Former Tar Heel, Cardinal Clifford Rozier Dead At 45

We followed Clifford Rozier’s career through a Triangle/ACC eye, which in retrospect probably wasn’t very fair.

He left UNC for Louisville after his sophomore year, with Dean Smith telling him “you know, they play defense at Louisville too, Clifford.”

He played well enough at Louisville to be a first round draft pick of the Warriors, which sounds great today.

Back then though the Warriors were a complete train wreck and well known as one of the places in the NBA where your career could get derailed by drugs in a hurry.

Rozier’s life was complicated by drugs but more so by schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The man went through absolute, unmitigated hell.

You can read about his torment here, but…