North Carolina Basketball: Dean Dome Gets No Love

ESPN asked their writers and contributors to compile a list of their favourite arenas and no one picked the Dean E. Smith Center, affectionately known as the Dean Dome.

Allen Fieldhouse, home of the Kansas Jayhawks and Cameron Indoor Stadium, Duke, were the favourites.

NBA legends like Rasheed Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse all played for the Tar Heels. Not to mention North Carolina is a perennial contender (forget the Doherty years).

Sadly, the Dean Dome opened in 1986, two years after the greatest player ever, Michael Jordan, left for the NBA. Knowing that this building was named after the man, Dean Smith, that molded Jordan as a teenager is enough to make me want to visit.

Even when the writers were asked to compile a bucket list of arenas they would like to visit, the Dean Dome was notably absent from that list.

Even Doug Gottlieb, a man who has alienated the Duke fan base over the years chose Cameron Indoor stadium as his most desirable arena to visit. The Cameron Crazies would love that!

However, when former players were asked to list their toughest arenas to play in, Stephen Bardo (former Illinois player) chose the Dean Dome.

Jay Bilas on the other hand chose NC State's old arena, Reynolds Coliseum. As a former Duke player you would have thought it would be the Dean Dome.

His choice validated by Tar Heel, Hubert Davis, who also chose Reynolds Coliseum.

When coaches were asked which arenas they hated to play in most just stuck to their conference, though Duke had a few mentions even though hardly any ACC coaches were asked.

Of the two ACC coaches that responded Roy Williams chose Oklahoma State, but that was more in line with his coaching days at Kansas. We know where his toughest games lie.

One thing of note though, Mark Turgeon, Maryland's new coach, said the Dean Dome was top of his wish list, of places to play. 

I have a feeling it won't be the greatest experience of his life.