Dean

I never met Dean Smith - I think the closest I came to ever talking to him was when Jim Love and the coach shared an ash tray as Jim and I were leaving Carmichael after picking up some student basketball tickets; I think I was in the bathroom - but like Tar Heels everywhere his death hit me hard.  I wept more than once today thinking about Coach Smith.

Despite never having played for him many UNC alums usually refer to him as Coach Smith, like his players did.  Or you could go with Dean, though that frankly seems too familiar.  

There have been many great tributes to Coach Smith today, as there were when he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and when he retired in 1997. Two of my favorite's are by Sports Illustrated's Alexander Wolff and Beth McNichol at the UNC General Alumni Association.  Both articles remind readers that Dean was more than an innovative and creative and successful basketball coach, that Coach Smith was a scholar, author and social activist.  Above all they remind us that Coach Smith was a gentleman who was generous and loyal to his players and staff, someone who treated his star players and student managers with respect and equality.

North Carolina, America and the world could use a lot more Dean Smiths.

One thing those tributes have not mentioned is that the reason Coach Smith means so much to non-basketball players or coaches is that for UNC alums, Dean IS Carolina.

Charles Kuralt said it best when at the University's 200th anniversary he asked 'Why is it that we love this place so? ... Because it still is, what it always has been, the university of the people.' 

That's Dean. When we look at Coach Smith we see the values many if not all of us associate with Carolina. To alums our alma mater is more than a school.  Carolina is a set of values - open-mindedness, liberal, egalitarian, public - designed to help Chapel Hill fulfill its mission of helping the people of North Carolina and the South overcome a still-toxic legacy of bigotry, ignorance and poverty.  

The University of the people. The University of Dean Smith.

Everlasting be his memory! Go Heels! 

For more on Dean from a different perspective check out the inaugural 'Manuel Transmissions' podcast, a podcast that will eventually feature opinions from three 'generations' of the Manuel family: parents John, Cleo, Christine, Athan; high school and college students Evan, Kate, Ariadne, Paul; kids Sophia, Alex, Michael, Anna.  Our initial podcast features Paul, Ariadne, Evan, me and an actual journalist John Manuel, talking about Dean.


Two more Dean notes:

• I want to thank my friend Bill Wood for having Dean autograph a basketball for me. Bill, a UNC med school grad, was the household hazardous waste coordinator for Orange County, doing good work AND becoming a North Carolina resident before applying to med school. When Dean agreed to record a PSA for the program Bill thoughfully got Coach Smith to autograph a ball for me, one of the nicest gifts I've ever received and a Dean move all the way! I'm pointing at Bill right now! 
• i would love to see #pointtothepasser start trending on Twitter. Nothing is more Dean than pointing out when someone helps you succeed. Heels need to make that happen. 
  
  

Not THAT sad of a day

What is the best way to start a blog about one of the saddest days of the year, the day when the Tar Heels stop playing basketball?

It should not be just about one game, the final game of the season, but I suppose one has to start there. Oddly enough, it does not feel that bad, reviewing the loss to Iowa State.  The Heels played well, rebounded much better in the second half, and made shots.

Though it was a tough loss, that game contained many of the things that made this year's squad interesting and fun to watch, and also likeable.  What's not to like about a team that beats Michigan State IN East Lansing, beats the defending national champs, and smites all of our main rivals - Duke, NC State and Kentucky - in one season?

Sunday's game was a microcosm of the entire season.  It had J.P. Tokoto spinning and dunking, with a few steals, mid-range jumpers, even a bad turnover; Kennedy Meeks at his Little Sean May/taking down Louisville AND Michigan State best; Leslie McDonald finally getting to play and contributing - even Jackson Simmons taking a charge.*

It featured James Michael McAdoo keeping his head up, his persistence finally being rewarded as his drives to the basket resulted in points late.  It was JMM displaying the calm and leadership we sometimes take for granted, and then having the toughness to hit 2 big free throws.

And it featured Marcus Paige. There are plenty of adjectives to choose from in describing his play on Sunday and this year.  The best one is Tar Heel.

There are but a handful of Tar Heels who are extra special for their innate toughness, tenacity, brains, leadership - an understanding of the values stamped on Carolina basketball by Dean Smith. It is a short list: Bobby Jones, Phil Ford, Jimmy Black, George Lynch and David Noel.  Many others, like Kendall Marshall and Ademola Okulaja to name a few, come close. But it's a short list.

Marcus Paige is already one of those all time Tar Heels.

One reason so many of us care so much about Carolina basketball is that it ties us to the University we love.  The reason basketball is so central to our connection, again, is Dean.  His humility, wisdom and excellence are what we think of when we think of Carolina.

Not Carolina basketball - Carolina.

For me, Marcus Paige evokes the same thing. He is the personification of all of Dean's Carolina values. At a time when the athletic program is doing all it can to embarrass the University, Paige - an Academic and athletic All-American - restored the values that make Carolina CAROLINA.

He led the comeback, once again, against Iowa State, but his turnover late may have cost Carolina the game (though ISU's incredible shooting, and our spotty transition defense that left too many shooters too open, had more to do with it).

But can we - do we - really blame Paige for not being perfect, after the season he had, after the plays he made, and more importantly the way he carried himself, the way he epitomized why we love Carolina basketball and Carolina?  No.

Marcus Paige, Tar Heel.

GO HEELS!

* The game also did NOT feature Brice Johnson.  More on that next blog.  I will also look at ahead at next year, which looks very bright since Marcus Paige just tweeted that he is returning next year.