UNC Basketball: Starting lineup options for the Tar Heels next season?

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CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – MARCH 14: Head coach Roy Williams and Coby White #2 of the North Carolina Tar Heels react against the Louisville Cardinals during their game in the quarterfinal round of the 2019 Men’s ACC Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 14, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

Best-case scenario vol. 2

G – Cole Anthony
G – Coby White
F – Brandon Robinson
F – Garrison Brooks
C – Armando Bacot

In this scenario, The Tar Heels say goodbye to freshman forward Nassir Little, as he enters his name into the 2019 NBA Draft and gets selected somewhere in or around the top-10.

The Tar Heels welcome back Coby White — who inevitably enters the season as ACC preseason Player of the Year and first team All-American — and welcome in the talented and versatile Cole Anthony.

In my mind, the Tar Heels would likely shift White to the two-guard, and let Anthony take over at the one, much like they did with Marcus Paige and Joel Berry II at the start of the 2015-16 season. This would allow Anthony to run the offense, and White to focus on scoring, which he’s shown he has quite a knack for. Anthony might be the better all-around point guard, but White is obviously the better shooter and scorer.

With Little gone, senior forward and long-time reserve Brandon Robinson would step into a starting role. The former 4-star prospect has been one of the Tar Heels’ most efficient options off the bench this season, shooting 48 percent from the floor and 45.5 percent from three-point range.

The good thing about this lineup is that while the Tar Heels would lose some athleticism with the departure of Little, they’d lose nothing in the way of shooting when shifting Robinson into the starting five. In fact, it would be a huge uptick in efficiency — particularly from beyond the arc — as it relates to shooting the ball.

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