University of North Carolina Athletics
Brewer: Felton Is The Latest In Long Line Of Star Carolina Point Guards
February 3, 2005 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 3, 2005
By Rick Brewer
Great point guard play is not only unusual at Carolina, it is something that has come to be expected.
It's a legacy begun by Phil Ford in the 1970's and kept up by a long line of star performers ever since.
Raymond Felton is the latest player to handle what is perhaps the most high-profile spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference--point guard at Carolina.
Felton has already placed his name among the school's best at the position. That's saying a lot because the list of Tar Heel point guards is probably the best in the nation.
Ford, of course, is at the very top. There were outstanding point guards or lead guards before him--Tommy Kearns, Larry Brown, Dick Grubar and George Karl, for example. But, Ford set the standard by which all others have been measured. That's not just at Carolina, but throughout the ACC and across the country. He was a three-time All-America and the 1978 national player of the year.
Ford is the Tar Heels' all-time leading scorer and set the school's career assist mark. The assist record came at a time when assists were kept haphazardly at many schools and not at all at others. So his total probably doesn't reflect all he earned in some road games. But, he still ranks third in history among all Carolina players.
In four seasons here he transformed the point guard position as much as Michael Jordan would the number two guard spot just a few years later. He shot 52.7 percent from the field during his career and made 80.8 percent of his free throws. The only backcourt players with a higher career field goal figure are Jordan, John Virgil and Walter Davis. None of them were point guards and Davis really played small forward most of the time.
After struggling in the first few games of his freshman year, Ford went on to have a great first season, averaging16.4 points a game.
Ford was at his best in the biggest games. He averaged 20.8 points over his career against Wake Forest, 22.8 against Duke and 24.2 against N.C. State-- the Tar Heels' Big Four rivals.
In eight pressure-packed ACC Tournament games over his four-year career, he made 69 of 131 shots from the floor (52.7 percent), hit 51 of 58 free throws (87.9 percent), scored 189 points (23.6) and handed out 36 assists.
The 1975 Tournament may have been the most exciting in league history and Ford was its biggest star. He became the first freshman to be named Tournament MVP that year.
Often when the Tar Heels had a lead late in a game they operated a four corners offense. It was an attack used to run time off the clock and get layups or free throws. But, as Dean Smith once put it, "With Phil the four corners was really unfair."
Ford was such a great dribbler that he could keep the ball away from any single defender. If he was double-teammed, he would simply toss the ball to whoever was open. When the defenses reset, he would go get the ball and start again.
Sometimes Ford would move into the free throw circle and pick up his dribble, drawing a double-team. If a second opponent started moving toward him, he would feed that player's man breaking backdoor for a dunk or layup.
Ford would even head toward a second opponent in one of the baseline corners to invite a double-team even more. If that happened, he'd flick a quick bounce pass to a breaking teammate for a layup.
Occasionally, he would move into the circle, spin as if to pick up his dribble and then continue down the lane himself for a layup.
Because he was such a good free throw shooter, he handled the ball most of the time in the four corners. In the clutch, he rarely missed at the line.
A problem has been that the performance of players after him has often been compared to what he accomplished. That hasn't been the case with Tar Heel coaches who have urged others to refrain from doing so.
"It's unfair to compare any player with someone like Phil," Smith often said. "That's too much pressure to put on someone. People should enjoy about what our other guards have done and not be concerned about how they measure up against Phil or each other. All of them have had unique talents of their own and that's what has been exciting."
Still, many fans have been hoping the "next Phil Ford" would come along. Many expected Felton would be that player.
Like Kenny Smith, Derrick Phelps, Ed Cota and so many others, that hasn't been the case. But, there's really nothing wrong with that. He may still be the best pure point guard in America.
Others across the nation may be better scorers or perhaps defenders. But, when it comes to handling the ball and getting it to the right teammate, there is no equal in the college game. Plus, he has developed into a greater scoring threat this year. He has always had the quickness to be a great defender and he's now learned the fundamentals to be just that.
"Raymond can go from one end of the court to the other with the ball faster than many players can without it," says Coach Roy Williams. "We want an up-tempo game and he gives it to us."
Williams wants the ball in Felton's hands as much as possible. When someone grabs a defensive rebound the idea is to get the ball to Felton. That usually isn't too difficult because he will come back to get it. He's at his most dangerous when he slips in for a defensive rebound. Then he's off downcourt before opponents, and sometimes even teammates, can turn around.
Weaving through traffic he can hit a breaking teammate for a layup, take the ball to the basket himself or penetrate and pitch back out to someone who is set for an open three-pointer. He has an uncanny ability to make passes through traffic through passing lanes don't seem to exist.
He's just as good running a set offense, penetrating and finding an open outside shooter, throwing lobs for dunks or getting himself open for a three-pointer.
He's still not the scorer Ford was, but on this Carolina team that doesn't matter. The Tar Heels have led the nation in scoring or been in the top two or three all year. A big reason has been Felton's play. It's the best anyone has seen anywhere in a long, long time.
