CB3 Media Heel Prints

North Carolina, coming off a 29-8 season and an ACC regular season crown, will look a lot different (as is the college landscape these days) without leading rebounder Armando Bacot and transfer sharpshooter Cormac Ryan, who was a Duke killer. But RJ Davis is coming back for a fifth season and new recruits and transfers are coming in.

Highly touted Drake Powell, a 6-6 Small Forward from Pittsboro, and Ian Jackson, a 6-4 guard from New York, should figure prominently for the Tar Heels but with other experienced veterans on the team, it could take a while for them to make an impact.

Seth Trimble, who flirted with the transfer portal, is back and the athletic junior guard is going to begin the season as a starter. He'll undoubtedly get more playing time from last year when he averaged 5 points a game.

With talented sophomore guard Elliot Cadeau back to distribute the ball, and with an improved three-point shot, he could be the engine that makes the Tar Heels run. Many think of Davis as the catalyst and he will be called on as a leader and a scorer especially.

The guard-heavy Heels - they figure to play three guards most of the time - will need to replace a lot of rebounding with big men Jalen Washington (6'10") and Jae'Lyn Withers (6'9"). Washington sometimes seemed tentative and unsure last year. With Bacot gone, this is his chance. Will he take advantage of it? That's one of the biggest team question marks.

Withers has a lot of talent but sometimes is a loose cannon - not always making the best decisions. He also shot a couple of ill-advised threes a year ago (going just four of 20 from beyond the arc) but he's worked on the long ball in the off season.

Coach Hubert Davis would like the team to outrebound opponents by 10 boards a game. That will be a challenge. If it comes true, it very well may be because of the addition of Vanderbilt transfer Ven-Allen Lubin, a 6-8 junior, who led the Commodores in offensive rebounds and blocked shots.

The other key transfer could make the difference that Cormac Ryan did last year. Cade Tyson, who played two seasons at Belmont, shot an amazing 44.6 percent from three-point range. Can he do it in the ACC? Will Davis and Cadeau provide enough from long-range without him? How much playing time will he get? It will all depend on how his shot is going.

Others who may get some playing time include grad transfer Ty Claude (6'7"), from Goldsboro, who averaged four points and five rebounds in 17 minutes a game for Georgia Tech last season.

The media has predicted that the Tar Heels will finish second in the conference and that seems reasonable. Carolina has a tough non-conference schedule that includes Kansas, UCLA and Alabama, who ended the UNC season last year.

The record will likely be similar to last season with the Tar Heels at least getting to the Sweet 16. If this team - which should be able to score - gels together and gets solid defensive play, the Tar Heels could make the Elite 8 with a chance to go to the Final 4. Then anything can happen.

- Clifton Barnes