Will We Get a Backup Center? Do We Need One?

[What Would Jesus Do?]

There are several perfectly good reasons why we might want to add a backup center to our roster. Armando was injured a number of times last season (not to mention in the championship game the year before). We don't know if Washington will "be there" this coming season. And Zaden High is an unknown factor.

Withers and Ingram could probably do spot duty in the post if they had to, especially against smaller teams, but they are more 4/3 or 3/4 than 4/5.

The problem, of course, is that it will be hard to get someone who is proven to be good enough who - barring injury or foul trouble - would be willing to play limited minutes.

On the other hand, there are several youngsters - frosh and sophs - in the portal. Not proven, but some may have good potential. And because they have several years of eligibility left, they might be perfectly happy coming to UNC, even if they aren't used that much in their first year.

So should we go after a guy like that?

This question came to mind when I noticed that St John's freshman center entered the portal. I know nothing about him. Might be a hard pass for all I know. But he fits the bill of someone who might be delighted to attend UNC and could give some minutes now, and play his way into more in the future.

This backup center question reminds me of the year when we already had Manley and Huffman and the debate was whether we should also get Garrison Brooks. Many here said we should pass. As it turned out, he was the only success in that trio of centers.

Of course that year, 2018, we didn't have a returning center. Much less an All-ACC center.

Personally, I'd stick with what we have. But what do you guys think? Should we try to land a backup center? And, if so, should we go for a proven player or a youngster?

 

[DSouthr]

I admit, my initial thought to this question of do we need to portal in a back up center was yeah, I think so, note the lack of an absolute, as in yes of course we do. Like everyone I suppose, I* am also drawn to shiny new toys. Ah but then comes time to really think about it and after I do I am not even as soft toward the need as I was initially. I would like to turn the question just a little bit.

Can we find a center to portal in that is:
A) Willing to play for scrap minutes behind Bacot
B) Willing to play as a center and not try to prove he belongs as a guard
C) Brings us any more than Zayden High, who is already with us, who I believe is 6'10" and around 225 now.

Case A seems to require a Tony Shaver type guy, a guy that is frankly not very good because if he were good enough to get starter like minutes elsewhere why would he not do that as opposed to sit forever on our bench and maybe get a minute or 2 at the end of a blow out?

If case B applies then where is that guy, most of the guys that have the build not only want the PT but they feel the need to stretch, a bit like going out right now looking to buy a brand new Model T, good luck with that.

And case C, well we already have High, we seem to love his ability other wise why did we not only offer him a scholly but take his commit? Seems to me EVERY around here loved his commit so why look at him as Tony Shaver part 2? Per David Sisk, High is much more a center now than we initially felt, has the length and is not rail thin, can stretch but that isn't really the center piece of his game. So why not develop him with the back up minutes and go from there, Jalen is there in the event we need to go even deeper, as is Withers. So, is this really an area OF NEED, I am not so sure it is.

 

[TarHeelFanJ]

Jalen Washington 💪

 

[gauchoheel]

I think we already have one in Washington, and two more emergency guys in High and Withers. Seems like the spot is adequately filled to me, and given Hubert didn't try to add a backup center the last two years I think he's satisfied with not going three deep.

 

[DSouthr]

Jalen Washington 💪

From what we all saw last season it is really clear that Jalen physically has a LONG way to go in order to become a guy that can station down in the low post and give us much. His body just was not ready, he simply has to get bigger, I think physically High is more ready but Jalen has more upside. I do not expect Jalen to be able to add the weight he needs to play the 5 in just this 1 off season and because I don't I think he has to be more of a stretch 4 than a 5 for now.

 

[TarHeelFanJ]

From what we all saw last season it is really clear that Jalen physically has a LONG way to go in order to become a guy that can station down in the low post and give us much. His body just was not ready, he simply has to get bigger, I think physically High is more ready but Jalen has more upside. I do not expect Jalen to be able to add the weight he needs to play the 5 in just this 1 off season and because I don't I think he has to be more of a stretch 4 than a 5 for now.

I think having a full healthy off-season will benefit him tremendously going into next season. Do I think he can give us 30 mpg at Center next year? No. But he won’t have to (barring injury). I think Washington can provide us good minutes as a backup 5/4 (10 mins at C and 5 mins at PF)

 

[DaveChapelle]

There are several perfectly good reasons why we might want to add a backup center to our roster. Armando was injured a number of times last season (not to mention in the championship game the year before). We don't know if Washington will "be there" this coming season. And Zaden High is an unknown factor.

