The roster is set, so how do we win the coming season?

[DSouthr]

Everybody remembers the bad shot JWit took, but we should also remember that he was playing much better at the end of the season. If he can pick up where he left off - and not all players do that, so we'll have to see - then I think he can be trusted.

Look, I get what JWit was trying to do, he was trying to show that he fit in with our starters, to show his value, considers himself to be a starter level player. Problem was he tried to hard, that last bad decision jumper was just his last bad decision jumper for the season, there were way to many others. He needs to realize, he plays MUCH better when he is not trying to prove he deserves to run with UNC starters and just plays, stop forcing things and just play, the ball will find you in much better situations than what you have been willing to take.

I felt a real Caleb Love like vibe from the kid, I will define as a serious over estimation of your own value, no considerations of your actually being weak in important aspects of a game. Go out and play your role to the best of your ability is the very best way to show you belong as a UNC starter.

Let me be VERY clear about this one point, I said this last season, the next time I see Ingram or JWit rebound the ball on the defensive end and start a fast break with their own dribble and not give the ball up once they stepped over the half court line, I would pull him for the rest of the game, no matter how much we may need him to win that game. After that game, my guards are going to have to explain to me why they did not present themselves to that rebounder for the outlet and if they did, then that forward that ignored his guards to take the ball up on his own better have me a great answer that proves itself on tape. Either way, my guards and that forward will be running their tails off while others practiced. If it happens again, that forward is done in this game as well as the next, no matter what, you have to draw that line and stand by it, if it happened again, I may have to discuss the players scholarship.

 

[DSouthr]

"Impossible to stop shot"? You are officially the Mack Brown of these boards. Continually putting lipstick on a pig and selling ice to eskimo's.

Optimism is fine but please, call a spade a spade and at least once see things as they are, not through Carolina blue tinted glasses.

I have been a Carolina fan for 45 years and will admit to weaknesses in recruiting, coaching, style of play, etc...Family this and family that is great, but "peeps" have to realize that unless recruiting improves and substantial change is made to improve NIL, recruits are not going to be enamored with the "Carolina Way" and sun drenched Saturday's on recruiting trips.

This roster has visible holes. Most see it. Those that do not see it choose not to see it. To say, as you did on another post, that Carolina is "king of the hill" in today's NCAA landscape is simply not true. Losing in the sweet 16 and to NC State in the ACC tournament final does not lend credence to that remark.

Again, I applaud your optimism, but please....get real and use logic.

I think that TP talking about the "imposable to stop shot" he is talking about Jalen's jumper, if he is, I have said that very same thing. So rather than hit him for saying that, who in the college game this season blocks a kid that has a sweet shooting form, confidence to take the shot, has a 7-5" reach, lifts off the floor for a "jumper", and shoots it with a high release? Who blocks that shot, who hinders that shot without fouling that is now in the college game? Who do you list off to counter my argument, 2, maybe 3 guys in all of college ball?

Now yes, I agree, my buddy TP is much higher than I am on this coming season for us, I not only have concerns but many of them do involve Jalen. I just do not believe that Jalen can play for big time starter minutes, 30+. I have serious stamina and staying away from foul problem like concerns. I know he was able to produce and play only 8.6mins a game, I know he is capable to double digit minutes at a solid level of play because he has already shown that. What I don't know that concerns me is he has not shown that he can play anything near 30mins a game and not see a serious drop off in his play or that he can stay away from foul trouble that would allow him 30mins a game. I see him as a 16-23mins a game guy right now and I am VERY concerned as to what we do when Jalen sits.

So yeah, my bud TP is higher than I am on our prospects and he won't sell me any of the weed he is smokin so Bogart is bumming me out! LOL But don't under estimate the real value of that Jalen jumper, especially when he is just as comfortable fading away with it. Ther are guys in the league that can hinder him but in college, I do not know of a player that actually can, if there are then the list darn sure is not long.

