College basketball’s Roy Williams retires

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Roy Williams encourages his players in a game last year against Duke University. Associated Press/Photo by Gerry Broome (file)

College basketball’s Roy Williams retires

Hall of Fame college basketball coach Roy Williams announced his retirement on Thursday. Williams won 903 games over 33 years with North Carolina and Kansas. He won three national titles at North Carolina—in 2005, 2009, and 2017. He previously led Kansas to four Final Four appearances and two losses in national title games.

What are his former players saying? “Roy Williams is and always will be a Carolina basketball legend,” Michael Jordan said in a statement. “His great success on the court is truly matched by the impact he had on the lives of the players he coached—including me.” Jordan played for North Carolina when Williams was an assistant coach there. Philadelphia 76ers guard Danny Green, another former North Carolina player, called Williams a “father figure.”

Dig deeper: Read a 2017 WORLD report about North Carolina’s victory in that year’s NCAA championship game.

Editor’s note: WORLD has updated this report since its initial posting.

Timothy Lamer

Tim is executive editor of WORLD Commentary. He previously worked for the Media Research Center in Alexandria, Va. His work has also appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and The Weekly Standard.