Withers and Ingram could probably do spot duty in the post if they had to, especially against smaller teams, but they are more 4/3 or 3/4 than 4/5.

The problem, of course, is that it will be hard to get someone who is proven to be good enough who - barring injury or foul trouble - would be willing to play limited minutes.

On the other hand, there are several youngsters - frosh and sophs - in the portal. Not proven, but some may have good potential. And because they have several years of eligibility left, they might be perfectly happy coming to UNC, even if they aren't used that much in their first year.

So should we go after a guy like that?

This question came to mind when I noticed that St John's freshman center entered the portal. I know nothing about him. Might be a hard pass for all I know. But he fits the bill of someone who might be delighted to attend UNC and could give some minutes now, and play his way into more in the future.

This backup center question reminds me of the year when we already had Manley and Huffman and the debate was whether we should also get Garrison Brooks. Many here said we should pass. As it turned out, he was the only success in that trio of centers.

Of course that year, 2018, we didn't have a returning center. Much less an All-ACC center.

Personally, I'd stick with what we have. But what do you guys think? Should we try to land a backup center? And, if so, should we go for a proven player or a youngster?

Jaelyn Withers best season of college basketball was playing Center.

Washington is clearly a college center. 6'10" with a 7'3" wingspan, and physically incapable of guarding anyone outside the paint.

Zayden High has been trending towards being more of a Center than a true stretch 4.


So we already have 3 back-up Centers on the roster for next season.


One issue I have noticed a certain segment of uninformed fans who think that any big with a jumpshot is a stretch 4. You have to actually be able to defend the perimeter, chase guys around screens, close out on shooters to play the modern 4 spot. A guy like Washington, whose bad knee has robbed him of his lateral mobility, is an absolutely terrible fit for this role. Washington is a 5 with a reliable midrange jumpshot. He will likely be a college center for his whole college career.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

From what we all saw last season it is really clear that Jalen physically has a LONG way to go in order to become a guy that can station down in the low post and give us much. His body just was not ready, he simply has to get bigger, I think physically High is more ready but Jalen has more upside. I do not expect Jalen to be able to add the weight he needs to play the 5 in just this 1 off season and because I don't I think he has to be more of a stretch 4 than a 5 for now.

Two words: Hansbrough Diet

I recall reading that Hansbrough ate 6 hearty meals a day. I'm envious. But I suppose I could, too, if I had his work ethic (and was 50 years younger).

 

[gauchoheel]

Jaelyn Withers best season of college basketball was playing Center.

Washington is clearly a college center. 6'10" with a 7'3" wingspan, and physically incapable of guarding anyone outside the paint.

Zayden High has been trending towards being more of a Center than a true stretch 4.


So we already have 3 back-up Centers on the roster for next season.


One issue I have noticed a certain segment of uninformed fans who think that any big with a jumpshot is a stretch 4. You have to actually be able to defend the perimeter, chase guys around screens, close out on shooters to play the modern 4 spot. A guy like Washington, whose bad knee has robbed him of his lateral mobility, is an absolutely terrible fit for this role. Washington is a 5 with a reliable midrange jumpshot. He will likely be a college center for his whole college career.

Exactly right. A couple years ago we had fans calling for Kessler to play the 3 with Brooks/Bacot/Sharpe bc he can supposedly shoot. Like lol, no. This isn't football; you have to play both ends of the floor.

Also I think Jalen is a good shooter for a center, not in absolute terms necessarily. He didn't hit a single three last year, so it's not like he's some huge positive as a shooter at the 4 anyway.

 

[al would]

Jalen Washington 💪

I actually think Jalen, considering his injuries, hasn't had the chance to develop physically enough to play center but from what little I've seen of him he is (potentially) a very talented 4 with both power and stretch 4 capabilities. The man already has a much better looking inside and outside shot menu than Bacot. jmo

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Apparently Will Shaver decommited from Belmont yesterday.

Any chance he returns to bolster our backup center cadre?

If a kid withdraws from the portal, does he retain his "free" transfer option for future use?

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Exactly right. A couple years ago we had fans calling for Kessler to play the 3 with Brooks/Bacot/Sharpe bc he can supposedly shoot. Like lol, no. This isn't football; you have to play both ends of the floor.