But I do want to offer my congrats to TP for now being compared to our hall of fame football coach Mack Brown, can someone PLEASE compare me to Roy or Dean? LOL

Post script add... If you have read, I assume you have, what I have said over the last 3 or 4 days, I have VERY serious concerns with our high school recruiting as well as Portal recruiting for this coming season and the 2025 class. I VERY STRONGLY have NIL as well as PERCEPTIONs of our program concerns and I think I have done a solid job of explaining why I have these concerns. Winning solves perception problems every time, UConn is now near the of a LOT of big time recruits. But it is a LOT harder to get the talents you need to consistently to stay at the top when you are not willing or simply don't have the $$$ to spend on the talents that make winning easier. Dean did a great job developing Micheal Jordon but day 1 of Jordan at UNC, he was still Jordan. No matter who the coach was, you just were not going to coach Brandan Huffman in to being Big Brad, no matter what you do. We have to get that big time talent and then develop it in to a big time player. It is now harder for us to get that big time talent than it may ever have been. WE are a blue blood program, maybe the bluest of the blue, we are a MT Rushmore program and bow to no other program on that mountain, we need to get back to being that.

Ya know, Dean used to SELECT players he wanted, duke now selects the players they want and we get the B-listers, we can still win with that, we have won with that but if now we are not even getting the B-list guys, there are monster concerns around the corner.

 

[TPFKAPFS]

There is a reason some idiots have been on ignore.for months! I use the function to ensure they cannot drag me down into their cesspool of ignorance and hate!

My name isn't Pollyanna so I do have a few concerns about next season and about recruiting. The principal difference between many others and me is I believe in our staff and our U without fail! My almost 60 years of Fandom are unshakeable!
BTW I would love to have another face to face gathering of the faithful. I find in person meetings work wonders in smoothing relationships or at least provide peeps the chance to express themselves fully!

 

[NathanFielder]

More accurately, give Claude another skill to add to his current list of traits and he is special. Height is impossible to add, but he has already proven capable of competing despite this limitation. Lubin is a proven commodity and there is no vast gulf between playing at Vandy and UNC, even though it is a step up. JWit has shown steady improvement since he arrived and steep improvement during last season. There is no logical reason to suspect it won't continue. JWash was a high level recruit who actually has that "most valued skill" and we only question his stamina/strength and health. We saw him demonstrate an impossible to stop shot, rebounding/finishing with strength, and flashes of rim protection. There are far more reasons to expect this group to synergize, becoming greater than the sum of its parts, than there is evidence to be pessimistic!

I don’t see Claude as an overly twitchy athlete so I don’t think he’s any skill away from being “special.”

I think he’ll have a role. He gives you 5 fouls against deeper interior teams. But I kind of see a clunker with heavy feet. But reasonably nobody should trust anyone on this board for talent evaluations, lol.

I think it’s a lot to ask for 4 players who have never had major responsibility on a serious team to all improve at a pretty significant rate together.

Also, I have plenty of logical reasons to base some of my doubts on. All of those guys you mentioned aren’t just one or 2 things away from being really good. There are several legitimate question marks about all of them.

They’ll have their opportunity to make their case throughout the season.

 

[al would]

My name isn't Pollyanna so I do have a few concerns about next season and about recruiting. The principal difference between many others and me is I believe in our staff

There are always concerns us couch coaches have most every year but I have been a UNC fan since the mid 60's and I have seen a good bit and for this yrs. team here are my general thoughts in a nutshell. We are still an undersized guard team with RJ on the floor as a 2 even though he is a tested veteran player. We are thin at the PG and especially the 5. I don't know what is transpiring in the off season but hopefully RJ is actually trying to absorb something resembling a UNC pg mentality but he aint got it in the last 4 yrs. yet hope springs eternal and he needs to do a better job of it this year. Providing we stay healthy we can put both a fairly beefy veteran group on the floor as well as a quality small ball team so we are versatile in our match ups for most any team. I am really looking forward to seeing Drake Powell !! This can be an incredible defensive team but we have had that capability in the past and didn't do very well (coaching?). Bottom line comes back to coaching and in the last few seasons I have been less than impressed with hubs use of players and game coaching. We shall find out soon enough .. GO HEELS!!

