North Carolina Basketball: The 15 Most Overrated Tar Heel Players of All Time

The University of North Carolina has certainly had more than its share of greats: Michael Jordan, James Worthy, Sam Perkins, Vince Carter, etc, but they are not without some overrated players and flops.

North Carolina is one of the top five, quality NBA talent producing programs in the nation. These 15 players don't contribute to that total.

15. Ed Cota, 1996-2000

Cota was a 6-foot-3 point guard who benefited greatly from playing with an awesome supporting cast: Vince Carter, Shammond Williams and others.

Cota's assist totals were very high for the collegiate level—7.1 in 1999 and 8.4 in 2000—but he never played in the NBA.

He has, however, enjoyed a long and successful international career. For that reason, I struggled with including him here; thus he is No. 15.

14. Donald Williams, 1989-1993

Though Williams won the the Most Outstanding Player Award in 1993, as he led the Tar Heels past the Michigan Wolverines in the title game, but he was not a great player.

He is remembered as such by so many Tar Heels fans, but most, if not all, of the love is traced back to that great game.

He is 27th all-time in scoring, but he was terribly one dimensional. Proof of his limitations show in the fact that Williams never made it to the NBA, either.

Williams was a decent collegiate player, but not a legend.

13. Scott Williams, 1986-1990

The last name of Williams has been a iffy one for the Tar Heels. Scott was a decent college player, 26th all-time in scoring, but he was expected to be so much more. He was a McDonald's All-American in 1986.

Yet he, like so many Tar Heels big men are over-hyped. Williams battled a constantly reoccurring shoulder injury that followed him into his NBA career.

He did have a long career in the NBA, where he rode the coattails of the greatest Tar Heel, Michael Jordan, for three championship rings.

Williams's best season was his senior year, he averaged 14 points and seven rebounds per game.

12. Rick Fox, 1987-1991

Fox averaged 12 points per game in his Tar Heels career, 17 points in his senior year. But he was very limited athletically.

He had a small forward's height with a power forward's build and a center's athleticism. While he was able to muscle opponents on the collegiate level, he found it more difficult in the NBA.

Thus, Fox became a nice role player in the pros, but nothing like he was touted as back in Chapel Hill. Fox was a reserve on three Los Angeles Lakers championship teams from 2000-2002.

11. Sean May, 2002-2005

May had an outstanding senior season, as he led the Tar Heels to the national championship in 2005. From there on out, it was downhill. May is the classic undersized power forward who is made to dominate on the collegiate level, but because of a lack of explosiveness, struggles in the NBA.

Is Jared Sullinger the same guy? May is currently out of the NBA, after four seasons averaging seven points and four rebounds per game.

10. Jawad Williams, 2001-2005

The overrating of Williams began during the recruiting process. Williams was heavily recruited out of Ohio, he was also a McDonald's All-American. Though he was a part of the 2005 national championship team, Williams never became the star he was expected to be. 

His NBA career didn't begin until three years after he graduated. He toiled in the D-League for three seasons before signing with the Cleveland Cavaliers, the team he currently plays for. Williams has career averages of 3.8 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.

9. Wayne Ellington, 2006-2009

Ellington and Ty Lawson came to Chapel Hill as very exciting, diverse and highly regarded backcourt in 2006. They won a national championship in 2009, and Ellington entered the draft after his junior year.

Ellington has yet to find himself in the NBA. He has averaged 6.6 points in both his rookie and second years in the NBA.

8. David Noel, 2002-2006

Noel was and is a tremendous athlete, but not much else when it comes to professional basketball. He was an energy player with limited skills in college beyond slashing, dunking and defending, yet, the Milwaukee Bucks used their lone pick in the 2006 NBA draft on him.

Noel spent one season in the NBA, averaging 2.7 points and 1.8 rebounds per game. He was great on NBA2K, though.

7. Reyshawn Terry, 2003-2007

Another highly recruited Tar Heel, but Terry even underachieved in Chapel Hill. He never played in the NBA, though he was drafted in the second round by the Orlando Magic.

Terry averaged double-figures in scoring once; that was in his junior season when he scored 14 points per game.

6. Bobby Frasor, 2005-2009

Coming out of Blue Island, Illinois, Frasor was supposed to be the next good to great point guard for the Tar Heels in 2005. He had been a McDonald's All-American and a member of the National Honors Society.

Frasor never really made a huge impact at Chapel Hill, though he was a part of the national championship team in 2009. Technically, had he lived up to his billing, he should have been the starter for that team, not backing up Ty Lawson.

Frasor did suffer a torn ACL in his junior season that impacted his career. Frasor was not drafted in to the NBA and is playing internationally.

5. Clifford Rozier, 1990-1991

Rozier was a big, athletic and highly touted recruit in 1989. He started his college career with the Tar Heels and only averaged five points and three rebounds in his freshman season.

Rozier transferred to Louisville, where he had an immediate impact. He was a lottery pick in the 1994 NBA draft, but was a bust in the League.

How was he overrated? The Heels assessed his talent properly, but not their prospects of getting him to maximize his talents. Rozier was a wasted scholarship and did nothing positive for North Carolina.

4. Joe Wolf, 1983-1987

Wolf was nearly No. 1 on this list, as he was highly regarded coming out of Wisconsin. He is considered by many to be the state's greatest prep player ever.

The trend did not continue at Chapel Hill. In four seasons, Wolf averaged 9.6 points and 5.5 rebounds per game for North Carolina. Amazingly, he was drafted 13th overall by the LA Clippers (maybe not so amazing).

Wolf stayed in the NBA for 12 seasons, which is why he isn't No. 1. He had career averages of four points and three rebounds per game.

3. King Rice, 1987-1991

Rice was one of the most highly touted recruits in North Carolina history. He was called the best high school basketball player in the country in 1987. While he did play four years, for four NCAA tournament teams—even reaching the final in 1991—Rice never played like the star he was made out to be.

He never reached the NBA, but now, he is the head coach at Monmouth. His coaching career has been successful, and he could possibly be North Carolina's head coach somewhere down the road when Roy Williams is done.

Rice averaged six points and four assists per game during his Tar Heels career.

2. Marvin Williams, 2004-2005

After only one season in Chapel Hill, Marvin Williams was placed on a pedestal he has yet to live up to. It is true, he had a great NCAA tournament run in 2005, to help lead the Tar Heels to the national championship.

Williams only averaged 11 points per game that season, as he came off the bench primarily. He really needed to stay one more year, but the NBA was gassed as well and the Atlanta Hawks took him No. 2 overall in the 2006 NBA draft.

Williams has been an inconsistent and disappointing performer for the Hawks, with career averages of 12 points and five rebounds per game.

1. Eric Montross, 1990-1994

For me, Montross is the poster child for this list. He was big, strong and stiff; he had limited footwork and was outplayed on the collegiate level by quicker and more agile players.

The Tar Heels did win a national title in 1993 with him, but Montross was grossly overrated. He was the ninth pick overall in the 1994 NBA draft by the Boston Celtics.

In an eight-year NBA career, Montross averaged 4.6 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.