UNC Basketball Recruiting: Will Hubert Davis offer top prospects in North Carolina?

While there have been some concerns with the UNC basketball program so far this season, recruiting hasn’t been one of those for Hubert Davis in his first year.

The Tar Heels are set to welcome in a 2022 class that should be top 10 by the time the cycle is complete and already have locked down a commitment from five-star Simeon Wilcher in the 2023 class. And soon enough the focus will shift over to 2024 as well and the state of North Carolina appears loaded with talent for Davis and the Tar Heels.

So far, only one prospect has an offer from UNC in that class and it’s Jarin Stevenson who is in the Tar Heels’ backyard pretty much. But when it’s all said and done, Stevenson won’t be the only one getting an offer and it appears to be a matter of time before the Tar Heels pounce on a pair of other recruiting targets in the class.

Drake Powell and Isaiah Evans are two prospects to keep an eye on in the state of North Carolina and should find themselves among the top five players in the state when the rankings for the 2024 class make their debut. And both hope UNC has an interest in them.

We already wrote on UNC being a dream school for Powell and he even had a visit from UNC per the Fayetteville Observer:

"Davis has since attended a Northwood practice to evaluate Powell in person, but “no one has reached out to me on the phone,” he told 247Sports. Still, given UNC’s proximity to his native Chatham County and the fact that his father, Dedric, played varsity baseball there in the late ’80s, Powell is interested."

But he’s not the only one hoping UNC shows interest. It appears as if Evans also could favor an in-state program including UNC. When talking to Travis Branham, Evans told the 247Sports recruiting analyst that he would have a certain favoritism for in-state schools:

"Being a North Carolina prospect, Evans has an affinity for North Carolina programs but didn’t share any of them in particular being a dream school of his.“I wouldn’t say that,” he said when asked if he had a dream school. “I would invite any Division I offers but North Carolina schools I have a certain favoritism.”"

That sure as heck sounds like good news and the two prospects are just waiting for Davis and his staff to come calling.

While UNC hasn’t been as active in 2024 as other classes, rightfully so as they look to build on 2023, the interest should be there for these two. And that could happen as soon as this Spring.

Keep these two names in mind down the road when the offers start rolling out.

For more on UNC basketball recruiting, please make sure to check back with Keeping It Heel.