 

[TPFKAPFS]

Lubin and Claude do not need significant improvement to be important contributors next season. Claude is a role player and will be important if he simply uses his five fouls and makes the hustle plays + putbacks he is known for. The comment I made was speculative and at no point did it imply he was currently special. Lubin started on a Div 1 team so I believe he will contribute. JWash already showed a steep improvement and since this is in his first extended healthy period with a staff known for physically developing players, there is every reason to believe he will continue his climb. JWit has improved steadily since he arrived and just needs to continue + emphasize decision making and allowing the game to come to him. JWash is the only one who needs to make an extreme improvement and he is likely to do so because most of his issues stem from health issues hampering natural development! Of course it is logical to have some doubts, but it is just as logical to have hope! Hope appeals to me much more!

 

[al would]

I think you guys might be looking at the team more as individuals when you should be looking at the possibilities and combination of players available within the team concept. On paper we should have a great mix of talent and experience where we could match up with anyone. A tad thin in the middle but I think if this team is used properly UNC maintenance staff will have to re-do the Dean Dome's floor because this group could/should run the finish off the floor this year. Back to coaching we go.

 

[alabamaheel]

I think you guys might be looking at the team more as individuals when you should be looking at the possibilities and combination of players available within the team concept. On paper we should have a great mix of talent and experience where we could match up with anyone. A tad thin in the middle but I think if this team is used properly UNC maintenance staff will have to re-do the Dean Dome's floor because this group could/should run the finish off the floor this year. Back to coaching we go.

While I do believe our coaches have a huge part in winning, the guys still have to play and execute. I’m almost always a glass half full person but I just don’t see the hype in Drake P, and if EC still can’t shoot then we’ll need some huge rotation changes. I do agree that we have some better options this year. Jackson is a straight up boy dog. I’m excited about the possibilities of a few guys too. And right on HD better have em running.

 

[TPFKAPFS]

While I do believe our coaches have a huge part in winning, the guys still have to play and execute. I’m almost always a glass half full person but I just don’t see the hype in Drake P, and if EC still can’t shoot then we’ll need some huge rotation changes. I do agree that we have some better options this year. Jackson is a straight up boy dog. I’m excited about the possibilities of a few guys too. And right on HD better have em running.

I agree that Powell doesn't wow you on first glance, but he seems like one of those versatile stat stuffers who might not be spectacular at any one thing, but is dadgum good at many things. I think his versatility, coachability, athleticism, and dog mentality will definitely contribute to winning! 100% on EC but I think his confidence will be restored and he will contribute by scoring at all three levels. If he takes shots with confidence, it will be enough to pull his defender a bit closer as well. 100% on Cap! And I think nobody knows more than Hubs how much speeding up the tempo will help this deep and versatile team!

 

[DSouthr]

While I do believe our coaches have a huge part in winning, the guys still have to play and execute. I’m almost always a glass half full person but I just don’t see the hype in Drake P, and if EC still can’t shoot then we’ll need some huge rotation changes. I do agree that we have some better options this year. Jackson is a straight up boy dog. I’m excited about the possibilities of a few guys too. And right on HD better have em running.

Bama, really amazing, I just watched a NBA scouting break down full of examples of what was presented that got me in to the I wanna talk Drake Powel mode, came to the site looking for an existing post to do that or maybe start one, and then I read your post and it is just what I was looking for! LOL

I suspect, with Drake, you are a lot like I was about a year ago, I didn't see it either, I saw "maybe" a Leaky like upside, I neither liked or trusted his shooting, seemed a bit hesitant to take shots, almost Kenny Williams like hesitation, near Leaky like. No offense to Leaky, great player, but oh my not another wing that can't shoot please. Then I began to watch him as best I could, not just high lite stuff but as much full game stuff as I could get, I started to see and the more I saw the more I liked.

