Probably the biggest reason why Puff should start over Nance against Miami on Monday

[IDUNK4HEELS]

Forget the reason that Nance is currently going thru a scoring drought as he is presently playing out of position at the power forward spot instead of his natural position of center or that it seems his nagging back injury seems to be affecting his shot and confidence I feel the biggest reason to start Johnson over Nance in this crucial MUST WIN over the Hurricanes 🌀 is that Miami starts three outstanding guards and lateral movement combined with speed and quickness will be the KEY 🔑 to slowing the team from South Beach.

As quickly shown against Duke last week Miami just chewed up and spit out Blue Devils at will as Duke’s bigs could not keep up or cover any of the Miami guards …

I like the idea that Carolina could match the Hurricanes trio of guards with Love, Black and Davis and Trimble at times as well.

Nance and Washington could give Bacot some breaks in the paint 🎨 when he gets tired or gets into foul trouble.

Nickel and Styles could spell Puff at the four without giving up too much.

Dunn who drove twice last game against Clemson and scored once and made a great pass to Washington for a flush on the other trip to the hole 🕳️ could give Black a breather.

Because this game is so important both Love and Davis May play 35 minutes which might be so important if they are able to continue their hot shooting from downtown and drive and get fouled going to the basket 🧺…

Defense again will be key especially on the guards who basically make the Hurricanes offense run so smoothly. This is where the lineup change if made will make the difference on the court because Carolina should be able to match Miami’s foot speed.

And the one thing not mentioned so far and is very important that Puff Johnson cannot be dared to shoot like opponents do to Black because he will not think twice about shooting the three from downtown…

 

[al would]

I feel the biggest reason to start Johnson over Nance

After watching the um/dook game I'd say Puff is a better start because he is so much quicker on both O/D .. seems nance has a medical thing going on. He just seems slow and he has little extension on his shots... both inside and out. Hopefully Puff has been held back to heal and get conditioned / game shape. I love his game and shot.

 

[kevindow]

Nance is a fine player, but only in his natural position at the 5. I still don't like the form on his shots, very slow, originating low and from the side. Slow and low don't cut it, and from the side makes no sense from a directional standpoint. I definitely prefer the shooting style of his brother and dad, which are definitely not slow, low and from the side, and are definitely quicker, higher and in line with the basket.

I think HD should forget about the seniority system on who gets to play, despite it being a UNC tradition. If you are playing solid defense and contributing your fair share to the offense, you should play regardless of your seniority. Right now, Nance should be benched until he recovers from whatever is ailing him. Next up, and I think that should be Puff at the 4. And if Leaky continues to be a liability on offense, then Nickel is next up. And Dunn should be next up if Love or RJ are underperforming.

 

[sctarheel30]

Nance continues to struggle

 

[dtodd4475]

I wonder what percentages Nance is shooting since his back issues, compared to prior to the injury. It wouldn't be that to find out, maybe when I have a bit more time I will do the math.

I'm sure it's dreadful since, but I'm curious how much of a drop off it is.

 

[39 Feet Above Sea Level]

Agree with the overall sentiments Here. Since his back injury, Pete just hasn’t found his stroke.
Puff is healthier than he’s been, has a great stroke, and hustles on D.
Start him and let’s see what happens. He could be the difference-maker for us.

 

[DSouthr]

Key for this one is to have leaky take out Jordan Miller, good size match up for Leaky. Next, healthy amount of getting the ball inside to Bacot so he can operate OVER the top of their 6'7" center. The starting line up should be (it will not be of course) RJ & Caleb back court, with Puff at the 3, so Leaky can handle Miller at the 4, with Bacot. Nance on Miller is a bad match up for us, Leaky on Miller is a bad matchup for them. Hoping Caleb can hold his own against Wong but they need scoring from Miller to beat us.

 

[Archer2]

Key for this one is to have leaky take out Jordan Miller, good size match up for Leaky. Next, healthy amount of getting the ball inside to Bacot so he can operate OVER the top of their 6'7" center. The starting line up should be (it will not be of course) RJ & Caleb back court, with Puff at the 3, so Leaky can handle Miller at the 4, with Bacot. Nance on Miller is a bad match up for us, Leaky on Miller is a bad matchup for them. Hoping Caleb can hold his own against Wong but they need scoring from Miller to beat us.

I’d love to see that starting lineup, bring Pete off the bench for 15-20 minutes. But I doubt we will either. My main concern is do we see the same level of intensity that we saw the last game?

 

[DaveChapelle]

Pete is our best chance at winning the opening tip.

