UNC Basketball: Tar Heels need to sign 2 of these 5 players in 2019 class

North Carolina would be sitting pretty in 2019 with commitments from 2 of these 5 players

The North Carolina Tar Heels are just two seasons removed from a national championship, and fresh off of their best recruiting class in a handful of years. Sure, their second round NCAA Tournament loss in 2018 was disappointing, but they did manage 26 victories and a top-5 finish in the nation’s best basketball conference.

This season, North Carolina will boast three returning senior starters in Luke Maye, Kenny Williams and Cameron Johnson that immediately make it a force in the ACC. In addition to that, the Tar Heels have an emerging group of sophomore big men and, perhaps, the best freshman in the country in five-star small forward Nassir Little.

If there’s a knock on the Tar Heels this season, and moving forward, it’s their lack of size and star-power in the front court. The unexpected early departure of Tony Bradley in 2017 left a void in the Tar Heels’ interior that hasn’t been aptly filled in the time since.

Sure, Luke Maye has been great. But at 6-feet-8-inches tall, he’s a bit undersized for his position, and playing at a marked disadvantage against traditional big men in the ACC. And although Sterling Manley showed signs of improvement toward the end of his freshman season, he simply wasn’t ready to take over the bulk of the responsibilities in the low post.

That’s why Roy Williams has made it a point of emphasis over the past year to target talented big men in the class of 2019 and beyond, hoping to score the elite front court player that he’s missed on the past couple of recruiting cycles. The Tar Heels’ current group of bigs is young and will continue to grow, but bringing in an immediate impact post player that requires less time to develop would be a huge boost for next year’s team.

Williams’ list of front court targets is long, and headlined by consensus top-2 prospect Vernon Carey. Despite naming North Carolina to his final list of five, and planning a trip to Chapel Hill in November, nobody really thinks Carey is headed to UNC in 2019. Not in that shade of blue, at least.

There are several other 2019 prospects that the Tar Heels are heavily involved with, though, and have a decent chance to sign. Williams has proven time and again that he can do more with less than most coaches, but there’s little arguing that it helps to have a steady flow five-star prospects if the goal is to continue competing for ACC titles and national championships.

Signing just one of the following players would be great, but signing two would likely put the Tar Heels in a position to win both next year.