Drake Powel today actually is a 3 level shooter/scorer, Jack has shown some of that to while being a bit more aggressive looking for his offense. Honestly, it is now to the point I trust Drake as a shooter a touch more than I do Jack. I really love how Drake elevates strong off the floor for his jumper, has a nice high release on it and seems to consistently use every bit of that 7ft reach on his jumper. His release is slower when he takes open looks as opposed to contested shots. What is almost unfair is his ball handling and his off ball decisions and movement, kid uses a hesy to near perfection, hesy, change direction, and he is consistently watching the help defender to determine if he drives to the rim or jab step pull up, solid catch and shoot or off movement. Loves the Iverson cut and attack, his primary defender usually ends up ball watching so help has to come. This kid can legit play the 3 or 2, could actually fil in at the point if it came to it, and yes, he could as well play a small ball 4.

I am to the point of really questioning if I still want Tyson starting at the 3 or Drake (which should not mean starting Tyson at the 4).

 

[DSouthr]

I agree that Powell doesn't wow you on first glance, but he seems like one of those versatile stat stuffers who might not be spectacular at any one thing, but is dadgum good at many things. I think his versatility, coachability, athleticism, and dog mentality will definitely contribute to winning! 100% on EC but I think his confidence will be restored and he will contribute by scoring at all three levels. If he takes shots with confidence, it will be enough to pull his defender a bit closer as well. 100% on Cap! And I think nobody knows more than Hubs how much speeding up the tempo will help this deep and versatile team!

Pace, control of game tempo is in my opinion the key to this team, speed and quickness can neutralize length. That should be our primary thought on every possession and we have not played as if it were for a full 40mins in the last 3years, been no shortage of talking about it, from we fans, from the players or from the staff but how again did Otis Redding put it, "actions speak louder than words". Last season, immensely better but truth is it was better ONLY when Cadeau was in as our point. The pace immediately slowed and we were back into half court offense when Cadeau sat down and later part of the season even Cadeau slowed it down some.

I have said for 3 soldi seasons now, I do not like RJ at the point, does anyone recall a single possession unless it is an end of game or end of half situation where RJ was in as out PG, where we ran off a made basket? What I have seen is constantly, calling of the breaks and going directly in to half court offense, over and over, rinse and repeat. Truth is, I really do believe that in addition to Cadeau, that Drake, Seth, or Jack would push the pace much stronger than RJ has or will deep in a game. Why, I really think a lot of it is that RJ plays to many minutes, he has to find places to catch his breath, such as walking the ball up, it isn't a matter of his want to. Not looking to throw shade at RJ at all but if you are really serious about pushing the pace for 40mins you have to realize those minutes take a big toll and you must rest your guys.

You look at any single game it is easy to say RJ can play 36mins+ but there is a cumulative effect across a really long season, it isn't as much about playing 40mins a game, it is about playing 40mins a game for every game, for every minute of the 40. Not to mention I strongly prefer RJ taking jumpers on fresher legs than on tired ones.

 

[al would]

I really love how Drake elevates strong off the floor for his jumper, has a nice high release on it and seems to consistently use every bit of that 7ft reach on his jumper. His release is slower when he takes open looks as opposed to contested shots. What is almost unfair is his ball handling and his off ball decisions and movement, kid uses a hesy to near perfection, hesy, change direction, and he is consistently watching the help defender to determine if he drives to the rim or jab step pull up, solid catch and shoot or off movement. Loves the Iverson cut and attack, his primary defender usually ends up ball watching so help has to come. This kid can legit play the 3 or 2, could actually fil in at the point if it came to it, and yes, he could as well play a small ball 4.

As I said .. I'm really looking forward to watching Drake Powell .. he's a highlight waiting to happen ..

 

[alabamaheel]

Bama, really amazing, I just watched a NBA scouting break down full of examples of what was presented that got me in to the I wanna talk Drake Powel mode, came to the site looking for an existing post to do that or maybe start one, and then I read your post and it is just what I was looking for! LOL

I suspect, with Drake, you are a lot like I was about a year ago, I didn't see it either, I saw "maybe" a Leaky like upside, I neither liked or trusted his shooting, seemed a bit hesitant to take shots, almost Kenny Williams like hesitation, near Leaky like. No offense to Leaky, great player, but oh my not another wing that can't shoot please. Then I began to watch him as best I could, not just high lite stuff but as much full game stuff as I could get, I started to see and the more I saw the more I liked.

