UNC opened their game against Georgia Tech with an on-court tribute to the late, great Dean Smith: running his famed Four Corners offense. And to make it even sweeter, the Tar Heels got a bucket, with Marcus Paige finding Brice Johnson on a backdoor cut.
UNC runs the Four Corners offense to honor Dean Smith -- and scores!
A really cool way of honoring the longtime great coach in their first game in the Dean Dome since his passing -- and it actually led to points!
The Four Corners was an offense that made sense in the days before the invention of the shot clock: When teams took a lead, it made sense for them to slow pace of play to a grinding halt rather than actually playing. But the five seconds closely guarded rule meant that simply standing with the ball would result in a turnover.
So Smith literally put players at each corner of the halfcourt. The defense had to spread out as wide as possible, leading to open lanes for drives and passes, with opportunities for backdoor cuts like the one Johnson scored on. Smith didn’t invent the offense, but he popularized it at the sport’s highest level. However, the introduction of the shot clock pretty much ended the usage of the four corners.
Previously the Tar Heels -- and their bitter rivals, the Duke Blue Devils -- gathered in a moment of silence together for the legendary coach. For more on the legacy of the coach on and off the court, read this.
See More:
