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James Worthy Named ACC Legend
January 28, 2016 | Men's Basketball
by ACC Media Relations
GREENSBORO—North Carolina's James Worthy is among 14 former standout players and a three-time Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year who headline this year's class of ACC Basketball Legends.
The 1982 National Player of the Year and the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player, Worthy led North Carolina to its second NCAA title and the first under legendary head coach Dean Smith. His 28-point performance and steal in the closing seconds keyed the Tar Heels past Georgetown in the national championship game. That capped a junior year in which Worthy earned All-America honors for the second consecutive season and was also the MVP of both the ACC Tournament and the NCAA East Regional.
The Los Angeles Lakers made the Gastonia, North Carolina, native the NBA's No. 1 overall draft pick a few months later. Despite missing a large part of his freshman year at UNC with a broken ankle, Worthy totaled 1,219 points in just over 2 ½ college seasons to rank among the school's all-time leading scorers.
He went on to stellar professional career in which he was a seven-time NBA All-Star, played on three NBA title teams and was voted the MVP of the 1988 NBA Finals. Worthy's jersey (number 52) was retired at UNC, and he was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in 2003.
The Legends will be recognized during the 2016 New York Life ACC Tournament, which will be held March 8-12 at Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. They will be featured at the annual ACC Legends Luncheon, which will be held Friday, March 11, beginning at noon at the Washington Marriott Marquis hotel. They will then be introduced that evening to the Verizon Center crowd during halftime of the first semifinal game. Ticket information for the ACC Legends Luncheon is available at theACC.com.
The 2016 ACC Legends Class:
Jim Hooley, Forward, Boston College
Grayson Marshall, Guard, Clemson
Jason Willams, Guard, Duke
Rowland Garrett, Forward, Florida State
BJ Elder, Guard, Georgia Tech
Darrell Griffith, Guard, Louisville
John Salmons, Forward, Miami
James Worthy, Forward, North Carolina
Anthony “Spud” Webb, Guard, North Carolina State
Adrian Dantley, Forward, Notre Dame
Charles Smith, Forward, Pitt
Derrick Coleman, Forward, Syracuse
Norman Nolan, Forward, Virginia
Howard Pardue, Forward, Virginia Tech
Dave Odom, Head Coach, Wake Forest
This year's ACC Legends class includes four National Players of the Year, two Final Four MVPs, three national championship team members, two ACC Tournament MVPs and a National Coach of the Year.