| North Carolina Tar Heels News | | | Kentucky negotiates with Duke, schedules future series with Baylor, North Carolina (The Dagger: College Basketball Blog)
Just because Indiana opted not to play Kentucky at off-campus venues for the foreseeable future doesn't mean the Wildcats can't find other high-profile opponents willing to schedule a game at a neutral site.
John Calipari announced a handful of big-event games for upcoming seasons Wednesday including a multi-year series with Duke, a resumption of the North Carolina rivalry and a matchup in Cowboys Stadium against Baylor.
"When we schedule, I want to create experiences, not just games," Calipari wrote on his website. "The thing about Kentucky basketball is it's passed down from father to son. I want to schedule events that grandfathers and grandsons will be talking about 25 years from now. That's part of what Kentucky basketball is about; part of what has made this place so unique."
There's still no excuse for Kentucky and Indiana not reaching a compromise to preserve one of college basketball's most significant regional rivalries, but nobody can accuse the Wildcats of ducking top competition.
Following a one-year hiatus next season in the series with North Carolina, Kentucky will once again play the Tar Heels and Louisville either at home or on the road in alternating years. The next two seasons, the Wildcats will also participate in the Champions Classic, next season against Duke in Atlanta and the following season against Michigan State in Chicago.
The potential series against Duke is welcome news considering the two schools have built a rivalry based on their five NCAA tournament matchups yet have only faced one another sporadically in the regular season. UNC Basketball: Under-the-Radar Tar Heels Who Will Surprise in 2012-13
Until ESPN's Paul Biancardi graded UNC's 2012 recruiting class at the top of the ACC, I felt I was a loner in seeing the potential of the 2012-13 North Carolina Tar Heels.I even began to question myself. Was I allowing a bias toward my favorite college team get in the way of my analysis? Surely I hadn't traveled down the dark path that strips a sportswriter of any credibility.I desperately needed reassurance, so thank you, Paul Biancardi.Feeling a renewed confidence in my previous assessments of the situation at UNC, I had a hard time coming up with who will be the under-the-radar surprises of the coming season. With so many young players, I'm not sure how many are future ballers in the NBA. What I do know is that this team is stacked with players that can dominate the college game.The basketball world is in for a few surprises out of Chapel Hill—and I'm here to give you a sneak peek at them.Begin Slideshow North Carolina Basketball: Tar Heels Who Went on to Win NBA Championships
For the University of North Carolina, winning doesn't stop at the college level.In the last 35 years, only 12 NBA championships have been won by teams that didn't have a former Tar Heel on the squad. UNC also produced eight players who are in the 2012 NBA Playoffs—two are still alive in the second round.That's pretty impressive.Through the entire history of the NBA, a total of 29 titles have been won by 14 former Tar Heels. According to Fox Sports Florida, that is the most by any college—above UCLA (26), Ohio State (25), San Francisco (25), Minnesota (18) and Kentucky (17).Where is Duke on that list?Despite Mike Krzyzewski producing the second-most NBA players in league history, former Duke players have only won two NBA championships—Danny Ferry in 2003 and Jeff Mullins in 1975 (before Coach K). That is every bit as shocking to me as the astounding number Carolina has won.Even more impressive is that UNC products continue to produce NBA championships beyond their playing years. Including general managers and coaches, UNC has produced a total of 42 titles.Who are the players that won NBA titles?That's what we are about to uncover. Then I'll finish it up with the former Tar Heels who made it to the 2012 NBA Playoffs. You can find the full list of UNC's NBA champions on Hoopedia.Begin Slideshow | | | | |
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