Hubert Ira Davis Jr. (born May 17, 1970) is an American

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

coach and former professional player who is the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels men's team. Before his coaching career, Davis played for North Carolina from 1988 to 1992 and in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA) for the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

, and

New Jersey Nets New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

from 1992 to 2004. He holds the franchise single-season and career three-point field goal shooting percentage records for both the Knicks and the Mavericks. He is the nephew of Walter Davis, another former Tar Heel and NBA player. Davis served as an assistant coach for the Tar Heels from 2012 until his elevation to head coach in 2021 following the retirement of Roy Williams.

Early life and education

Davis attended Lake Braddock Secondary School in Burke, Virginia, averaging 28.0 points per game his senior year. He went on to the University of North Carolina, where he holds the record for the highest career three-point percentage in school history. In his junior year, he helped lead the team to its first Final Four appearance since winning the national championship in 1982. Davis graduated in 1992 with a degree in Criminal Justice, after averaging 21.4 points per game in his senior season.

NBA career

The

selected Davis with the 20th overall pick in the 1992 NBA draft. He made the winning free throws after Hue Hollins called a disputed foul against

Scottie Pippen Scotty Maurice Pippen Sr. (born September 25, 1965), usually spelled Scottie Pippen, is an American former professional basketball player. He played 17 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), winning six NBA championships with th ...

in Game 5 of the 1994 Eastern Conference semifinals against the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

, giving the Knicks an 87–86 win (the Knicks went on to win the series in seven games). Davis established the Knicks franchise records for single-season (.476, 1995–96) and career (.449) three-point shooting percentages. Davis remained with New York for four years, and was traded to the

before the 1996–97 season. After Toronto, Davis spent time with the

, and

. Davis established the Mavericks franchise records for single-season (.491, 1999–2000) and career (.454) three-point shooting percentages. Davis played his final NBA game in 2004, finishing with career averages of 8.2 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. Davis's 44.09% NBA career three-point shot percentage ranks him second behind

Steve Kerr Stephen Douglas Kerr (born September 27, 1965) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the United States men's national ...

(45.40%).

Sports analyst

Following his playing career, Davis began working for

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

as a college basketball analyst in the 2007–2008 season. During his time at ESPN, he served as a studio analyst for the network's coverage of college basketball and was a panelist on '' College Gameday''. He left ESPN to return to Chapel Hill as an assistant coach following the 2011–2012 season.

Coaching career

North Carolina assistant coach

Prior to the 2012–2013 season, UNC head coach Roy Williams hired Davis as an assistant. Davis also served as head coach of UNC's junior varsity basketball team, one of the only junior varsity teams remaining in college basketball. UNC's junior varsity program is a long-standing program tradition, and several former JV players have gone on to be walk-ons for the varsity team. Davis was on the bench for the Tar Heels 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball tournament run that concluded with a 71–65 win over Gonzaga in the

National Championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

game.

North Carolina head coach

left, Davis with North Carolina in 2021 Following the retirement of Williams, Davis was named the 19th head coach in program history, and became the first

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

to lead the program. The move was initially met with some criticism, as Davis had never been a head coach at any level. Despite this, Williams had been grooming him for a head coaching job much in the same way that

Dean Smith Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball Coach (basketball), head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North C ...

had mentored Williams during Williams' time as a Tar Heel assistant coach from 1978 to 1988. Davis recorded his first career win in his first game as head coach. The Tar Heels beat Loyola (MD) 83–67 at home in the Dean Smith Center to open the season. On February 21, 2022, Davis's Tar Heels defeated

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

to give the first-year head coach his 20th victory of the year. Davis became the fourth ACC head coach to win twenty games in his debut season in the past twenty-five years with the victory. Previous Tar Heel coaches Matt Doherty ( 2000–01), and Bill Guthridge ( 1997–98) are two of the other three coaches to reach the twenty-win mark in their debut seasons, winning 26 and 34 games respectively. Davis's Tar Heels capped off a 23–8 regular season with a 94–81 victory over Duke in

Mike Krzyzewski Michael William Krzyzewski ( , ; born February 13, 1947), nicknamed "Coach K", is an American former college basketball coach. He served as the head coach at Duke University from 1980–81 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team, 1980 to 2021� ...

's final home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Davis's Tar Heels went 1–1 in his first ACC tournament as head coach, and earned an Eastern regional 8th seed in the 2022 NCAA tournament. After cruising to a 95–63 win over 9-seed Marquette in the first round, the Tar Heels upset the East's number one seed, the

Baylor Bears The Baylor Bears are the athletic teams that represent Baylor University. The teams participate in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as one of only three private school members of the Big 12 Conference. Prior t ...

, in the second round. The Tar Heels hung on and won the game 93–86 in overtime after losing a 25-point second-half lead. The victory secured Davis's first sweet sixteen berth as head coach and the school's 30th overall, the most by any program in Division I history. After a 73–66 victory over 4th seed UCLA Bruins in the Sweet Sixteen, Davis and his Tar Heels advanced to the Elite Eight where they defeated the St. Peter's Peacocks 69–49 to earn a trip to the Final Four. In the national semifinal game, the Tar Heels matched up against arch rivals Duke for the first time in NCAA tournament history. The Tar Heels defeated the Blue Devils 81–77 in what was Coach K's final game. However, in the national championship game, Davis' Tar Heels were defeated by the

Kansas Jayhawks The Kansas Jayhawks, commonly referred to as simply KU or Kansas, are the athletic teams that represent the University of Kansas. KU is one of three schools List of college athletic programs in Kansas, in the state of Kansas that participate in ...

, 72–69. Due to the Tar Heels' success in his first year as head coach, Davis became one of the few college basketball figures to have gone to a Final Four as a player (1991), an assistant coach (2016 and 2017), and as a head coach (2022).