Drake Powel today actually is a 3 level shooter/scorer, Jack has shown some of that to while being a bit more aggressive looking for his offense. Honestly, it is now to the point I trust Drake as a shooter a touch more than I do Jack. I really love how Drake elevates strong off the floor for his jumper, has a nice high release on it and seems to consistently use every bit of that 7ft reach on his jumper. His release is slower when he takes open looks as opposed to contested shots. What is almost unfair is his ball handling and his off ball decisions and movement, kid uses a hesy to near perfection, hesy, change direction, and he is consistently watching the help defender to determine if he drives to the rim or jab step pull up, solid catch and shoot or off movement. Loves the Iverson cut and attack, his primary defender usually ends up ball watching so help has to come. This kid can legit play the 3 or 2, could actually fil in at the point if it came to it, and yes, he could as well play a small ball 4.

I am to the point of really questioning if I still want Tyson starting at the 3 or Drake (which should not mean starting Tyson at the 4).

Sounds good. I’m a little more excited. But please remember he’s played against hs kids. Tyson against college. Huge differences for a lot of players. Sounds promising though. Thanks

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

I agree that Powell doesn't wow you on first glance, but he seems like one of those versatile stat stuffers who might not be spectacular at any one thing, but is dadgum good at many things. I think his versatility, coachability, athleticism, and dog mentality will definitely contribute to winning! 100% on EC but I think his confidence will be restored and he will contribute by scoring at all three levels. If he takes shots with confidence, it will be enough to pull his defender a bit closer as well. 100% on Cap! And I think nobody knows more than Hubs how much speeding up the tempo will help this deep and versatile team!

Drake has the potential to be a superstar. Maybe not as a freshman. But don't rule it out.

 

[NathanFielder]

I’m going to take the cautious approach when it comes to expectations for freshmen going forward. Incoming freshmen are seldom compared to merely ok players. And especially after last year’s Cadeau’s comps, I’ll play it conservatively and go the wait and see route.

I’m just happy it looks like there’s real talent off the bench though. Some scoring punch and dare I say some 2 way players? It’s been a while. No one has to talk me into Dmarco Dunn being a dude this season.

Also, I don’t think UNC has the luxury to bring Cade Tyson off the bench, especially if he’s a top 5 shooter in the country. With Cadeau having to prove himself as a shooter, with a frontcourt that has question marks… This team will need Tyson’s shooting as a starter.

Unless Drake Powell is prime Kawhi Leonard, this team will need Tyson’s shooting. But I’m expecting him to be a developmental offensive prospect, like 90%+ freshmen are.

 

[NathanFielder]

Lubin and Claude do not need significant improvement to be important contributors next season. Claude is a role player and will be important if he simply uses his five fouls and makes the hustle plays + putbacks he is known for. The comment I made was speculative and at no point did it imply he was currently special. Lubin started on a Div 1 team so I believe he will contribute. JWash already showed a steep improvement and since this is in his first extended healthy period with a staff known for physically developing players, there is every reason to believe he will continue his climb. JWit has improved steadily since he arrived and just needs to continue + emphasize decision making and allowing the game to come to him. JWash is the only one who needs to make an extreme improvement and he is likely to do so because most of his issues stem from health issues hampering natural development! Of course it is logical to have some doubts, but it is just as logical to have hope! Hope appeals to me much more!

Just focusing on Claude… Sure Claude needs significant improvement. He had 16 assists and 65 turnovers 2 years ago in a large role. He had 22 assists and 25 turnovers last year in a lesser role. Will he be able to not turn the ball over this year? It’s a gigantic question mark for him. Not really for UNC. If he turns the ball over too much, he isn’t going to play. But for ability to play meaningful minutes, he has a significant question mark.

