UNC Basketball: The Three Most Important Players Down The Stretch
By Matt Hamm
The “big 4” of North Carolina Kendall Marshall, Tyler Zeller, John Henson and Harrison Barnes will be counted on to lead this team down the stretch. Without big performances from each of them in March, no Tar Heel will be cutting down the nets this year. Those four represent maybe the most talented quartet in all of college basketball. But they still aren’t Carolinas most important down the stretch.
I believe firmly that those four will play great basketball in March. But they need help, and these three are the keys to UNCs title hopes.
Reggie Bullock: Bullock is the now the starting shooting guard after both Leslie McDonald and Dexter Strickland were lost for the year due to injury. The biggest concern when Strickland went down was the defensive end of the floor. Bullock is by far the superior scorer and was supposed to give the Heels a dangerous shooter in the starting lineup. He has done a better than expected job on defense but has not shot the ball the way they need. It’s pretty much been the opposite of what was expected when Strickland first went down. Bullock has yet to find his stroke for Carolina since joining the starting lineup. He is shooting just 42% on the year and 37% from three point range. UNC needs Bullock to play like the five star top tier recruit he’s supposed to be. Like a lot of his teammates I think Bullock is mostly still finding his way and figuring out his role on the team. He was more aggressive on the boards against Miami and seemed to assert himself offensively with more confidence. He needs to continue down that path and bring his game to another level by March.
PJ Hairston: Hairston came to Chapel Hill as one of the top shooter in the entire 2011 class. Hairston has a quick, confident release and range beyond the three point line. PJ started off the year strong and put up a couple of hot shooting, 20+ point performances early in the season. His shot has since disappeared and his confidence also seems shaken. A tremendous athlete, he would benefit greatly from taking the ball to the basket more often. Hairston is averaging just 6.4 points on a dismal 32% shooting from the field and just 29% from beyond the arc. I’ve questioned Hairston’s shot selection all season long and improving that aspect of his game could be the key down the stretch. With Strickland and McDonald out of the fold, the Tar Heels are counting on Hairston to be the top backup at both wing spots off the bench. They need him to provide quality minutes behind Bullock and Harrison Barnes giving the bench an offensive punch.
James Michael McAdoo: McAdoo the nephew of former Tar Heel legend Bob McAdoo was the most hyped recruit coming to UNC this year. He was rated as one of the top five recruits in the country and took home the McDonalds and Jordan brand All-American game MVP awards. An accomplished HS star who won the Virginia HS player of the year both his junior and senior years along with winning a gold medal for the Team USA under 18 team. McAdoo is strong, quick and extremely athletic with tremendous hops. He can create his own shot, run the floor and has a nice mid range jump shot. McAdoo has had a rough freshman season that saw him struggle to pick up his role and the college game. I’ve often commented that JMM looked lost often and wasn’t fluid on either end of the floor. Over the last couple game against Virginia and Miami, McAdoo has looked more confident and crisp in his moments. Averaging just 5.2 points and 3.6 rebounds per game, he has yet to provide the Heels with the third big man they hoped for. UNC has two of the best in the nation inside in Tyler Zeller and John Henson. They need McAdoo to provide 20 or so minutes off the bench to spell the two stars.
Injuries have depleted the Tar Heels bench this year. The three players above have a unique opportunity to improve quickly and take the Heels to the next level as a team. Most teams with injury problems do not have three big time young players to turn to like Roy Williams does with UNC. Now all they have to do is play like it, and they could be a big reason why UNC cuts down the nets in March.