No one can ever question how much this young man cares about the program. Caleb Wilson loves UNC and that's not going to change anytime soon. That much was showcased with his recent comments following his NBA Summer League debut. Despite making history with his 35-point performance, Wilson admitted that he cried before the game due to the adversity he faced.
This included the rookie saying he felt like it was partly his fault that UNC suffered a first-round loss to VCU. On top of that, Wilson is also taking some blame for Hubert Davis getting fired after that stunning defeat. Let's make one thing incredibly clear: Wilson has nothing to feel bad about.
Yes, it's admirable that he thinks he could have helped save Carolina's season and Davis' job. However, he's the last guy to blame for how things ended. If anything, Wilson helped make UNC's rocky season memorable, and his injury takes nothing away from the excitement he brought back to Chapel Hill.
Caleb Wilson said he cried before his Summer League debut:
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) July 11, 2026
"It's been 5 months to the day since the last time I played … I felt terrible because my team lost in the tournament, and my coach got fired. It just was a lot for me."
(via @JoelXLorenzi)pic.twitter.com/uonjxbPeyZ
Caleb Wilson is the last person to blame for UNC's failures last season
"I mean, honestly, I cried before I played today," Wilson admitted. "It's been five months to the day since I played, so I've just been really emotional because I haven't been able to play, and I felt terrible because my team lost in the tournament, and my coach (Davis) got fired. It just was a lot for me."
Those are such strong words from Wilson, and it reminds us all that he's been carrying this on him for a little while. He was the face of the program, with countless people hoping and praying he'd be ready to get back on the hardwood to take on Duke in the regular season finale before the postseason got underway.
All that was erased when he broke his thumb while dunking in practice. It was a total accident, but clearly Wilson feels awful about the situation. Still, the thought of him being responsible for Davis being let go is completely and totally ridiculous. Again, we admire Wilson trying to take some responsibility for how things went down, but we can't stand the fact that he thinks this is on him.
No one can argue with the fact that Davis' situation on campus was a bit rocky even before Wilson made the move to town, as frustration was growing. Blowing a 19-point lead in the second half to VCU to suffer an embarrassing first-round exit in the Big Dance? That was 100 percent on Davis, and not on Wilson being out due to injury.
Wilson has a bunch of respect for Davis, which is why he invited him to the NBA Draft to see his dreams come true. Wilson is also doing his best to try and support Davis, but he doesn't have to in this way. HD will always be a Tar Heels legend, even if his coaching tenure didn't go to plan. And Wilson will always be considered a UNC great despite his historic freshman season ending in injury. Moving forward, the Carolina faithful will be all-in on supporting him with the Bulls, but please, Caleb, don't have it in your mind that Davis being let go was on you. That's a thought that should NEVER cross your mind.
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