Personal life

Davis and his wife Leslie have three children: Elijah, Bobbie Grace and Micah. As of the 2021–22 season, Elijah plays college basketball for the

University of Lynchburg The University of Lynchburg, formerly Lynchburg College, is a private university associated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and located in Lynchburg, Virginia, United States. It has approximately 2,800 undergraduate and graduate ...

. At the press conference announcing his hiring as the UNC basketball coach, when asked about being the first black UNC head coach, Davis caused public debate by stating he's proud to be African-American but also proud that his wife is white. Davis is a devout

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

. Davis is cousins with current Tar Heel player Drake Powell. Davis' aunt is Powell's grandmother.

Career playing statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, 50 , , 2 , , 16.8 , , .438 , , .316 , , .796 , , 1.1 , , 1.7 , , .4 , , .1 , , 5.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 56 , , 27 , , 23.8 , , .471 , , .402 , , .825 , , 1.2 , , 2.9 , , .7 , , .1 , , 11.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, style="background:#CFECEC; width:1em", 82* , , 4 , , 20.7 , , .480 , , .455 , , .808 , , 1.3 , , 1.8 , , .4 , , .1 , , 10.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 74 , , 14 , , 24.0 , , .486 , , .476 , , .868 , , 1.7 , , 1.4 , , .4 , , .1 , , 10.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, 36 , , 0 , , 17.3 , , .402 , , .229 , , .739 , , 1.1 , , .9 , , .3 , , .1 , , 5.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, 81 , , 30 , , 29.4 , , .456 , , .439 , , .836 , , 2.1 , , 1.9 , , .5 , , .1 , , 11.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, style="background:#CFECEC; width:1em", 50* , , 21 , , 27.6 , , .438 , , .451 , , .880 , , 1.7 , , 1.8 , , .4 , , .1 , , 9.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 79 , , 15 , , 23.0 , , .468 , , style="background:#CFECEC; width:1em", .491* , , .870 , , 1.7 , , 1.8 , , .3 , , .0 , , 7.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 51 , , 7 , , 24.7 , , .443 , , .436 , , .854 , , 2.1 , , 1.2 , , .6 , , .0 , , 7.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , 15 , , 11 , , 28.7 , , .479 , , .526 , , .905 , , 2.0 , , 3.3 , , .4 , , .0 , , 10.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , 51 , , 17 , , 24.2 , , .448 , , .452 , , .762 , , 1.5 , , 2.1 , , .5 , , .1 , , 7.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, 43 , , 1 , , 7.6 , , .392 , , .333 , , .833 , , .8 , , .7 , , .1 , , .0 , , 1.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 3 , , 0 , , 7.7 , , .000 , , .000 , , – , , .0 , , .3 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, 14 , , 0 , , 3.9 , , .111 , , – , , 1.000 , , .6 , , .2 , , .1 , , .0 , , .3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 685 , , 149 , , 22.1 , , .458 , , .441 , , .837 , , 1.5 , , 1.7 , , .4 , , .1 , , 8.2

Playoffs

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1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 7 , , 0 , , 13.7 , , .560 , , .500 , , .667 , , .9 , , .7 , , .9 , , .0 , , 4.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 23 , , 7 , , 17.2 , , .364 , , .286 , , .719 , , .9 , , 1.1 , , .2 , , .1 , , 5.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 11 , , 0 , , 16.7 , , .357 , , .370 , , 1.000 , , .6 , , .8 , , .1 , , .5 , , 4.2 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 8 , , 0 , , 18.1 , , .548 , , .526 , , .818 , , 1.5 , , .6 , , .0 , , .0 , , 6.6 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 49 , , 7 , , 16.8 , , .409 , , .373 , , .750 , , .9 , , .9 , , .2 , , .2 , , 5.1

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 1988–89 , style="text-align:left;",

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, 35 , , 0 , , 7.1 , , .512 , , .308 , , .774 , , .8 , , .3 , , .1 , , .0 , , 3.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1989–90 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 6 , , 21.3 , , .446 , , .396 , , .797 , , 1.8 , , 1.5 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 9.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1990–91 , style="text-align:left;",

, 35 , , 20 , , 24.3 , , .521 , , .489 , , .835 , , 2.4 , , 1.9 , , .9 , , .3 , , 13.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1991–92 , style="text-align:left;",

, 33 , , 30 , , 33.2 , , .508 , , .429 , , .828 , , 2.3 , , 1.6 , , 1.3 , , .2 , , 21.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 137 , , 56 , , 21.3 , , .498 , , .435 , , .819 , , 1.8 , , 1.3 , , .8 , , .2 , , 11.8

Records

*New York Knicks single-season 3-point field goal percentage (.476, 1995–96) *Dallas Mavericks single-season 3-point field goal percentage (.491, 1999–2000) *New York Knicks career 3-point field goal percentage (.449) *Dallas Mavericks career 3-point field goal percentage (.454)

Head coaching record

References

External links

NBA.com profileNorth Carolina Tar Heels profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Hubert 1970 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen American expatriate basketball people in Canada American men's basketball players American people of Cherokee descent Basketball coaches from North Carolina Basketball players from Winston-Salem, North Carolina College basketball announcers in the United States College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Dallas Mavericks players Detroit Pistons players FISU World University Games gold medalists for the United States New Jersey Nets players New York Knicks draft picks New York Knicks players North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball coaches North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball players Shooting guards Summer World University Games medalists in basketball Toronto Raptors players Washington Wizards players

Early life and education

NBA career

Sports analyst

Coaching career

North Carolina assistant coach

North Carolina head coach

Personal life

Career playing statistics

NBA

Regular season

Playoffs

College

Records

Head coaching record

See also

References

External links