Zone D?

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

In old news that I missed, Hunter Dickinson is headed to Kansas. Huge get for KU.

Per On3...

"In addition to those bigger schools, Georgetown was a school Dickinson unofficially visited, as was Maryland, his home state. The Terrapins hired Virginia Tech assistant coach Mike Jones, Dickinson’s high school coach, in early April."

Oops. I hope UMd didn't hire that guy just to lure Dickinson.

 

[TPFKAPFS]

I would welcome Shaver if he wanted to return. But I think we are otherwise fine for backup center. As stated, we only need 5-10 minutes and a combo of High, Withers (played 5 before in the ACC) , and Washington are good enough. It has been 2 full years of healing for Washington so I expect a leap in effectiveness from him. I think he is a natural 4 who will be a great change of pace for us. If he gets strong enough, he will be a problem for teams used to banging with Bacot! He could also be a matchup nightmare beside Bacot. High keeps getting bigger and stronger so I expect him to be good enough by ACC time too. All three have high motors + work ethic and bring stuff to the table. Let them duke it out in practice and find their levels!

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

I would welcome Shaver if he wanted to return. But I think we are otherwise fine for backup center. As stated, we only need 5-10 minutes and a combo of High, Withers (played 5 before in the ACC) , and Washington are good enough. It has been 2 full years of healing for Washington so I expect a leap in effectiveness from him. I think he is a natural 4 who will be a great change of pace for us. If he gets strong enough, he will be a problem for teams used to banging with Bacot! He could also be a matchup nightmare beside Bacot. High keeps getting bigger and stronger so I expect him to be good enough by ACC time too. All three have high motors + work ethic and bring stuff to the table. Let them duke it out in practice and find their levels!

All good points. My worry stems from Armando's injuries last season. He only averaged 23 mpg over the last 5 games. Just 8.6 ppg and 6.8 rpg during that stretch.

Now, sure, he could be 100% next season, and stay that way. Having more outside shooting (and maybe better passing) could force the D to ease up a little. But I'd like to see him play fewer minutes, which would hopefully keep him fresher and less likely to have to play hurt. Which is to say I'd like to be sure we can provide 15 minutes of backup at center.

Like you, I think we probably have sufficient backup coverage already on the team. Washington, Withers and High. But we don't know yet how much we can count on Washington or High.

For me, getting Shaver back or adding a similar sort of backup center is just increasing the odds that we'll have what we need to take some of the load off Armando.

We'll probably be fine as we are, but I wouldn't mind a little insurance. Assuming Shaver can reclaim his transfer eligibility if he returns to the team, he can always decide to leave next year if he doesn't make good strides this year.

 

[ChiShankCity]

You can't fill everything. Every team will have one or two spots where they lack a little bit of depth or experience in big games. I guess this question directly depends on if Jalen Washington can play meaningful minutes at the 5. I have no idea right now. I would love to have a definitive backup 5 because Bacot will turn his ankle a couple of times this year. I'm not saying he's injury prone. He just plays around a lot of traffic and his foot is bound to land on someone elses a couple of times. I would love a legit 5 to spell that. Justin Knox wasn't a true 5, but he was the ideal role player IMO. It would be great to have that.

I do think we can go extremely small for short bursts of a game. But you need to do a lot of experimenting with lineups, preferably in the non-conference. But Hubert seems to be allergic to playing his bench. Hopefully that's because he didn't think they were any good last year. Hopefully he plays the bench more this year. But a lineup with Ingram and Withers at the 4 and 5 with 3 guards is intriguing to be in bursts.

This isn't a perfect team next year. I don't think Cadeau makes them perfect either. But I think there's going to be some options with this team that we didn't have last year.

One thing last year... We didn't really have an energy infuser off the bench. Someone who comes in and can uplift your group with their energy. A lot of that probably had to do with the style of play. But I hope Seth develops into a dude who provides some jolt off the bench. I think Wojcik has some of that. I'm not talking about scoring or anything like that. Just a dude that plays hard, cuts hard with a purpose, will fight through screens with some energy, draw a charge... That kind of dude.

It's a really small thing, but in the NBA playoffs, I like bench guys that sprint to the scorer's table when their number is called. It may mean absolutely nothing. But I think that kind of energy on the floor can translate into something positive. And I think attitude is a big part of playing off the bench.

