Fansided

Ranking the top 30 UNC basketball players in program history

By Cooper Watson

CHAPEL HILL, NC - MARCH 7: Michael Jordan kisses former coach Dean Smith of the North Carolina Tar Heels during a halftime ceremony honoring the 1993 national championship team during a game against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at the Dean Smith Center on March 7, 2007 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
CHAPEL HILL, NC - MARCH 7: Michael Jordan kisses former coach Dean Smith of the North Carolina Tar Heels during a halftime ceremony honoring the 1993 national championship team during a game against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at the Dean Smith Center on March 7, 2007 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /
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CHAPEL HILL, NC – MARCH 9: Rashad McCants #32 of the University of North Carolina Tar Heels celebrates after defeating the Duke University Blue Devils in the game at Dean E. Smith Center on March 9, 2003 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The Tar Heels won 82-79. (Photo by Craig Jones/Getty Images)
CHAPEL HILL, NC – MARCH 9: Rashad McCants #32 of the University of North Carolina Tar Heels celebrates after defeating the Duke University Blue Devils in the game at Dean E. Smith Center on March 9, 2003 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The Tar Heels won 82-79. (Photo by Craig Jones/Getty Images) /

24. Rashad McCants (2002-05)

Rashad McCants’ legacy in Chapel Hill is a bit shaky, but his production while he was there was undeniably impactful.

McCants averaged 17.0 PPG as a freshman, 20.0 PPG as a sophomore, and 16.0 PPG as a junior on a team that won the National Championship in 2005. He was a two-time All-American and All-ACC selection who ranks fifth in UNC history in 3-pointers made with 221 (second among non-four-year players). McCants joined Marvin Williams, Raymond Felton, and Sean May as one of four lottery picks from that 2004-05 UNC team.

That said, McCants is often remembered by UNC fans for comparing his time at the school to being in prison. He is also known for later saying that he took fake classes and had tutors do his homework while at UNC. This happened during the years-long investigation by multiple sources into potential academic irregularities at North Carolina. Many fans have also pointed out how his comparison of UNC to prison while having tutors do his classwork is seemingly in contrast.

While not without controversy, McCants’ on-court impact over his three years in Chapel Hill speaks for itself—one of the elite wing shooters and scorers in the history of the program.