2003 Top 50 List: Yes
Dan Collins List: Yes
Ronnie Shavlik was part of the first class to play all three varsity years in the ACC. He was a year behind Dickie Hemric, and Shavlik and Hemric were similar in many ways. Shavlik finished second to Hemric in 1955 for ACC Player of the Year, and in 1956 with Hemric out of the way Shavlik won it easily. Shavlik was also the Most Outstanding Player of the 1955 ACC Tournament.
Shavlik was a graceful big man who could run the floor and had a nose for getting rebounds. He still holds all kinds of rebounding records, including a probably unbreakable ACC season record of 581 rebounds in 1955.
I give Shavlik a slight edge over Hemric, only because he did a little better in All-America voting. He made second team in 1955 and barely missed first team in 1956, finishing sixth in both AP and UPI voting.
NC State was one of the best teams in the country in 1955 and 1956. In 1955, they went 28-4, won the ACC Tournament, and were ranked fourth in the country, but the Wolfpack was ineligible for the NCAA Tournament due to recruiting violations. In 1956, they were 24-3 and ranked second in the country going into the NCAA Tournament but were upset by Canisius in a thrilling four-overtime first round game. So for those two great years, Shavlik and the Wolfpack had exactly zero NCAA Tournament wins to show for it. The Wolfpack would not play another NCAA Tournament game under Everett Case; their next appearance was in 1965, the year that Case gave way to Press Maravich after two games.
Shavlik is, so far as I can ascertain, the only notable ACC player from Colorado. He gained national attention, including that of NC State assistant Vic Bubas, by playing well in the national AAU Tournament in Denver in 1952.
Notable players to win three straight ACC Tournaments:
- Shavlik and Vic Molodet – NC State, 1954-56
- Bill Bunting, Rusty Clark, Dick Grubar – UNC, 1967-1969
- Shane Battier, Nate James – Duke, 1999-01
- Jason Williams, Mike Dunleavy, Carlos Boozer – Duke, 2000-02
- Chris Duhon – Duke, 2001-2003
- Nolan Smith, Kyle Singler – Duke, 2009-2011
Two role players for Duke, Casey Sanders and Andre Buckner, are the only two players in league history to win four straight from 2000 to 2003.