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UNC Basketball 2020-2021 Player Preview: Ryan McAdoo

By Lee Vowell

Jan 18, 2020; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Ryan McAdoo (35) warms up before playing the Pittsburgh Panthers at the Petersen Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 18, 2020; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Ryan McAdoo (35) warms up before playing the Pittsburgh Panthers at the Petersen Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /
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What can Ryan McAdoo contribute to UNC basketball program in the 2020-21 season?

Ryan McAdoo, as all Tar Heel fans know, is part of one of the great families to have played basketball for UNC basketball. His father, Bob, was not only a fantastic player for the Tar Heels but then went on to a great professional career that resulted in Bob being inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000.

Ryan is probably not going to make it into the hall of fame but he can still contribute a verse to whatever the UNC basketball season becomes in the 2020-21 season. McAdoo is not expected to be a starter and probably will not put in a lot of minutes off the bench. But he is athletic and can help defensively and defense is an area where the Tar Heels have struggled in the last few years.

In high school, McAdoo wasn’t much of a scorer and began his college career at Florida Gulf Coast University, played one year, then decided to follow in his family’s footsteps at Carolina. Besides his father Bob, Ryan’s cousin Jams Michael McAdoo played for the Tar Heels too. Bob and James Michael could score. Bob wasn’t a great defender.

What to expect from Ryan McAdoo this year

To be fair, Ryan is not going to get a lot of minutes. The team this year has a lot of good freshmen and college basketball has turned into a game where the younger you are the more you play because you may not be around the next season. For the most part, Carolina hasn’t become a one-and-done school (unlike Duke which has completely sold out and is the ACC’s Kentucky at this point) but that may be changing this year.

McAdoo is hurt a bit by all the young talent. He could fill 10-15 minutes a game and play good defense and learn to distribute the ball. He isn’t going to score many points but he could still be active around the rim because of his athleticism.

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Bold prediction for Ryan McAdoo

But that likely isn’t going to happen. In UNC basketball’s first game this season, McAdoo played one minute. He didn’t record any statistics. I have a feeling that McAdoo knows a lot about basketball, though. While he may not be one of the great Carolina players ever, he will probably become a coach and lead a team to a championship one day.

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