North Carolina five-star true freshman Caleb Wilson couldn’t have gotten off to a better start in his first official action as a Tar Heel. The 6-foot-10 forward led all scorers in Monday night’s 94-54 season-opening win over Arkansas State with 22 points on 8/10 shooting, but he’s not getting ahead of himself.
In his postgame media availability, Wilson stayed grounded after the hot start, acknowledging the lower level of competition and the challenges that are ahead for him and UNC.
“It’s not going to be easy all season,” the Atlanta product said. “I know that somebody is going to throw something different at me; it’s only a matter of time. I know conference play is extremely difficult, and that’s what matters, so I’m trying to focus on fine-tuning everything that can be a problem for me later on, whether it’s physicality or just simple things that I know can kind of hinder me.”
Caleb Wilson on his #UNC debut, how he can improve and more pic.twitter.com/Vo0a8Iyn1U
— Riley Davis (@Riley_Davis3) November 4, 2025
Caleb Wilson could be the key to UNC’s success in 2025-26
It was a mature response from the 19-year-old freshman, and exactly what UNC fans want to hear. Hubert Davis has serious pressure on him to deliver this season after controversially sneaking into the NCAA Tournament last spring, and Wilson is a huge piece of the Tar Heels delivering on their lofty expectations.
Davis and the program spent big in the transfer portal, added proven veterans like Henri Veesaar, Wilson’s front-court mate, Jarin Stevenson, Kyan Evans, and others. Yet, the true freshman could be the most important because he’s something of an unknown, or at least an unproven commodity.
On Monday night, he showed a lot of the things that made him a consensus five-star recruit: his athleticism in the open floor, his awareness to clean up offensive rebounds, and his finishing ability around the rim. Of his eight made field goals, seven were dunks, and he knows scoring at the collegiate level isn’t always going to be so simple.
“Of course I can run, and get transition dunks and hit three,” Wilson continued, “but that’s not basketball. That’s not all it is.”
Wilson recognizes that he’ll need to showcase more of his game going forward, and he seems to have confidence that he will have the necessary counters as the competition level increases for the Tar Heels. He couldn’t have had a better response, and that mindset will make him an easy player to root for all season.