ESPN.com - Kentucky Wildcats stay atop revised way-to-early top 25
2. North Carolina Tar Heels
And again, part of that reluctance stems from a lack of alternatives. Since early April, there has been a minor rush to crown North Carolina 2015-16's obvious top team. We get it, and yet, somehow, the talk about UNC feels a little too much like the Underpants Gnomes' business plan: Phase 1: Return all of your players. Phase 2: ??? Phase 3: Profit.
As with the gnomes, Phase 1 is undeniably impressive. The Tar Heels will still have (almost) everyone from last season's solid but not spectacular bunch, including lead point guard (and former preseason All-American) Marcus Paige, a starting frontcourt of Brice Johnson and Kennedy Meeks, emerging star(s) Justin Jackson and Joel Berry, and solid reserves/role players like Isaiah Hicks, Nate Britt, Theo Pinson, and Joel James. The only notable departure is guard J.P. Tokoto, an athletic, defensive wing who led the team in turnover rate and occasionally combusted UNC's spacing with a nonexistent offensive game.
That's an extremely impressive roster, but it still doesn't answer the questions of Phase 2. Will Paige be fully healthy all season? If so, how good will he be? Are we to assume, as a rule, that everyone from a 12-loss team will automatically get better? Or will the emergence of Jackson, Berry and freshman prospect Luke Maye put UNC over the top? Or both? Without Tokoto, are we sure this team will guard better than its eighth-place per-possession finish in the ACC last season? Will the ostensible offensive gains make up for it? Both? Neither?
UNC will be good. But it was good last season, too. Will the Heels be great? What's their Phase 3?
2. North Carolina Tar Heels
And again, part of that reluctance stems from a lack of alternatives. Since early April, there has been a minor rush to crown North Carolina 2015-16's obvious top team. We get it, and yet, somehow, the talk about UNC feels a little too much like the Underpants Gnomes' business plan: Phase 1: Return all of your players. Phase 2: ??? Phase 3: Profit.
As with the gnomes, Phase 1 is undeniably impressive. The Tar Heels will still have (almost) everyone from last season's solid but not spectacular bunch, including lead point guard (and former preseason All-American) Marcus Paige, a starting frontcourt of Brice Johnson and Kennedy Meeks, emerging star(s) Justin Jackson and Joel Berry, and solid reserves/role players like Isaiah Hicks, Nate Britt, Theo Pinson, and Joel James. The only notable departure is guard J.P. Tokoto, an athletic, defensive wing who led the team in turnover rate and occasionally combusted UNC's spacing with a nonexistent offensive game.
That's an extremely impressive roster, but it still doesn't answer the questions of Phase 2. Will Paige be fully healthy all season? If so, how good will he be? Are we to assume, as a rule, that everyone from a 12-loss team will automatically get better? Or will the emergence of Jackson, Berry and freshman prospect Luke Maye put UNC over the top? Or both? Without Tokoto, are we sure this team will guard better than its eighth-place per-possession finish in the ACC last season? Will the ostensible offensive gains make up for it? Both? Neither?
UNC will be good. But it was good last season, too. Will the Heels be great? What's their Phase 3?
