2003 Top 50 List: Not eligible
Dan Collins List: Yes
Nolan Smith won the ACC Triple Crown in 2011. He was ACC Player of the Year, ACC Tournament MOP, and first team Consensus All-American. I know you’re wondering who else has done that:
- 1957, Lennie Rosenbluth
- 1962, Len Chappell
- 1963, Art Heyman
- 1968, Larry Miller
- 1992, Christian Laettner
- 1996, Tim Duncan
- 1998, Antawn Jamison
- 1999, Elton Brand
- 2001, Shane Battier
- 2005, JJ Redick
- 2006, JJ Redick
- 2008, Tyler Hansbrough
- 2019, Zion Williamson
In other words, Nolan Smith and a bunch of guys who were better than he was. But still, he’s a legitimate member of that group, and any time you’re on a list with those guys, you’re doing something right. Smith’s 2011 season is the ACC’s only 20+ point, 5+ assist season in the past 20 years (since Jason Williams in 2002).
He was really good on the 2010 national championship team, too. Scheyer and Singler got a little more press, but Smith was really an equal partner in that triumvirate that led the Blue Devils to the national title. He was named Most Outstanding Player of the South Region.
It looked like they had a great shot to repeat in 2011. They were ranked #1 most of the year and won the ACC Tournament. But they got shipped out West and ended up losing to Arizona in the Sweet 16. In case you forgot, that was the Kyrie Irving year. Irving hurt his foot in the eighth game of the season and didn’t play again until the NCAA Tournament. You wonder if the season would have turned out differently had Irving been healthy the whole year. He was great when he played.
Smith is in some ways similar to Chris Carrawell, a Duke guard who really stepped forward as a senior to win ACC Player of the Year. But Smith was better. His great year was better than Carrawell’s great year, and Smith was a major contributor to a national championship team.