And I can throw out individual question marks about each frontcourt player but in fairness to them, I can do that about every basketball player on the planet right now.

The biggest question they have to answer is will they be collectively good enough to anchor this team as a serious Final Four contender. That’s what it eventually will come down to. I have my doubts today in September. But they’ll have their opportunity to prove me wrong and more importantly, prove they’re good enough.

 

[NathanFielder]

Drake has the potential to be a superstar. Maybe not as a freshman. But don't rule it out.

I’m ruling out right now that Drake Powell will be a superstar as a freshman. We need to stop doing this with 5* freshmen, lol.

If he’s a serious contributor on a really good team as a freshman, that would be awesome for him.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

I’m ruling out right now that Drake Powell will be a superstar as a freshman. We need to stop doing this with 5* freshmen, lol.

If he’s a serious contributor on a really good team as a freshman, that would be awesome for him.

We'll see.

With 2 top-10 freshmen, the odds are that at least one of them will be the real deal. Six months ago, most would have picked Ian to be the one, with Drake being a question mark. Now it looks like both might make that cut.

What gets in the way is that we don't need for either of them to start, much less both. Less burn could mean neither of them becomes a star. Or only 1 of them. But either of them could be.

 

[DSouthr]

We'll see.

With 2 top-10 freshmen, the odds are that at least one of them will be the real deal. Six months ago, most would have picked Ian to be the one, with Drake being a question mark. Now it looks like both might make that cut.

What gets in the way is that we don't need for either of them to start, much less both. Less burn could mean neither of them becomes a star. Or only 1 of them. But either of them could be.

I think it would be interesting to see Seth, Jack, and Drake come in as a trio (while Cadeau, RJ, and Tyson catch a rest). That would create a totally different look from our starters that attacks effectively but in very different ways.

 

[TPFKAPFS]

Seth, Jack, and Drake come in as a trio

This almost made me jump out of my chair! Can you imagine watching EC, RJ, and Cade leaving, thinking whew I might get a break and then.......Seth, Cap, and Drake come in!!!!!! Seth puts the clamps on your tired PGs legs! Cap breaks your 2Gs ankles, and Drake shoots over or runs circles around your 3, lol!

 

[al would]

This almost made me jump out of my chair! Can you imagine watching EC, RJ, and Cade leaving, thinking whew I might get a break and then.......Seth, Cap, and Drake come in!!!!!! Seth puts the clamps on your tired PGs legs! Cap breaks your 2Gs ankles, and Drake shoots over or runs circles around your 3, lol!

I'm telling you guys ... this team has a ton of possibilities and options and if HD doesn't DEVELOP AND USE his bench this season he's has no business coaching at UNC.

 

[NathanFielder]

We'll see.

With 2 top-10 freshmen, the odds are that at least one of them will be the real deal. Six months ago, most would have picked Ian to be the one, with Drake being a question mark. Now it looks like both might make that cut.

What gets in the way is that we don't need for either of them to start, much less both. Less burn could mean neither of them becomes a star. Or only 1 of them. But either of them could be.

I’m saying Drake Powell won’t be a superstar as a freshmen. For me a college basketball superstar is an All American level player. Not a freshmen All American.

What gets in the way is Powell is likely a developmental prospect so give him an opportunity to develop into whatever he’s going to become.

 

[NathanFielder]

I'm telling you guys ... this team has a ton of possibilities and options and if HD doesn't DEVELOP AND USE his bench this season he's has no business coaching at UNC.

It’s his first year where he actually has big time talent off the bench. I’m not going to compare this season to Puff Johnson, Dmarco Dunn, Paxson Wojcik, and Seth Trimble bench years. No offense to Seth but Jackson and Powell are real high level prospects that probably aren’t an entire side of the ball of development away from being NBA talent.

Also, RJ Davis certainly developed himself into a hell of a player under Hubert. Does that not count because RJ is a starter? Or is player development the same?

Let’s see how he handles it.