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UNC Basketball: K.J. Smith 2019-20 season preview

By Zack Pearson

CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA - NOVEMBER 19: The bench reacts after a three-point basket by K.J. Smith #30 of the North Carolina Tar Heels during the second half of their game against the St. Francis Red Flash at the Dean Smith Center on November 19, 2018 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. North Carolina won 101-76. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA - NOVEMBER 19: The bench reacts after a three-point basket by K.J. Smith #30 of the North Carolina Tar Heels during the second half of their game against the St. Francis Red Flash at the Dean Smith Center on November 19, 2018 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. North Carolina won 101-76. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /
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Our UNC Basketball player preview continues with K.J. Smith who enters his third year with the Tar Heels and second where he’s eligible to play

Jeremiah Francis | Cole Anthony | Armando Bacot | Anthony Harris | Rechon Black | Sterling Manley | Walker Miller | Andrew Platek | Brandon Huffman |

Everyone loves that feel good story where a college athlete busts his ass before finally being rewarded with a scholarship. You’ve seen the videos, read the stories and you likely smiled every single time.

For Kenny “Baby Jet” Smith, he made the decision to transfer from Pacific to UNC, the place where his father Kenny “The Jet” Smith ran point guard for some pretty good Tar Heels’ teams. After sitting out his first season, Smith was able to see some time last year. But it was this offseason where head coach Roy Williams made the decision to put him on scholarship.

Williams surprised Smith a few months before the season started with the news that he would be on scholarship for his upcoming junior season and it was an awesome moment:

As Smith enters this special junior year, he will likely have the same role as he did last season for the Tar Heels. But he’s a key guy on this roster and one that is very easy to root for.

Let’s get into our season preview for K.J. Smith.

2018-19 season in review

After sitting out in 2017-18, Smith was eligible to play for the first time last season with the Tar Heels. He played in 22 games and scored a total of 21 points, serving as a member of UNC’s Blue Steel group that gets run late in games.

The guard also had seven assists on the year, compared to just three turnovers in his limited time.

Early on, Smith got more time with Blue Steel in non-conference games. He had five points in games against Elon and UCLA, both wins for the Tar Heels.

Like we detailed with Walker Miller, Smith’s impact may not all happen in games on the court with Blue Steel. Instead, he’s a guy that can help in practice with the regular rotation guys as they prepare for their upcoming matchup. That’s a role he served in 2018-19 as well.

What to expect in 2019-20?

Smith will likely have the same or if not a very similar role to his sophomore year at UNC.

He will be one of the guys to come off the bench for Blue Steel this week but is a guard that can score when given the chance in those games. The 6-foot-2, 175-pound Smith has a good frame for a guard and showed at Pacific he can score the basketball. With all the talent UNC has this year, especially at guard, it’s hard to see Smith play significant minutes unless there are a few big injuries.

Bold prediction

With Smith expected to serve a similar role to last year, he should have some scoring chances especially early in the year.

For my bold prediction, I think Smith will eclipse his numbers from last season and will reach 10 assists on the year. As for points, He could get past that 20-point mark again but I’ll go with him having at least three made three-pointers this season.

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