Will Roy Williams Still Be Dancing in March?
- ldeaton05
- Feb 26, 2020
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 20, 2020
Roy Williams, 69, is currently the legendary head basketball coach for the highly esteemed North Carolina Tarheels. Before his move to Chapel Hill, he coached at the University of Kansas from 1988-2003 earning a 418-101 record, 9 regular season championships, 13 NCAA tournament berths, and 4 Final Four trips. In his almost 17 year career at North Carolina, he has won 9 ACC regular season titles (1st in ACC), had 45 NCAA Tourney wins (1st in D-I), has been in 5 Final Fours (T-1st in D-I), had 4 National Title appearances (1st in D-I), and won 3 National Titles (T-1st in D-I). Williams got the UNC program back on track after going 8-20 in the 2001-2002 season and 19-16 in the 2002-03 season (Sports Reference). Williams also holds the NCAA record for most wins in NCAA history with 879 (247 Sports). Some say he is one of the greatest of all time, and it would be hard to oppose that with the resume he has built.
But, these are not the only things Williams is known for. He also has some groove. We have all seen Roy Williams showing off his best dance moves in his Jordans, whether that be at a school wide pep rally or in the locker room after a big win. In 2015, the first video of Williams showing off his moves went viral. It was taken in the locker room with the guys after a win versus Arkansas in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Youtube video from GoHeels TV channel
In 2015 when that video was taken, the Tar Heels were 33-7 (14-4; 1st in ACC) in the regular season and went on to lose by 3 to No. 6 Villanova in the National Championship game. That Tarheel team was not lacking in talent or experience on the floor. Five of the guys on that 2015-2016 team went on to play in the NBA and a few are playing in the G League. That season was nothing short of electric and I would say that Williams had a lot to dance about.
In the current 2019-2020 season, Williams has tied his worst loss record with 17. The last time the Tar Heels had a record like this was in 2010 with a win/loss percentage of .541. This year he ended the season with a record of 20-17 with a win/loss percentage of .424. As you can see in the chart, Williams rarely drops below the .600 mark, and especially doesn't drop below .500. Williams has not been very pleased with his team’s performance this year and he doesn’t have a problem showing that. After a loss in the Dean Dome against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, in a radio interview Williams said, “We stunk, OK. We were not very good. The crazy thing about it is, our team, and we’ve had some very gifted teams, this is not a very gifted team. It’s just not” (USA Today). In that same game, UNC did not score their first field goal until 6:49 left in the first half, trailed by 20 going into the half, and ended up losing 96-83. This is not characteristic of the Tar Heels basketball program. There is a pedigree that comes with putting that jersey on. Tyler Hansbrough, Micheal Jordan, Phil Ford are all names that come to the forefront when thinking about the legacy of UNC basketball. This season has disappointed many fans and alumni of this, historically, very successful basketball program.
Sadly, there are many who are speculating whether or not the Heels will even make the NCAA tournament this year because of inexperience and injury plaguing the team. Cole Anthony, Sterling Manley, and Anthony Harris are out for the remainder of the year; leaving the fate of the season in the two freshmen, Brooks Garrison and Armando Bacot’s hands. But that didn't keep Williams from getting back to doing what he does best: winning and dancing. He broke it down with his team in the locker room after a 85-79 win over North Carolina State on February 25th. It was good seeing a smile on William’s face along with seeing the excitement this team so desperately needed during this slump. There is still a long way to go for the Heels, but Williams is willing to celebrate the victories along the way.
The Tar Heels will finish out ACC play with tough matchups against Syracuse, Wake Forest, and Duke in the final weeks leading up to the NCAA Selection Sunday March 15 at 6 p.m. ET on TBS. Tune in to find out the fate of the Tar Heels and to learn some dance moves from Coach Williams.
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