UNC Basketball: Kennedy Meeks, Isiah Hicks are teammates again

Former UNC Basketball standouts Kennedy Meeks and Isaiah Hicks are teammates once again but this time in South Korea

The 2016-2017 college basketball season was a memorable one for the UNC Basketball program as they captured their latest national championship by beating Gonzaga that April. UNC had a loaded team with a lot of experience as the 2013 recruiting class capped off their four-years in Chapel Hill with a title.

That 2013 class proved to be a crucial one as Kennedy Meeks and Isaiah Hicks developed into starters while Nate Britt was a key role player for that team. Now a few years later two of those players are teaming up again.

Meeks has officially signed with the  Samsung Thunders in the Korean Basketball League earlier this week and will be reunited with Hicks on the team. Hicks has been with the Thunders since the start of the season but Meeks will be a mid-season addition.

The 25-year-old Charlotte native will continue his basketball career in North Carolina after averaging 20 points and 10 rebounds per game in B.League for Levanga Hokkaido last season.

Hicks is also in his first year with the Thunders after playing in Russia from 2019-20 for BC Avtodor. Both players had small stints in the NBA G-League before heading overseas to pursue their professional careers there.

Hicks is off to a solid start this season, leading the Thunders with 17.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks per game. Meeks will look to earn his spot in the rotation as the season goes on.

The duo were both named to the McDonald’s All-American Game back in 2013 and developed into good players in Chapel Hill. Meeks averaged 10.3 points and 7.3 rebounds in 144 career games with the Tar Heels while Hicks averaged 7.4 points and 3.6 rebounds in 154 total games in his college career.

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