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 – JANUARY 11: Ramses, the mascot for the North Carolina Tar Heels, cheers before a game against the Clemson Tigers on January 11, 2020 at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Clemson won 76-79 in overtime. (Photo by Peyton Williams/UNC/Getty Images)
CHAPEL HILL, NC – JANUARY 11: Ramses, the mascot for the North Carolina Tar Heels, cheers before a game against the Clemson Tigers on January 11, 2020 at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Clemson won 76-79 in overtime. (Photo by Peyton Williams/UNC/Getty Images) /

23. Pete Brennan (1955-58)

Pete Brennan is the often unsung star on UNC’s 1956-57 undefeated National Championship team that took down Wilt Chamberlain and Kansas in the title game. Lennie Rosenbluth (28.0 PPG) rightfully gets his share of the credit, but Brennan was second on the team in scoring and first in rebounding, averaging 14.7 PPG and 10.4 RPG.

For his career, Brennan averaged 16.5 PPG and 10.5 RPG, highlighted by his ACC Player of the Year senior season in 1957-58 which saw him put up 21.3 PPG and 11.7 RPG. In that final season, Brennan averaged 8.2 made free throws per game, meaning that he scored 16.4 of his 21.3 PPG from the free-throw line—a number that seems almost impossible by modern standards.

Although his career came before the more popular Dean Smith-era, Brennan’s impact as the second-best player on arguably the greatest UNC team of all-time easily earns him a spot in the top 30 players in program history.