 

[DSouthr]

Exactly right. A couple years ago we had fans calling for Kessler to play the 3 with Brooks/Bacot/Sharpe bc he can supposedly shoot. Like lol, no. This isn't football; you have to play both ends of the floor.

Also I think Jalen is a good shooter for a center, not in absolute terms necessarily. He didn't hit a single three last year, so it's not like he's some huge positive as a shooter at the 4 anyway.

Simply put the kid (Jalen) was not in basketball shape last season, he didn't have the legs to play for long sketches and he certainly didn't have the strength to fight for position deep in the paint. Unless he has a massive transformation physically he is not a center, in fact if not for his crazy length I doubt anyone would be looking at him as a center right now. Right now and until he is able to add a good deal of strength and fil out some you want him at the 4 stretching and using those turn around jumpers.

I saw an argument from someone that said he can't guard opposing 4s away from the paint, find that funny with all the switching we have done for the last couple seasons, as if Nance was a masterful defender out side of the paint? LOL Right now at the 5 I would put Jalen behind both High and Withers for the back up Bacot minutes but I would have him VERY close to Withers for the minutes at the 4 (for now I would start Withers but I am higher on Withers than most seem to be).

I as well see some talk about maybe bringing Shaver back, not only is that not going to happen folks but I am very fine with it not happening. Look, if High is not a better fit there then I would have to question why he was offered a scholly, wouldn't you? No, don't think High is ready for big minutes next season but there is not big minutes available to back up Bacot. Shaver had his chance to show what he could do and the game just was not there, saw that movie, feel no desire to watch it again.

 

[DSouthr]

All good points. My worry stems from Armando's injuries last season. He only averaged 23 mpg over the last 5 games. Just 8.6 ppg and 6.8 rpg during that stretch.

Now, sure, he could be 100% next season, and stay that way. Having more outside shooting (and maybe better passing) could force the D to ease up a little. But I'd like to see him play fewer minutes, which would hopefully keep him fresher and less likely to have to play hurt. Which is to say I'd like to be sure we can provide 15 minutes of backup at center.

Like you, I think we probably have sufficient backup coverage already on the team. Washington, Withers and High. But we don't know yet how much we can count on Washington or High.

For me, getting Shaver back or adding a similar sort of backup center is just increasing the odds that we'll have what we need to take some of the load off Armando.

We'll probably be fine as we are, but I wouldn't mind a little insurance. Assuming Shaver can reclaim his transfer eligibility if he returns to the team, he can always decide to leave next year if he doesn't make good strides this year.

Bacot's injuries last season, why not add the prior season as well, he has ended both seasons on crutches. A large part of it is because Bacot does stay deep in the paint, rarely leaves the paint and there was a LOT of crowding in the paint last season, more defenders than there should have been because we had 2 weak jump shooters that defenders could leave and crowd Bacot with (lot of feet for Bacot to land on). We ran a strange version of a spread offense, in that it did spread out our offense but it didn't spread out the defense or even force them to get out of their comfort zone, kinda happens like that when 2 of the 4 you spread out the defense actually wants them to shoot.

Next season, when we spread 4 out we should be able to do that with our having 4 dangerous shooters from distance, that means there isn't the same crowd of defenders or their feet for Bacot to land on. That should as well translate in to lesser need for the last second hero ball fall away heat checks, other wise known as rushed bad shots against a defender. When the quality of the shots go up our shooting % will go up when those shots are being taken by solid shooters that move well off the ball to allow good passing angles out for clean looks. PLus the guys we have added are also know to be very strong cutters, in other words they see things that are about to open up rather than wait for them to, they can put the ball on the floor really well on a sold pump fake, doing that makes defender tip toe out to defend you rather than fly out. You tip toe I splash in your face, you fly out I sell the pump fake and either re-position dribble and splash or take it to the hole and slip it to Bacot if his man comes over to harass your drive finish. That is what being able to spread the defense gives you, it is what was MIA last season.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Next season, when we spread 4 out we should be able to do that with our having 4 dangerous shooters from distance, that means there isn't the same crowd of defenders or their feet for Bacot to land on.

I think this is what we are all counting on. BUT, how many times have we thought we would have good outside shooting before the season started in recent years, only to be a poor-outside-shooting disappointment?