The Current State of UNC Basketball

The old proverb “when it rains, it pours” has proven to be true in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Just three days removed from suffering the second largest NCAA Tournament loss in school history, freshman Walker Kessler announced that he will be entering the transfer portal. Kessler’s sudden decision to part ways with UNC sent shockwaves through the college basketball universe, and ultimately led to rumors that there may be more players planning on leaving Chapel Hill this off-season. 

Unfortunately, for UNC fans those rumors were validated to be true today, with Day’Ron Sharpe declaring for the NBA draft. Two extremely talented players leaving the program, along with the events that have occurred in the past week are unprecedented for UNC; however. they are also a microcosm of the last two years for Roy Williams and company. 

Since the start of the 2019-2020 season the Tar Heels have been mediocre at best. With a combined record of 32-30 overall, finishing 13th in the ACC last season, and getting bounced in the first round the the NCAA Tournament this season (first time Roy Williams has lost in the first round) is something that quite frankly, a spoiled fanbase is not accustomed to. The frustration of the on-court struggles, combined with the ever changing faces of the one-and-done era in college basketball has the UNC fan base missing the days of Raymond Felton, Tyler Hansbrough, and Joel Berry. The rapid reaction hot takes from fans that consist of pleas for internal changes are irrational. This is a program that has won 18% of the national championships played since Roy Williams became the head coach in 2003. UNC has seen great players come off the bench such as Marvin Williams, Avery Bradley, and Danny Green that saw success during their college careers. With that being said I do believe the predicament that North Carolina basketball is in can be attributed to the combination of personnel mismanagement by the coaching staff and the lack of a true college experience due to Covid-19 protocols. 

The idea that this is was a “management” problem is somewhat viable solely due to preseason All-ACC selection Garrison Brooks unperforming and still somehow leading the Tar Heels with 28 minutes per game this season. Fans perceived Roy’s loyalty to his senior big man as a problem because it hijacked playing time from the other Carolina big men (Kessler 8 mpg, Day’Ron Sharpe 19 mpg, and Armando Bacot 22 mpg). Several different times throughout the season UNC seemed more fluid on the offensive end of the floor when Garrison Brooks came off the bench. A prime example of UNC being better when the offense didn’t run through Brooks is UNC’s ACC Tournament win over Virginia Tech. The Tar Heels dominated the glass with 13 offensive boards that led to 15 second chance points. Armando Bacot finished the game with 13 points and 17 rebounds in what was most likely their best win of the season. The most frustrating aspect of this “mismanagement” theory is the fact that this team potentially could have been much better than what they were. This could also be said about last years team with Cole Anthony. 

Moving forward Roy Williams will need to figure out quickly who plans on leaving and who is staying at UNC. North Carolina is not the only place major roster changes will occur. It is projected over 600 players will enter the transfer portal this offseason, and will certainly affect other blue blood programs. UNC fans need to relax and get excited for two incoming freshman in D’Marco Dunn (Fayetteville, NC) and Dontrez Styles (Kinston, NC). Dunn is the 16th ranked shooting guard in his class and Styles is the top ranked player in North Carolina according to 247sports. They will join a roster that will most likely, feature sharpshooter Kerwin Williams and strong defensive guard Anthony Harris. Roy Williams has proven time and time again he is one of the three best college basketball coaches of all time. When the time comes next year for a packed crowd in the Dean Dome to “jump around” for the first time, the memory of the past two years will quickly fade away.