P.J. Hairston, one of the top players on the team until this year, will not be reinstated by the University of North Carolina’s basketball team.
He has sat out for the first 10 games of the season, and in a hard decision for the team to make, they announced that his career as a Tar Heel is officially over.
Hairston sat out for the first part of the season due to an investigation into potential violations of team rules, and throughout the process, it has been very hard on the team, and Roy Williams as a coach.
Williams also said that the decision to let P.J. Hairston go from the team was possibly the saddest, and most difficult thing that he has gone through as a coach. That is saying a lot, when considering how long Roy Williams has been a college basketball coach, and the quality of teams that he has coached.
The NCAA and UNC have both been investigating Hairston for off-the-court drama that occurred before the season starting, and have tried to resolve eligibility questions stemming from the use of cars linked to a felon and party promoter earlier this year.
Goodbye P.J. Hairston. You were a good ballplayer and you will be missed. See you in the NBA.
— Matt Harrelson (@mattyharrelson) December 21, 2013
As the leading scorer for UNC prior to the 2013 season, and one of the top players in the league, and it is sad for the team to see him leave in this way.
Bubba Cunningham, the athletic director of UNC said “We’ve taken a long time to get to this point. It’s very disappointing for P.J. and his family. He has been terrific, as Roy has said, in the past six months in this entire process. … We are not going to seek reinstatement for him.”
His family followed up with a statement that said “This process has been long, and for (it) to end without having a final decision from the governing body is a shame. Ultimately this affects P.J., and his eligibility to play Division 1 colligate (sic) basketball for the remainder of this season, as well as next season.”
Here at #UNC, where the Tar Heels will begin a game in a few minutes against Davidson. P.J. Hairston in a suit, on the bench.
— Andrew Carter (@_andrewcarter) December 21, 2013
UNC won't seek P.J. Hairston’s NCAA reinstatement. He's 2nd all-time on UNC’s list of most 3's in a season (89). Shammond Williams is first.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 20, 2013
Despite not having P.J. Hairston on the court, North Carolina has had an up-and-down season, although they have won when it counted, beating big-name teams such as Michigan State, Kentucky, and Louisivlle, who were all ranked high at the time that the Tar Heels beat them.
P.J. Hairston was a guard for UNC, and led the Tar Heels in scoring last season, finishing his college career with 707 points, and 127 3-pointers.
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