UNC Basketball: Caleb Love regaining confidence on the court

After a shaky freshman season for the UNC basketball program, Caleb Love is determined to prove that he’s ready for a breakout season.

As we all know, the COVID-19 pandemic has made a major impact on our world. It without a doubt changed the way we go about our daily lives, and normal rituals that we have followed were forced to be drastically changed.

For colleges around the country, student-athletes did not have the opportunity to go through workouts, practices and other team functions that became so common during their respective offseason. These changes affected student-athletes of all ages, but in particular did not benefit incoming freshman.

Before last season, the UNC basketball program was set to welcome in a large freshman class, six total recruits to be exact. Caleb Love was one of the team’s incoming recruits, and the hype around the team’s newly-appointed point guard was definitely high.

Even before he took the floor as a Tar Heel, Love was expected to be a “one and done” player. Given his ability and skill set, many analysts felt that he was destined for a quick path to the NBA. However, his freshman year in Chapel Hill did not go as anticipated, as Love definitely had his ups and downs.

The season got off to a great start, as Love led the Tar Heels in scoring in their season-opener. Unfortunately, things got tougher, as Love began to struggle and his confidence took a major hit. Love was not alone, as the Tar Heels had their fair share of struggles throughout the 2020-21 campaign.

In regards to his freshman season, 247Sports is quoted as saying “It was all a bit much.” And given the circumstances, you can understand why.

For starters, Love (and other freshman) did not have a traditional offseason workout program during the summer. This is a huge aspect for the newcomers, as it provides them with a great opportunity to get their feet wet with their new team. For someone like Love, who was expected to take the reins to the offense right away, these workouts serve as a great chance to start learning the ropes of what would be expected of him.

Here’s the full quote from 247 Sports that essentially breaks down Caleb Love’s freshman season:

"“Love finished his rookie campaign averaging 10.5 points on 31.6 percent shooting to go along with 3.6 assists and 2.6 rebounds per game. The St. Louis, Mo. native ranked eighth in the ACC in assists per game and 268th nationally in assist rate (23.0), according to kenpom.com. His 31.6 field goal percentage is the lowest all-time in UNC basketball history among Tar Heels who have made at least 100 career field goals, according to IC analytics expert Adrian Atkinson, and his 36.8 effective field goal percentage is the second-lowest all-time in program history.”"

Even though his freshman season did not go as planned, Love easily could have still declared for the NBA Draft. With a new coach coming into town, the talented guard could’ve worked out for executives in hopes that someone would’ve taken a chance on him regardless of his struggles as a Tar Heel.

However, Love felt that it was a “no brainer” to return for his sophomore year, as he cited areas of his game that he wants to improve on.

"“There was no question that I needed to get better and that I needed to make that jump in my development to get better in my game so it was no question I was coming back. What went into that was really just talking to my parents, trying to see who was going to get the next job, and when Coach (Hubert) Davis was hired it was a no brainer and I knew I was coming back before then but I just knew when he got the job it was a clear connect with me and him.”"

Once Hubert Davis was named the team’s new head coach, Love was simply locked into returning. Now with a full season under his belt and some summer workouts over the last few months as well, Love believes that his confidence is back, and that he’ll be able to take his game to the next level this season.

"“If you lose your confidence, it’s hard to shake back,” Love said. “And I kind of did it last year, but this year, I’m not going to let any of that hinder me from my success, or this team’s success. So as far as me, just in my mental space, I’m in the best mental space that I’ve ever been.”"

Continue to follow the Keeping It Heel team for all the latest news and updates regarding Caleb Love, and the entire UNC basketball program.