UNC one of the schools going after this transfer guard with a ‘do not contact’ tag

It's already been a nice start for North Carolina in the transfer portal and now there's word that the Tar Heels made the cut for Jake Hall.

Hall, the sharpshooting guard leaving New Mexico, entered the transfer portal over the weekend with a 'Do Not Contact' tag, meaning that no program or coach could initiate contact with him. This move gave Hall, an All-Mountain West first-team member, the opportunity to control his recruitment as he searches for his next school.

Michael Malone can't let this transfer leave his UNC visit without committing

North Carolina will be one of double-digit teams that can communicate with Hall, joining Final Four participants, Illinois and UConn, along with Duke, Kansas and several others.

It's going to be a mad frenzy among those schools for Hall, who was named Freshman of the Year in the Mountain West. He averaged 16.4 points per game this past season while shooting almost 48 percent from the floor and 43.8 percent on 3-pointers.

It's expected that Hall will leave the Lobos and could potentially get a pretty substantial NIL deal to do so, but there's a chance he might just be testing the waters for a move down the road. Hall has expressed interest in playing with his younger brother, Dax, and might find that New Mexico gives them the best opportunity to play together for the upcoming season. 

Transfer guard Jake Hall adds UNC to his final list of schools

Hall would be a great addition to the Tar Heels and provide much-needed scoring and shooting in the backcourt. He has yet to announce visits, but with the portal closing on April 21, there isn't time to take too many trips. Michael Malone wants to make sure that Chapel Hill is on Hall's itinerary.

It's been full go for Malone since he took the job to replace Hubert Davis. Most of last year's rosters have declared for the NBA Draft, run out of eligibility or entered the transfer portal. Malone is trying to balance work to retain some players, like guard Derek Dixon, as well as rebuild the roster through the transfer portal and potentially a big-time late addition through traditional recruiting.

This is a situation worth monitoring over the next few days as we'll get a better idea of the schools that Hall is seriously considering.