Caleb Wilson is seemingly more than ready for the moment.
The superstar freshman for North Carolina has had this game bookmarked for a while, and ahead of the biggest game of his career, he released some comments about what this matchup means to him. What he revealed shows just how deep this one runs.
In an interview with Andscape, Wilson revisited his recruiting experience with Duke, noting that Duke didn’t express a great interest in landing him. "Duke offered me and they just stopped talking to me," Wilson said.
That experience alone, being tossed to the side by the program he faces Saturday night, has stuck with him clearly for some time.
“I know the coaches I’m playing against. I know the coaches who told me I wasn’t good enough to play on [Team] USA,” Wilson said. “I get a chance to play them this year, and I get to play their players. So, I’m not going to say no names, but I definitely remember…
“Every time I get an opportunity to play somebody who you thought was better than me or you thought would contribute to your team better, I’m going to take it personal. I’m going to try to beat them.”
This fire inside Wilson is the motivation that the Tar Heels will need to take down their biggest rival on the biggest stage in college basketball. That mentality is also a crucial part in why Wilson chose to commit to North Carolina in the first place.
“It is really why I came to [North Carolina], to play in that game. I took my visit here and saw that game and I said, ‘I can’t miss the opportunity to be on the stage’” Wilson said.
Wilson is living by a philosophy borrowed from the greatest Tar Heel of all time: Michael Jordan. Specifically, he's taken a page from Jordan's mentality in "The Last Dance" documentary released in 2020, where MJ famously said, "And I took that personally."
That quote alone has been Wilson’s driving force throughout this rivalry week.
“Every time something would happen to me, I would just think it became personal,” Wilson said. “You’re telling me I’m not good enough? You’re telling me I can’t fit your standard? You’re telling me I’m not good enough to be on your team?”
Wilson has done more than enough to already cement himself as one of the best players in the game. The freshman phenom is averaging essentially a double-double with 20.0 points per game and 9.8 rebounds, putting him in line for many national awards.
But none of that means more to him than winning – and you can tell this one means everything.