UNC, NBA Legend George Karl Jokes About Duke, NC State Tying, Eliminated from Elite 8

You can safely bet that George Karl won't be rooting for either Duke or NC State when the ACC teams meet in the Elite Eight at the men's NCAA tournament on Sunday.

The former NBA head coach and North Carolina alum joked on social media that he'd rather see the teams tied and each get eliminated:

Obviously such an outcome isn't possible, but you would expect a North Carolina supporter to get creative hoping for outcomes that didn't benefit an in-state rival.

Karl, 72, attended UNC between 1970-73, averaging 13.8 points and 4.2 assists across his college career. The New York Knicks selected him in the fourth round of the 1973 NBA draft, though he instead signed with the San Antonio Spurs—at that time in the ABA—and played with the team for five seasons, including San Antonio's first two in the NBA after its merger with the ABA.

He was better known for his professional coaching career, however, which included stints with the Cleveland Cavaliers (1984-85 to 1985-86), Golden State Warriors (1986-87 to 1987-88), Seattle Supersonics (1991-92 to 1997-98), Milwaukee Bucks (1998-99 to 2002-03), Denver Nuggets (2004-05 to 2012-13) and Sacramento Kings (2014-15 to 2015-16).

He finished his career with a 1175-824 record, the sixth most wins in NBA history. He led his teams to the playoffs 22 times, was the league's Coach of the Year in the 2012-13 season and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2022. All that eluded him during his coaching career was an NBA title.

Karl's Tar Heels disappointed in this year's NCAA tournament. Despite being a No. 1 seed, North Carolina bowed out in the Sweet 16 against No. 4 seed Alabama in one of the games of the tournament, an 89-87 thriller.

In what may provide a sliver of consolation for UNC fans, Alabama then went on to beat the ACC's Clemson Tigers and reach the Final Four. These Crimson Tide have proven to be a buzzsaw, though their prize for earning the first Final Four in program history is a date with the defending champion UConn Huskies.

The ACC, meanwhile, is guaranteed to have one Final Four entry in either 4-seed Duke or 11-seed NC State, much to the chagrin of Karl.