Every great basketball team needs some fire. Under legendary NC State basketball head coach Jim Valvano there were a number of great players, but only one was dubbed “fire” — Chris Corchiani.

The former McDonald’s All-American led the Wolfpack through the end of the Valvano era, helping steer the red-and-white to multiple NCAA tournaments, a Sweet Sixteen run and its most recent ACC title. For Corchiani, playing for Valvano was too good of an opportunity to pass up. 

“Ultimately, having the opportunity to play for Coach Valvano was the reason I chose NC State,” Corchiani said. “It was the best decision that I made in my athletic career, choosing NC State and playing for Coach V.”

Like many NC State players, Valvano left a strong impact on Corchiani. In addition to helping Corchiani grow as a point guard, Valvano helped him grow off the court.

“I came here as an 18-year-old boy from Miami,” Corchiani said. “He taught me more than just basketball — he taught me how to become a young man with responsibilities.” 

Once he got to Raleigh, Corchiani quickly hit the court. While it’s a tough transition going from a McDonald’s All-American dominating high school games to the college level — where only the best of the best compete — Corchiani made the jump as well as anyone could, quickly catching his teammates’ attention. 

“I watched him at the McDonald’s game and I was like ‘Ok, this gonna be fun to play with this cat,’” said former NC State forward Chucky Brown. “Chris earned his minutes, came off the bench and showed that he was capable. Once we started getting into ACC play he started and held his own from there.”

Corchiani’s toughness helped him successfully establish himself early on. Toughness was critical when competing on one of the best teams in the ACC, while also facing several talented teams such as North Carolina, Duke and Maryland. During his time in Raleigh, Corchiani backed down from nobody.

“Sometimes when you have a white dude at the point, sometimes the brothers try to jump on him,” Brown said. “Chris was feisty and was willing to fight, his toughness was the main thing that stuck out for me. In games when you see a guy that’s willing to fight for himself, you’re down to fight for him yourself.”

After a strong freshman season, Corchiani took on a bigger role as a sophomore, averaging 32 minutes per game. The season unfolded spectacularly for the Pack as the team won the 1989 ACC championship and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA Tournament.

“My role was to distribute the ball and play hard,” Corchiani said. “It was a team where everyone knew exactly what they had to do for the team to be successful. A lot of teams won’t buy into their roles and they’re not aware of their strengths and weaknesses — but that team really knew what they had to do.”

As the distributor, Corchiani was the fire that sparked the Wolfpack offense. Corchiani was the first college basketball player to reach 1,000 career assists and is currently second all-time in career assists, with 1,038. As one of the best passers in college basketball history, Corchiani tapped into his own strengths to play selfless basketball with his teammates. 

“I was always fortunate to play with some very talented players,” Corchiani said. “My skill set was complimentary to my teammates’ ability to score, and you end up evolving as a player.”

One teammate that Corchiani developed especially strong basketball chemistry with was Rodney Monroe. The 1991 ACC Player of the Year smashed scoring records, including Hall of Famer and former NBA superstar David Thompson’s school record. The two formed the Fire and Ice duo, driven by Corchiani’s knack for finding Monroe to set up buckets. 

“We created a bond on the court as freshmen,” Corchiani said. “As we became sophomores and were given the keys to the kingdom, it was a special relationship on the court. I knew exactly where Rodney was going to be, if it was a fast break I knew where he’d end up, feeling him without seeing him.” 

While Corchiani is best remembered for his elite passing and dynamic duo with Monroe, he was also a fierce defender on the perimeter. Despite being a smaller guard, Corchiani’s toughness made him a menace to opposing players. 

“I remember we played Georgia Tech, and Tom Hammonds was a big part of their offense,” Brown said. “We wanted to take him out of it, so Chris was asked to stand in front of him and deny him the ball. Tom Hammonds was so frustrated that he’d give Chris an extra elbow or a shove — he was frustrated and we loved it.”

Whether he was locking down the six-foot-nine Hammonds defensively, or carving up opponents with his ability to direct an offense, Corchiani simply made winning plays game in and game out. While he racked up astounding numbers of assists and steals, they weren’t so that he could collect awards — it was to help NC State win.  

“I played hard and I played to win,” Corchiani said. “I didn’t play to have personal accolades … Every play, every minute I wanted to embody the fanbase, and more importantly, I played to win. When we lost there was no satisfaction — It only came when NC State was victorious.”

After his record-breaking career at NC State, Corchiani began his professional basketball career. The Wolfpack legend was initially drafted by the Magic and went on to play abroad. He is now involved in real estate in Raleigh and founded Tryon Title Agency. 

At a school where there is a rich basketball history, Corchiani remains the best point guard to wear the red-and-white.