Jordan was already dominating the NBA by the time the \u201cDean Dome\u201d opened in January 1986. Four decades\u2019 worth of wear and tear have left it in desperate need of repairs. A new roof. Updated electrical. And whatever else a deeper look under the hood reveals. Altogether, you\u2019re talking at least $150 million \u2014 according to multiple studies the school has commissioned, which cost over $1 million in and of themselves \u2014 just to get the place back to its outdated status quo.<\/p>\n
But nobody invested in the program\u2019s long-term success believes that\u2019s the best course of action.<\/p>\n
The building either needs a major facelift \u2014 one expected to cost about $600 million \u2014 or, as has also been proposed, UNC needs to start from scratch. To build new on a different site, one that allows for increased revenue generation in line with modern priorities. One such location would be in a campus expansion development<\/a> called \u201cCarolina North,\u201d roughly 3.5 miles from the current arena.<\/p>\n What should be done about the home of UNC hoops has both divided and rallied the Carolina community, with traditionalists and those bracing for college athletics\u2019 business-like era publicly butting heads. Roy Williams, UNC\u2019s other Hall of Fame men\u2019s basketball coach \u2014 who won three national championships himself, and who is among the closest living links to Smith \u2014 and other former Tar Heels have spoken outwardly about keeping the arena where it is. Students have handed out pregame flyers urging fans to sign an online petition to \u201cSAVE THE DEAN DOME.\u201d That swell of public support has in turn sent UNC\u2019s administration scrambling to fix its messaging, about an issue that tears at fans\u2019 heartstrings, but must also be viewed through a realistic lens.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very much in favor of staying here in the Smith Center,\u201d Williams said in a now-viral video. \u201cRemodeling, renovating, whatever we need to do. I do not want to go off campus. \u2026 Coach Smith wanted this place on campus. That was his wish. There was no question. And he even told me one day that after he was dead and gone, it was up to me to fight to keep it on campus.\u201d<\/p>\n Coach Roy Williams strongly supports renovating the Smith Center. <\/p>\n Please support Dean Smith’s wish and sign the petition: https:\/\/t.co\/R9kFNQy1H4<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/y6OIGIkBqF<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Smith Center South (@SmithCenterUNC) January 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n And considering the online petition \u2014 organized by the Committee for a South Campus Arena \u2014 already has over 37,000 signatures, Williams isn\u2019t alone in that sentiment.<\/p>\n Now North Carolina is attempting to mend fences, especially with some of its aggrieved alumni. The school has even produced its own podcast<\/a> about the arena debate, releasing financial details in an effort to fix the narrative.<\/p>\n If that can be done, that is.<\/p>\n Fans flocking to the Smith Center for the Duke game on Feb. 7 usually would have been discussing ball. Like, the impending battle between freshman forwards Caleb Wilson and Cam Boozer. Or what a win over Duke would do for the Tar Heels\u2019 NCAA Tournament resume.<\/p>\n Instead, many were embroiled in the same micro-debates that have been playing out in conference rooms (and living rooms) with some of the Tar Heels\u2019 top decision-makers.<\/p>\n Fans who were in college themselves when the Smith Center opened, arguing for leaning into tradition and keeping the building as the campus\u2019 heartbeat. And on the flip side, current sophomores worried about the program\u2019s long-term viability if revenue lags \u2014 about what happens if the Tar Heels suddenly lack the funds to recruit elite talent.<\/p>\n But before these conversations occurred out in the open, they happened in back rooms. In November and December of 2024, UNC officials began conveying in closed-door meetings with donors and former players that a decision had essentially already been made on the arena\u2019s future. That the Tar Heels were moving to Carolina North, end of story. No putting the toothpaste back in the tube. Generations of former players \u2014 including Joel Berry, the Most Outstanding Player from UNC\u2019s most recent championship team in 2017, whose jersey hangs in the Dean Dome rafters \u2014 found that out for the first time on a video call in mid-December, which Berry said was \u201ctoo late.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt almost felt like I was being told it was happening,\u201d Berry said. \u201cWhen all of this was happening, the conversation should have started with the players.\u201d<\/p>\n On that same call, Tyler Hansbrough \u2014 the program\u2019s all-time leading scorer \u2014 told chancellor Lee Roberts as much.<\/p>\n That because he didn\u2019t attend UNC, or play there, he couldn\u2019t possibly understand the ties people have to the place.<\/p>\n \u201cThey just kind of missed the point on how special the Smith Center was to so many people, especially former players,\u201d said Dave Hanners, who played for Smith and later served as one of his assistant coaches. \u201cI will be honest: I haven\u2019t yet talked to a single person that said, we think it would be good to move north.\u201d<\/p>\n That view quickly went mainstream. As word spread of a potential decision, an entire campaign mounted \u2014 including the Committee for a South Campus Arena taking out a full-page ad with that message in the student newspaper and handing out copies before the Duke game for students to display behind the basket. Hansbrough made a follow-up video to Williams\u2019, as did program favorite Luke Maye.<\/p>\n Tyler Hansbrough agrees: Renovate, Don’t Relocate the Dean E. Smith Center. <\/p>\n Please sign our petition \u2013 https:\/\/t.co\/R9kFNQy1H4<\/a>. \u2014 Smith Center South (@SmithCenterUNC) January 20, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Rusty Carter, a longtime Tar Heels donor and the committee chair, said he went on the offensive because he and his peers \u201cwere absolutely blindsided\u201d at being told the men\u2019s basketball program was moving off-campus.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just not an approach that we feel good about,\u201d Carter said. \u201cYou have the legacy piece \u2026 the attachment, the emotion, the love, Dean Smith.\u201d<\/p>\n The backlash was so stern, so forceful, that it accomplished what it intended: stopping the train of momentum. While the university approved initial development plans<\/a> for the 230-acre Carolina North in January, those crucially did not include specifications for a new arena. Athletic director Bubba Cunningham has since said that \u201cwe dropped the ball\u201d in terms of communicating with all the important stakeholders \u2014 and to that point, the school recently formed an 11-person council of former players to advise it on all future steps of the process.<\/p>\n \u201cThe passion that you\u2019re hearing now is a good thing. It\u2019s a positive. It shows the commitment of Carolina Nation to Tar Heel basketball,\u201d Roberts told reporters in January. \u201cI\u2019d be much more worried if people didn\u2019t care.\u201d<\/p>\n Let\u2019s see the numbers first.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a common refrain from the past few months \u2014 and one that UNC finally addressed Wednesday, when it released the full financials of its arena options<\/a>.<\/p>\n
#UNC<\/a> #Tarheels<\/a> #uncbasketball<\/a> #uncchapelhill<\/a> #DeanDome<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/3IiXjPUCNJ<\/a><\/p>\n
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