Carolina’s 1982 national title win over Georgetown, securing Dean Smith’s first championship.
It only went up from there as he earned two consensus All-America nods, twice made first-team All-ACC, and captured ACC Player of the Year, the Naismith and the Wooden awards.
For his career, he averaged 17.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.8 assists on 54.0% shooting. His peak season came in 1983–84, when he posted 19.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game while shooting 55.1% from the field and 77.9% at the line.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: Who are the five best wings in UNC basketball history?
Continue reading...
