Roy Williams reveals why he didn't take UNC job sooner
Before Roy Williams took the North Carolina head coaching job in 2003, he spent 15 seasons at Kansas. Williams was courted for the Tar Heels' job in 2000 but ultimately turned it down.
After being pursued a second time with an opening, Williams just couldn't turn it down again famously saying "There's several factors [for my decision] -- my roots, my dream and my family. And I think all three things are my factors. And I don't mind saying this, but there's Coach [Dean] Smith. It's hard saying 'no' to him twice."
But why did he turn it down the first time? Williams revealed that answer during his guest appearance on Theo Pinson's "Run Your Race" podcast which was released on Wednesday.
"So in 2000, they asked me to come back at North Carolina when coach [Bill] Guthridge retired. I had promised Nick Collison, who is a freshman, that I would be there because a rival school had said 'If you go to Kansas, Roy Williams is not going to be your coach. He's going to go back to North Carolina.' But I had promised Nick I was going to be there. So when they asked me the first time, I could never justify what I was going to say to Nick. I know that sounds crazy but you know I'm crazy. So I didn't come back. But when they came back again three years later, Nick had graduated."
Roy Williams didn’t come back to UNC in 2000 because he promised Nick Collison he’d be at Kansas.
In 2003, after he graduated, Dean Smith told Roy “we wanted you last time, we need you this time.”
The rest is history.
Get the full pod here @RunYourRaceTL pic.twitter.com/UcX7I8yfY4— Tar Heel Nation (@UNC_TarHeelFan) November 6, 2024
Williams goes on to talk about the national championship loss to Syracuse and how UNC pursued him again. He credits Dean Smith for getting him to comeback to North Carolina.
"They asked me to come back and I felt like, Coach Smith, Nick Collison leaving is the biggest thing. But the second thing was Coach Smith saying 'We wanted you last time, we need you this time.' And that meant a great deal to me too."
The rest is history as Williams won three national championships at North Carolina including in his second season, beating Illinois in 2005.
Williams' former programs will meet Friday night in an early season showdown as No. 1 Kansas hosts No. 9 North Carolina.
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire : Roy Williams reveals why he didn't take UNC job sooner
