Phil Ford Biography

Phil Ford Jr. was born on February 9, 1956, and played professional basketball in the National Basketball Association. He graduated from Rocky Mount Senior High School in 1974 and had an All-American college career with the North Carolina Tar Heels. Ford was the first freshman under head coach Dean Smith to start in his first collegiate game. He led UNC to a second-place finish in the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season and won the 1975 ACC tournament. Ford averaged 26 points in the tournament and became the first freshman in ACC history to earn tournament MVP. In his sophomore season, Ford averaged 18.6 points and 7.0 assists per game. In the 1977 ACC tournament, Ford scored 26 points in the championship game to help UNC win another conference title.