UNC Basketball Recruiting: Who Will Make Up the 2013 Class?

Recruiting is always a big news headlines every year in college athletics. Even when the coaches aren’t allowed to contact players, you are going to hear about it. Carolina lost a stellar group of players this past season, and are going to gain some great players, but this won’t be the biggest and best class Chapel Hill has seen. This team will be a threat to go deep despite not being one of the best recruiting classes. However, in 2013, all eyes are on Coach Williams and the Tar Heels.

For 2013, we only have two recruits, and they alone rank North Carolina at the top of the board in top recruiting classes. Yes, just two stellar players rank atop of the boards and the recruiting craziness has just begun. North Carolina has sent out several offers to some big name talent and in just a few weeks at the conclusion of the AAU season the pieces will begin to fall for the puzzle to make sense.

So who do we have already? We have Natt Britt from Washington DC who plays point guard. He is number one in his state and third in the nation. We also have Isaiah Hicks the number four overall power forward from Oxford, North Carolina. Still, North Carolina has many shows to fill and many offers to hear back from. Who else will be a Tar Heel come 2013? Well, nobody knows but I can give you my opinion.

Troy Williams: Yes, there has been a lot of buzz and argument between Carolina and Kentucky fans on where he will attend. Not too long ago he even made it clear he was going to commit to Kentucky before he canceled the decision saying something doesn’t feel right. My gut tells me that Uncle Boo will feed Coach Williams his nephew. Troy was highly ranked in recruiting but took a huge 30+ rank stumble the other month. My gut also tells me that Uncle Boo has convinced Troy that he still has a lot to prove and work on in his game. That alone should land Troy Williams in Chapel Hill where he can spend several seasons to improve his game and develop as a player. I’m not saying Coach Calipari can’t develop players but Troy has a lot of work to do and he just doesn’t seem like a player who fits his one-and-done coaching philosophy.

Julius Randle: Randle is the second overall player in the entire 2013 class. He is nothing but a pure athlete. He could be a one-and-done player, or he could stay another year to prove something (maybe a national championship?) or just improve his game. Randle’s mother has kept in close contact with Coach Williams too. That doesn’t hurt. Randle also commented that he likes how Coach Williams and staff have been recruiting him. While these are all just speculations, I truly feel that Randle will be a Tar Heel in 2013!

Kennedy Meeks: Meeks is a big, athletic, and powerful player. He has size! Again, I stress he has size! Something that Carolina has lacked in the recent years. That alone will give him playing time immediately in my opinion and should really help sell the deal to bring him to Chapel Hill. He has said nothing but good about Carolina, from being a fan as a child to how he has been recruited. Meeks is also, in my opinion, the most valuable player Carolina could get. We need someone who is big and can dominate in the paint…Meeks can do just that!

Be sure to follow Bryant on Twitter @bryantdouglass as well as Keeping It Heel @keeping_it_heel! You can read more from Bryant at his own blog, Turn Four!