It wasn’t an April Fools joke even though most North Carolina Tar Heel fans hoped it was.
While most were plodding through another day of telecommuting, the news came across social media that Roy Williams had informed the university that he was going to retire. No joke.
Though he had always said that he would retire if there was a health issue, he made it clear that his health didn’t play a part in his decision.
Throughout the press conference, Williams kept saying that he felt like he wasn’t the “right guy for the job” anymore. We all knew what that meant.
“No one has ever enjoyed coaching like I have.”#CarolinaFamily pic.twitter.com/HzuvYelkOs
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) April 1, 2021
Times were changing and Williams just didn’t want to continue to move along with the times. No… it wasn’t his offense which never moved to the 4-out-1-in or 5-out-dribble-drive era. He will tell you, even if the last two years were tough, in the last 18 years he is the only coach to win three National Championships. Shots fired!
It was the era we live in. Players at North Carolina always left early, even before, it was the cool thing. When players left college, it was because they were bordering on being dominant in the college game.
That’s not how it works anymore. NBA teams are willing to draft on potential, in part, because of the rookie sliding scale. No longer are NBA teams investing triple-digit millions on top picks. The change has been good for the NBA. It allows General Managers and coaches to be more patient with players with very little (relatively speaking) invested.
That new landscape has impacted Williams and his success. He has three titles at UNC with all three teams being very experienced for the time they played in.
Then there’s the transfer portal. There are over 1,000 players in the portal and the trend doesn’t look like it is going to slow down. Despite having big man friendly offenses in an era where very few do, the likes of Walker Kessler and Qudus Wahab (Georgetown), have still decided to transfer.
Someone who knows Roy just told me there had been no definitive plan to retire now but that he has been increasingly fed up with the direction of college basketball and the Walker Kessler transfer was the “nail in the coffin.”
— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) April 1, 2021
Unfortunately for Williams, the NCAA house of cards is in danger as the way student-athletes have been treated is under heavy scrutiny. It’s a revolution that’s long overdue. It’s unfortunate that Williams has gotten caught in the storm of change. Just as unfortunate as the last game Williams coached was an embarrassing loss to Wisconsin.
This will be the most important hire for North Carolina since Bill Guthridge left but there’s plenty of time to debate whether Hubert Davis or Wes Miller is best for the job.
This is the time to remember how Williams saved the school he loved so much when Matt Doherty lost his grip of the program. He also loved the program enough to know when to leave.
