The importance of Nate Britt

[IDUNK4HEELS]

No Nate is never going to be a super star or make ESPN highlight takes but few appreciate what he brings to the table and to the team. Expierence is the biggest thing as a senior he will be expected to lead by example and greatly influence the freshman from being high school stars to just pieces of the puzzle to make the UNC 16/17 basketball team something special.

Another major factor with Britt is that he will be the insurance piece the team will need if Berry gets hurt or in foul trouble. I am not saying that Berry will go down and hopefully he won't but now being the leader of the team Berry will probably have to play close to 35 minutes a game like Paige a couple of years ago. I do not care of you are the next coming of Chris Paul that is a lot of wear and tear and responsibility for the elite junior.

Britt is just steady and his defensive foot movement is so much better now. It has been very unfair for fans to expect more from what he can deliver or to compare him to other guards in the past.

As the younger plays like Seventh Woods by ACC time understands the Carolina team concept and his role on this year's team I fully expect Britt's minutes to diminish quite a bit but Coach Williams like Coach Smith did before him appreciates senior leadership and rewards players who have been loyal to the program.

Sometimes a person's worth to the success of a team is not measured in wins or losses or the stat sheet but what intangibles he brings to the program.

Many and I mean MANY were down on Brice Johnson until he SHUT UP all of his so called experts last season as a SENIOR and I expect Britt and Meeks and Hicks to also make alot of the experts look foolish this season as well.

Again I say appreciate what Britt brings to the team and do not expect or unfairly compare him to other players who have worn Carolina Blue at his position before again he is not a stat guy but a proven UNC basketball player who will have given the program 4 years of his life and most importantly a team player not a me player.

 

[Spacegrass]

Stability , leadership , and showing other guys how to do the little things the right way. You need guys like Britt on every team.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Best defender on the team up to the point where a stronger offensive player could push him aside or a taller player could shoot over him. By which I mean he is our best player for staying with his man. And also the most likely guy to cover lapses by his teammates. Great quickness.

I'm hoping Nate will have put on enough more muscle that he can't be pushed aside so easily.

Let's not forget that even though his shooting percentages slipped a bit last season, he was still 2nd best on the team from the FT line (.800, after Joel), and 3rd best on the team in 3-pt shooting (after Joel and Marcus).

Just as Joel didn't find it easy to push Nate aside, don't be surprised if guys like 7th have a tough fight on their hands to take Nate's minutes. Especially if he can get his 3-pt shooting back up there.

I'm sure there are plenty of good teams that would be happy to have Nate start for them. I'm selfishly glad he is a Carolina guy.

 

[smooth as butter]

Nate experience,leadership and excellent defense is very important to the team.I dont see 7th taking his minutes away unless Britt plays very poorly.

 

[smooth as butter]

Nate experience,leadership and excellent defense is very important to the team.The only way I can see 7th taking his minutes away is if Britt is really struggling.

 

[DSouthr]

Nate is a wonderful young man, his contributions to this team will be VERY important. Now you guys already know, I have been hard on Nate, and he has improved a lot of what I did not love. I do not love the notion of Nate playing at the point a lot, he looks like a PG, IMO he plays like a 2 and he should make some good money over in Europe after he leaves UNC.

IDK how he will be used next season, have said many times I think he will start the season as our starting 2 guard but I do think his time will dwindle as kenny and/or 7th get their game legs under them. Honestly, I like 7th backing up both the 2 and the point more than Nate at the point, just my opinion. Nate is an important role player for us, an important piece of the puzzle just maybe not the biggest piece of that puzzle.

 

[Spacegrass]

Nate is a wonderful young man, his contributions to this team will be VERY important. Now you guys already know, I have been hard on Nate, and he has improved a lot of what I did not love. I do not love the notion of Nate playing at the point a lot, he looks like a PG, IMO he plays like a 2 and he should make some good money over in Europe after he leaves UNC.

IDK how he will be used next season, have said many times I think he will start the season as our starting 2 guard but I do think his time will dwindle as kenny and/or 7th get their game legs under them. Honestly, I like 7th backing up both the 2 and the point more than Nate at the point, just my opinion. Nate is an important role player for us, an important piece of the puzzle just maybe not the biggest piece of that puzzle.

I would be good with that. He is likely our 2nd best shooter.

 

[Archer2]

Best defender on the team up to the point where a stronger offensive player could push him aside or a taller player could shoot over him. By which I mean he is our best player for staying with his man. And also the most likely guy to cover lapses by his teammates. Great quickness.

Don't know that I would agree with that. I think Joel, Theo, and Kenny are all better defenders. He does bring stability, experience, and decent shooting to the mix. I'm glad he's on the team but I hope he's not playing more than 10-12 MPG, unless he steps up his game quite a bit.

 

[al would]

His biggest contribution, providing JB stays healthy, may be what he brings in practices. He's one of those players that makes people better by playing against him... jmho

 

[UNC Blue Hup]

Nate will be HUGE this year! Believe me!

 

[gunslingerdick]

Don't know that I would agree with that. I think Joel, Theo, and Kenny are all better defenders. He does bring stability, experience, and decent shooting to the mix. I'm glad he's on the team but I hope he's not playing more than 10-12 MPG, unless he steps up his game quite a bit.

X2

I don't agree either that Nate is the best defender. I think he has improved a lot with his on-the-ball defense throughout his time and I think he's always been a great help defender and a guy that is sneaky, clever and plays passing lanes. But I too think Berry is a better on-the-ball defender simply because he's much stronger.

However, you won't find a bigger Nate Britt supporter than me. I love what he's meant to the program and I expect him to have a good year and I expect him to be one of the team leaders. But as I mentioned in another thread, I don't really want to see Nate at the 2 this year very often. I think his role needs to be clearly defined as the backup PG. I would prefer to get KW, Seventh and BRob more time at the 2 than to have Nate there. Nate can give us 10 mpg from the PG spot and that will be great.