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The North Carolina men’s basketball program parted ways with head coach Hubert Davis earlier this week following an upset loss to VCU in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
UNC did not disclose details about Davis’ departure, instead describing the move as a change in leadership. The now-former Tar Heels coach later confirmed on social media that he was “released” despite wanting to continue coaching in Chapel Hill.
Since Davis’ departure, several potential candidates with ties to UNC have emerged, including Kenny “The Jet” Smith, who was notably mentioned by ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith.
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North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Hubert Davis talks with Armando Bacot (5) during a game against the UC Riverside Highlanders on November 17, 2023 at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Peyton Williams/UNC/Getty Images)
After praising Hubert Davis, who played and later coached at North Carolina, Kenny Smith dismissed any interest in the vacant position, calling speculation linking him to the vacancy “disrespectful.”
“Yeah, we can talk about North Carolina,” Smith, a basketball analyst, said during halftime of the Texas-Purdue Sweet Sixteen game in the NCAA tournament. “But that vacancy… I thought it was honestly disrespectful. But first of all, Coach Hubert Davis, thank you. Your service and what you did for North Carolina basketball as a player and as a coach, it moved you forward. I think people forget about you because of one game here and there.”
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Smith emphasized the importance of preserving North Carolina’s coaching lineage.
“But I also think this is a precarious position for North Carolina and for us as Tar Heels. Because what makes us special, when you fire a person, is Hubert Davis. But when you have the coach [Brad] Frederick, you have Sean May, you have Jeff Lebo, you have Marcus Paige, you have Pat Sullivan. What that is is that you have a lineage from every era of basketball, Carolina that was on that staff, including Hubert Davis. Every era was connected.”
Former North Carolina Tar Heels basketball player Kenny Smith poses for a selfie with fans while hosting the annual Late Night with Roy Williams basketball kickoff at the Dean Smith Center on October 23, 2015 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
“That’s what makes us special. Forget about all that ‘blue blood’. What makes Carolina a family is the connection of all those times that were in one building at the same time. That’s what makes people pay attention and have some animosity or some love towards us.”
It’s still unclear how far UNC will cast its net, but hiring outside the program would break with a tradition closely tied to Dean Smith. However, Smith hopes the next coach will commit to Chapel Hill long-term, as will Davis.
TNT basketball analyst Kenny Smith on-air before the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament semifinal game between the Purdue Boilermakers and the North Carolina State Wolfpack at State Farm Stadium on April 6, 2024, in Glendale, Arizona. (Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
“I’ll say this. Dean Smith retired as a Tar Heel. Roy Williams retired as a Tar Heel. Hubert Davis was going to retire a Tar Heel. Whoever we come in has to want to retire a Tar Heel,” Smith said. “I don’t care what that means. You don’t want to look for, ‘Oh, [what] JJ Redick has done it in Los Angeles. I want to be a Laker.” You retire a Tar Heel, next person.”
Davis succeeded Roy Williams in 2021 after being elevated from his assistant position. Williams led the Tar Heels to three national titles. North Carolina’s deepest tournament run under Davis was a Sweet 16 appearance.
