Blog

Apr 25, 2024

The 7 Most Well Known North Carolina Home Grown Athletes

With so many major colleges and universities it’s no surprise that North Carolina has produced more than its fair share of well-known athletes over the years. But who are the biggest names to come out

With so many major colleges and universities it’s no surprise that North Carolina has produced more than its fair share of well-known athletes over the years. But who are the biggest names to come out of the state? Our friends at BetCarolina.com did a deep dive to see which athletes who were raised in the state of North Carolina are the most well known currently. They looked at North Carolina athletes and how much those individuals have been discussed in the past year. From there they concluded that these individuals would be the most well-known athletes.

To create the list, BetCarolina utilized a weighted system between AhRefs.com Keywords Explorer and Google Trends to look at the most searched North Carolina athletes over the past 12 months. Once they had both pieces of information, they were averaged to determine the most well known athletes. For the purpose of this list BetCarolina definite ‘NC athlete’ as a “person who was born or resided in North Carolina in their formative childhood and teenage years for over 10 years.” You can read their full study and methodology here or see the 7 most well known NC athletes below. Did your favorite make the list?

The current Dallas Mavericks guard and former star at Duke calls Charlotte his hometown. He ranked 7th with a search volume of 204k.

Raleigh native and former Kentucky stand out John Wall is currently searching for his first next NBA landing spot. The guard had a search volume of 266k (which I just contributed to).

When you think Duke professional sports players you tend to think basketball. But not in this case. NY Giants QB Daniel Jones is a Charlotte native with 326k searches so far this year.

The Warriors guard is a Winston-Salem native who played basketball in his hometown at Wake Forest. His search volume? 512k.

Williamson is a former Duke player and number one overall pick in the NBA draft. The Pelicans forward is a Salisbury native with 550k searches this year.

If Seth made the list you know older brother Steph did as well. Curry made a name for himself at Davidson and solidified his greatness in the NBA with the Golden State Warriors. So far this year 1.6 million searches have been made.

Even years after his career ended Jordan remains a part of the culture of the state of North Carolina. The Wilmington native has the reputation of being one of the greatest NBA players of all time. So it’s no surprise 2.4 million people have wondered what he is up to.

There are so many incredible ideas and innovations in North Carolina. We’ve got some incredible, noteworthy brands that have come out of the state. With major universities, there is constantly new products and ideas coming out of the state. And now is the chance for those ideas to be recognized as the coolest things made in North Carolina.

The NC Chamber is currently conducting its fourth annual “Coolest Thing Made in NC” contest. The purpose of this contest is “to celebrate one of North Carolina’s most economically vital and enduring industries”. Nominees have been collected and voting is currently underway featuring a variety of products from both small and medium/large-sized businesses. Food, alcohol, technological advancements, safety products, jets, and consumer goods are just some of the categories the products nominated as the coolest things made in North Carolina. Voting continues through September 1st at which time the semifinalists will be selected.

Previous winners of the coolest thing in NC include:

2022: Medium-to-Large Business: Caterpillar 299D3 XE Compact Track Loader, Small Business: beachBUB® All-in-One Umbrella System

2021: Western Star 49X Vocational Truck

2020: Saf-T-Liner C2 Jouley Electric School Bus

The NC Chamber is the leading business advocacy organization in North Carolina. The Chamber’s mission is “to research, develop, advocate, and communicate for solutions and policies that produce a nationally competitive business climate in North Carolina.” The products listed below are just a handful of the ones in this contest. They are ones I found personally interesting or noteworthy and I hope you feel the same way too. You can see the full list of nominees and vote for your favorite here. I can’t wait to see which products take the title of the 2024 Coolest Thing Made In NC.

I think we can all agree that the Beach Mule has the coolest logo in NC. This cart is specifically designed to transport your stuff to the beaches- with our NC and East Coast beach terrain in mind. And if you’ve ever tried to find a cart that actually works, you know that is not an easy thing to do! And, the best part? It’s electric!

Beach Mule

The HondaJet Elite II is the fastest, farthest, highest-flying, and most fuel-efficient aircraft in its class. Which makes it pretty cool! And even more impressive is that this comes from the state of North Carolina (and someone much smarter than me).

HondaJet

Vote now for the Coolest Thing Made in NC. You may vote once daily per valid email address. Semifinalists announced soon!

Need to transport something via your golf cart? But tired of your things slipping off the seat? Enter The Cargo Caddie which is manufactured in Asheboro, NC. This light utility box will fit any golf cart backseat and rooftop.

A post shared by Crab Pot Trees (@crabpottrees)

An easy-to-assemble, durable, outdoor Christmas tree? Yes, please! That’s exactly what Crab Pot Christmas trees are. These trees are designed by a North Carolina crab worker and made right here as well. They store flat, and look gorgeous! I don’t even have a patio, much less a yard but I’m tempted to get some!

Crab Pot Christmas Trees

Don’t forget to vote⬇️⬇️ https://t.co/yxPlT1feaN

The Legend Car dates back to 1992 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. They are used as introductory racecars, and training mechanisms, and are enjoyed by people in countries all over the world.

The Legend Car

Memory Lane Bears take an item like a shirt or blanket of a loved one and creates a bear, pillow, stocking, or Christmas ornament out of it. What a wonderful, sentimental keepsake and way to keep loved ones no longer with you close.

Memory Lane Bears

Does your dog love the water? This product made in Denver, NC aims to make the time spent in the water with your pup even more enjoyable. Your dog will be able to easily get in and out of the water without you having to lift them. There are models for boats, docks, and pools.

WAG Boarding Steps

A post shared by Wrightsock (@wrightsock)

No one wants blisters from their shoes, and these no blister socks are the best at preventing those painful blisters. These double layered socks are made in North Carolina from recycled fiber that came from post-consumer recycled plastic bottles.

No Blister Socks

The Extended Stop Arm for school buses extends out 6.5′ from the driver’s side of the bus helping keep kids safe by detering illegal passing by 90%. They are made in Mocksville with materials from NC suppliers.

Extended Stop Arm

A post shared by Michella Noll Bowman (@oceantherapypotions)

One of an entire line of all-natural products made in Oak Island, NC Ocean Therapy Potions Bug Off Spray “really works”. It keeps the bugs away but won’t leave a sticky residue on your skin, and is safe to spray on your face and hair as well.

Ocean Therapy Potions

A post shared by Fun Mom Band (@funmomband)

Lululemon belt bag who? This durable, versatile fanny pack is proudly sewn in the mountains of North Carolina.

Mom’s Fanny

A post shared by Shibumi (@shibumishade)

If you’ve been to basically any beach other than Myrtle (where they are not allowed), you’ve probably seen these shades which are much easier to set up than umbrellas and use the breeze to provide shade. My one complaint of this Asheville, NC product- well actually two, they can get loud and I’m just not a fan of the blue color. Though I understand its designed to match the ocean and the sky.

Shibumi Shade