With UNC's kiddy corp making their Top 25 debut this week, it seems the
perfect time to see what Barry Jacobs has to say about freshmen at UNC and
playing time.
Much is being made, and rightly so, of the prominent role played by Carolinaâs freshmen this season. Three started every game in November â Tyler Hansbrough, Marcus Ginyard, and Bobby Frasor. A fourth, Danny Green, has yet to start but plays regularly and has been impressive.
Yet, for all the talk, through November Duke freshman Greg Paulus averaged more minutes (27.5) than any of the Tar Heels.
Hansbroughâs average of 27.0 minutes per outing trailed 11 other UNC freshmen who played an entire season since 1980. Eight of the 11 went on to become first-round NBA draft choices.
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FRISKY FROSH |
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| Most Minutes Played By UNC Freshmen Since 1980 | |||
| Minutes | Player, Season | Minutes Per Game | Starts |
| 1240 | Raymond Felton, 2003* | 35.4 | 35 of 35 |
| 1199 | Sam Perkins, 1981#* | 33.2 | 34 of 36 |
| 1079 | Michael Jordan, 1982#* | 31.7 | NA/34 |
| 1052 | Antawn Jamison, 1996* | 32.9 | 29 of 32 |
| 1046 | Rashad McCants, 2003* | 29.9 | 31 of 35 |
| 1030 | J.R. Reid, 1987#* | 28.6 | 31 of 36 |
| 962 | Ed Cota, 1997# | 28.3 | 7 of 34 |
| 923 | Kris Lang, 1999 | 27.1 | 32 of 34 |
| 893 | Jeff Lebo, 1986 | 26.3 | 10 of 34 |
| 861 | Ademola Okulaja, 1996 | 26.9 | 15 of 32 |
| 815 | Brad Daugherty, 1983* | 23.3 | NA/35 |
| 800 | Marvin Williams, 2005#* | 22.2 | 0 of 36 |
| 766 | David Noel, 2003 | 21.9 | 17 of 35 |
| 759 | Jason Capel, 1999 | 29.2 | 21 of 26 |
| 734 | Jerry Stackhouse, 1994* | 21.0 | 1 of 35 |
| 732 | Rasheed Wallace, 1994* | 20.9 | 7 of 35 |
| 671 | Matt Doherty, 1981 | 24.0 | NA/28 |
| 667 | Kenny Smith, 1984* | 29.0 | NA/23 |
| 663 | George Lynch, 1990* | 19.5 | 5 of 34 |
| 650 | Jawad Williams, 2002 | 23.2 | 9 of 28 |
| 642 | Melvin Scott, 2002 | 22.9 | 21 of 28 |
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* First-round NBA draft choice. |
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| # Voted ACC rookie of the year. | |||
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The prominence of David Noel among the ranks of favored Tar Heel freshmen is surprising. Noel, a career reserve who is now a senior, saw his opportunity expand dramatically in 2003 once Sean May was injured.
- Of the top 22 UNC freshmen in minutes played since 1980, only Raymond Felton (2003), Ed Cota (1997), and Kenny Smith (1984) were exclusively point guards.
- Minutes played, and starts, were carefully guarded secrets at North Carolina during most of Dean Smithâs tenure. Not until the 1990 season did the ACC have this information. Even now, the UNC basketball media guide deletes minutes played from player profiles.