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George Lynch, 'Playing at Carolina Brought Out the Best in You'

George Lynch highlights what makes Carolina special, brotherhood. Lynch dives into what it was like playing at Carolina and Dean Smith bringing out the best in each player.

George Lynch is no stranger to athletics. Hailing from Roanoake, Va, Lynch was a high school standout and named Mr. Virginia Basketball in 1989. Soon after, he caught the attention of Carolina coach, Dean Smith, and committed to UNC.

Lynch became First-team All-ACC and an NCAA Champion in 1993 after defeating Michigan and the infamous Fab 5. In his professional career, Lynch had landing spots in LA, Philadelphia, Charlotte, and New Orleans. And staying true to the Carolina connection, after retiring from the NBA in 2005, Lynch worked alongside Larry Brown and Matt Doherty farthing his education in coaching.

During his recent appearance on the podcast, 'The Player and The Fan,' George Lynch went into detail about his time at Carolina. He specifically spoke to the importance of 'Carolina Family' and the foundation Dean Smith built, "You make sure an older player has touched every guy that comes through",

"My experience playing at Carolina, it was about growing these young men. Coach Smith did a great job of making sure that the team was diverse. Everybody wasn't from North Carolina. I was from Virginia. I think he might have had two guys from just about every state. We had a Texas kid on the team. We had a kid from Germany on the team at one point. Scott Williams was from California. All over the country, New York.

He recruited everywhere. He just didn't recruit in the state of North Carolina. But it was a great opportunity. Of course, going to the Final Four, playing the rivalry game against Duke, playing in the ACC. It brought the best out of you." Lynch says, "And along with the friendships that I've had through the years meeting the guys. Even the younger guys like David and Melvin Scott.

The current guys that play now when you go back, you just try to share some knowledge and try to welcome them to the brotherhood. And we just try and make sure that every guy that comes through has been touched by an older player."

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