UNC Basketball: Analysts say these 2020 UNC targets are ‘hard to read’

Caleb Love

Caleb Love is a 5-star point guard that we believe is focused primarily on three schools: Kansas, Louisville and North Carolina. Which of those three schools, if any, holds the advantage in Love’s recruitment, we don’t know. What we do know is that whichever school lands the talented guard is going to have one of the top players in the class at his position.

At 6-feet-3-inches tall and 170 pounds, Love has good size for a point guard. He’s an athletic, score-first guard that can play either back court position. He’s a good passer and facilitator, too, but his ability to pour in buckets — and in bunches — is the hallmark of his game. His style of play would translate well to a fast-paced, uptempo offense like that of Roy Williams and the Tar Heels.

It’s North Carolina, in particular, that may have the most to gain in Love’s recruitment. They lost sensational freshman point guard Coby White after just one season in Chapel Hill, and they’re obviously anticipating the same thing with incoming 5-star prospect Cole Anthony. With Anthony being a consensus top-5 recruit and having all the makings of an NBA lottery pick — which is exactly where he is projected to go in next year’s draft — there’s an overwhelming likelihood that his tenure at North Carolina will be similar to White’s.

That will leave North Carolina in a bit of a bind when it comes to guard play. Despite having other options on the roster to fill in at the lead guard position, they won’t have the kind of elite, high-octane point guard that functions as a catalyst in Williams’ offense.

But similar to the other players we’ve looked at today, nobody seems to have much of a feel for where Love is going to end up next season. Rivals’ Dan McDonald said as much over the weekend when asked which player’s recruitment was hardest to forecast.

"“Caleb Love’s recruitment seems to have some conflicting opinions around it,” McDonald said. “I’ve heard Louisville chatter for him, but there are also some saying North Carolina could be in the driver’s seat. Could Kansas be in a little deeper than most think? They’ll get the last shot at him on a visit assuming he makes it that far. Love’s recruitment will be interesting to follow when he visits those three schools.”"

At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Love’s recruitment end in a month, or drag on until early spring. There’s just been very little indication what direction he’s leaning, or what kind of timeline he’s working with.

Love is ranked No. 24 in the nation according to the 247Sports Composite for the class of 2020. He’s the fourth-ranked player at his position, and No. 1 in the state of Missouri.