UNC Basketball: Brandon Huffman 2019-20 player preview

Our UNC Basketball player preview continues with junior Brandon Huffman as he hopes to play a big factor in the post this year

If you’re a fan of the North Carolina Tar Heels, you know how much Roy Williams loves using his bigs on offense and defense. A post player on UNC is utilized not only down in the paint but running the transition offense as well.

Williams loves a player that can get out in transition down the court, leading to easy buckets or a potential rebound.

For Brandon Huffman, he enters his junior year at North Carolina still trying to carve out a permanent role and make an impact. After a freshman season in which he struggled, Huffman was better last year and earned some more minutes.

But now in 2019-20 he might be called upon to serve as a guy who can come in with the second unit and contribute. Let’s get into our player preview for center Brandon Huffman:

2018-19 season in review

Coming off a freshman season in which Huffman averaged 2.4 minutes per game, he saw an uptick last season by a full minute per game. He served a similar role as the depth off the bench but did up his averages all around.

He finished last season averaging 1.6 points, 1.4 rebounds per game and shot 57 percent from the field. When Huffman was in as a freshman, it often seemed like he was lost in Roy Williams’ system. But when he entered the game last season, he did look a little better.

Huffman was also stuck behind big men Luke Maye, Garrison Brooks and Sterling Manley, plus sixth man Nassir Little and Brandon Robinson off the bench. He was often the eighth or ninth guy in the rotation, which will not lead to much playing time. Brooks served as a big body to come in and grab some boards when Brooks, Maye or Manley needed a breather.

What to expect in 2019-20?

Going into this season, there’s a possibility Brooks could see some extended time especially early on in the season.

Huffman should be behind Brooks and freshman Armando Bacot in the pecking order, no matter what Williams does with the starting lineup. The Tar Heels are a deep team this year, especially on the perimeter with Cole Anthony, Anthony Harris, Leaky Black, Justin Pierce, Christian Keeling and Brandon Robinson. But with Manley not practicing to start the year, Huffman could earn his minutes until he returns.

Williams will likely go with Brooks as the starter and could have Bacot out there on occasions depending on the lineup. However, with Huffman having some experience it wouldn’t shock us to see him get some early run. There’s also the chance that if UNC’s starters aren’t playing well, the head coach could pull one of his five-men substitutions like he’s done in the past.

With the talent coming in at guard as well as Leaky Black returning, Huffman could be productive in the paint. Having guards that facilitate the basketball down into the paint or even draw a crowd when they drive should open things up for the bigs some more. The ability to dish it off and having the bigs open below the basket should really help the Tar Heels.

But for Huffman to have a big impact, he’s going to need to play better and understand the positioning in the offense. That will require an improvement from last season to now.

Bold prediction

I do think Huffman gets more minutes this year and has more production. With Manley out, I’m going to look at Huffman as a guy to take advantage of the situation. Even when Manley returns, Huffman could have done enough to earn some more minutes.

We should see an improved version of Huffman this season and at 6-foot-10, 250-pounds he provides a big body to clog up the lane. Wouldn’t shock me either if Huffman did get some key minutes in conference play, either.

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