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UNC Will Be Number 1

© Chris Lin

Here's why UNC is going to be the team to beat next season. It's been just two years since the super trio of Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter, and Shammond Williams left Chapel Hill. The entire starting lineup of that Final Four team has left. However, the Tar Heels are definitely on the rise again.

Last season was somewhat misleading. This team was much better than advertised during the regular season, and it proved itself by reaching the Final Four. The last link of that 1999 season has departed, and that person was Ed Cota. Cota was a brilliant passer and playmaker, and the Heels will miss his ballhandling skills. However, he was not a great scorer or a truly explosive player. With Adam Boone, an incoming freshman point guard, North Carolina has its point guard of the future. Brian Morrison, another top guard recruit, should fight for the job as well. However, there are more reasons to be optimistic if you are a Tar Heels fan.

Of course, there is the nucleus from last year's squad that underachieved for the most part and then overachieved when the money was on the line. The most important players were freshman sensation Joe Forte, 6'8" swingman Jason Capel, 7'0" behemoth Brendan Haywood, and 6'11" Kris Lang. The big problem last year for UNC was the lack of depth. That showed in the Final Four game against Florida. You had to think that with a few extra bodies, the Heels would have stuck it out and won with superior talent and size. However, when guys got into foul trouble and were pulling on their shorts, it was evident that they could not sustain a forty-minute attack. This season, that should not be a problem. Along with Boone comes 7'6" center Neil Fingleton, a McDonald's All-American. The biggest recruit, however, may be Jason Parker, who is a beefy 6'8" forward. After this season, he has proven that he is the real deal, and will add even more help to a superb and imposing frontcourt.

But there's more. The two main bench players from last year, Max Owens and Julius Peppers, are returning. Owens is a very capable offensive weapon at forward, and did a good job of spelling Capel. Peppers was the only big man who was there when Haywood and Lang were tired. He is a 270-pound monster who also happens to be a defensive lineman. Should he improve his offensive skills, he will be very dangerous. Ronald Curry, who also happens to be the star quarterback of the football team, is returning after an injury sidelined him for the entire season. He is a player who should make an impact off the bench, and he probably would be the starter had Forte not been there.

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