Valvano, Jamison and Shelden Williams named to ACC Legends class

Jim Valvano, the late coach who led N.C. State basketball to a national championship title in 1983, and led a charge to raise money for cancer research before he died from the disease in 1993, is among those who will be honored in the latest ACC Legends class.

Valvano was the only coach in this year’s class of 15. All others were former players including Duke’s Shelden Williams and North Carolina’s Antawn Jamison.

Williams played for the Blue Devils from 2002 to 2006, and ended his college career as the school’s all-time leader in rebounds (1,262) and blocked shots (422). He won two National Defensive Player of the Year awards, and averaged a double-double during his junior and senior seasons at Duke.

Jamison played for the Tar Heels from 1995 to 1998. He was the unanimous National Player of the Year in 1998. He averaged 22.5 points per game and 10.5 rebounds that season. He also won ACC male athlete of the year, and became the first player to be voted on the first-team All-ACC in his freshman, sophomore and junior seasons.

Valvano coached the Wolfpack to a national championship in 1983, when N.C. State defeated Houston, a team heavily favored and also known as Phi Slama Jama. The Houston team featured future Hall of Famers Clyde Drexler, and Hakeem Olajuwon. But Valvano will always be remembered as being a champion for cancer research and his inspiring 1993 ESPY’s speech before his death, encouraging people to never give up.

The Legends will be recognized during the ACC Tournament from March 7-11 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

This story was originally published January 25, 2017 at 4:45 PM with the headline "Valvano, Jamison and Shelden Williams named to ACC Legends class."