Pete is the best at feeding Bacot in the post. Something we should focus on with Bacot being defended by a 6'7" player to start the game.

Puff's knee problem has not magically disappeared. He'll likely need surgery in the offseason. Between now and then, it's all about managing pain and inflammation so that he is as healthy as possible for the postseason. That means limiting how much time he plays in February.


If Pete can play, he should start. How much Puff plays in the regular season games will vary based on how Puff feels and what the medical staff advises.

 

[TarHeelMark]

Pete is struggling for sure, but I do kinda like bringing Puff off the bench, as his infusion of energy feels like it gives the whole team a lift. Regardless, Puff needs to get at least 20 minutes.

 

[al would]

bring Pete off the bench for 15-20 minutes

Not sure I'd want to see that many minutes from Pete against the UM with their line up and quickness but it might be a great opportunity to #freenickel and give him some run for Puff but for whatever reason HD seems to have Ty in the dog house ..

 

[DaveChapelle]

So far Puff has given up 5 points to Miller, committed a foul, blown a dunk, missed a 3, made a layup, and been outrebounded on a couple rebounds he should have gotten.

Hope both he and Nance play better.

 

[heels05champs]

So far Puff has given up 5 points to Miller, committed a foul, blown a dunk, missed a 3, made a layup, and been outrebounded on a couple rebounds he should have gotten.

Hope both he and Nance play better.

Well, neither did. Pretty terrible showing for both of them.

 

[DaveChapelle]

Well, neither did. Pretty terrible showing for both of them.

Yup. Nance was better on defense for most of the game, but was awful on offense and on the boards. Once again he wore the electric belt on the bench to treat his back. Puff was just awful in about every aspect of the game tonight.

 

[CarolinaBlue5]

Wow

 

[ChiShankCity]

Nance and Johnson are both role players. Neither dude is going to make much difference regardless who starts. Role players will a good moment, a lot of meh moments, and some bad moments.

They’re both role players. Don’t expect more from them.

 

[heels05champs]

View embedded media

Wow

Will Hubert allow the same backcourt to hold Carolina back again next year or will he use the portal to replace and get better? RJ is not a point guard and Love is just a detriment to the team more times than not.

 

[CarolinaBlue5]

Will Hubert allow the same backcourt to hold Carolina back again next year or will he use the portal to replace and get better? RJ is not a point guard and Love is just a detriment to the team more times than not.

Just a total shit show!

 

[Archer2]

Yup. Nance was better on defense for most of the game, but was awful on offense and on the boards. Once again he wore the electric belt on the bench to treat his back. Puff was just awful in about every aspect of the game tonight.

So WTF can’t Nickel get any burn, especially when Nance and Puff were stinking the joint up? Hubert’s unwillingness to develop his bench is mind boggling. His lack of adjustments offensively and defensively is mind boggling. The low basketball IQ of this very experienced team is mind boggling. Just one big waste of a season.

 

[al would]

His lack of adjustments offensively and defensively is mind boggling.

His lack of everything is mind boggling. I simply have no clue to why he does, or did not even attempt to develop, a bench rotation at the beginning of this season, why he is hung on this dumb fng 4 out offensive thing where arguably the 2 worst 3pt shooters occupy the corners, wtf in 5 yrs. someone has not told an elite defender that was a former HS pg to fng use his quickness to aggressively attack the basket because he has no consistent outside shot, and how in the hell you can allow basically an entire team to phone in the bigger part of their games without giving them some pine time. This season ended before the tip on the first game and it's been a pathetic representation of UNC bball and damn near an embarrassment.

 

[IDUNK4HEELS]

Nance and Johnson are both role players. Neither dude is going to make much difference regardless who starts. Role players will a good moment, a lot of meh moments, and some bad moments.

They’re both role players. Don’t expect more from them.

Exactly right

 

[kjcooper]

Totally agree that Nance and Puff are role players, so are Dunn and Seth. The only two players on the bench who could become majors contributors down the road are Nickels, and Washington. Do not expect any of the current ones to make any major contribution going forward. Forgot about Styles since he is not a shooter, and will probably part ways after this season, just my honest opinion.

 

[ChiShankCity]

Totally agree that Nance and Puff are role players, so are Dunn and Seth. The only two players on the bench who could become majors contributors down the road are Nickels, and Washington. Do not expect any of the current ones to make any major contribution going forward. Forgot about Styles since he is not a shooter, and will probably part ways after this season, just my honest opinion.

Realistically all of our players minus Bacot are role players. RJ and Caleb are starter caliber role players (maybe Leaky too), but they're still role players. They're all unpredictable game-to-game.