10 players the rivals loved to hate the most

North Carolina basketball has some bitter rivals, and these players managed to really get under their skin.

One of the things that makes college basketball even more exciting than the NBA or other levels of basketball is the home crowds. Sure, NBA games draw thousands of excited fans and can have electric atmospheres, but it’s hard to compare to some of the rowdy student sections in the college basketball universe. It’s not just the students or fanbases in general that we’re talking about though, it’s the rivalries too.

Part of what makes college basketball exciting is when those rivalries happen, with Duke vs. North Carolina being the shining example. People in masses flock to these two campuses once a year, with students literally camping out at a shot to get good seats for the games. These two fanbases hate each other, but they certainly are not alone.

North Carolina’s biggest rival is clearly Duke but they have other rivals as well, including in-state foes like NC State and Wake Forest among others. They are most hated by those Blue Devils but that’s far from the only fanbase riled up by North Carolina.

Today, we’ll be looking back at some of the most hated North Carolina basketball players, according to their rivals. These are all solid players who have contributed to the Tar Heels, both recently and several decades ago.

These are all players that opposing fanbases loved to hate, with Duke obviously one of the most ireful of the bunch. Let’s get right into these ten names, knowing full well we couldn’t possibly include every hated UNC player on this list.

These North Carolina basketball players lived rent-free in the heads of the Tar Heels rivals