The Smith Center now sparkles like a Christmas tree.

I wonder what members of Dean Smith’s family think these days when they go to a basketball game in the arena that bears his name. Smith, the legendary and Hall of Fame coach who retired in 1997 and died in 2015, never allowed one sign or one word of advertising in Carmichael Auditorium or later his building while he coached.

It might have been an old-fashioned point of view, but Smith was against over-commercialization of his program or, frankly, any commercialization. Nowadays, it’s commonplace and provides a necessary revenue stream to UNC’s 80-plus-million-dollar athletic budget.

It began slowly after Smith retired with a sign at the scorer’s table for Wachovia Bank, now Wells Fargo, and small logos on the four video boards up in the corners. The scorer’s table is prime real estate for any advertiser because those logos get on TV a lot, and every Carolina game is on TV.

Since wholesale signage was still not allowed, some companies wanted to hear their names on the PA or have their logos flashed on the two old digital panels while they were sponsoring some silly contest on the floor at halftime or during timeouts. Remember the kids racing in baggy shorts and over-sized shoes?

When Athletic Director Bubba Cunningham arrived in 2011, he needed more revenue and approved a digital ribbon board around the entire fascia of the upper deck. That ribbon had intermittent advertising mingled in with graphics that said “GET LOUD!” and “ON YOUR FEET!” in an attempt to wake up the famous wine-and-cheese crowd.

This season, the four video boards have been replaced by elongated state-of-the-art screens at each corner which serve several purposes, including showing team and individual stats and the actual time left and score of the game so those sitting between the baskets don’t have to crane their necks to see the scoreboards on the fascia in the end zones.

In between the stat panels are HD video screens with sharp replays and other graphics to incite the crowd and impress the recruits. It’s a new day in a new era of college athletics, but I’m glad Dean Smith can’t see it.

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