North Carolina Star Forward Caleb Wilson Out for Season

Wilson, who was already dealing with a fractured left hand, broke his thumb during a non-contact drill on Thursday.

North Carolina star forward Caleb Wilson is out for the season. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

North Carolina star freshman forward Caleb Wilson will not return this season after breaking his right thumb in a non-contact drill on Thursday, according to a report from ESPN's Shams Charania.

Wilson underwent surgery on his thumb to repair the injury, which has ended his season for the Tar Heels. He is expected to be cleared to return to the floor during the NBA pre-draft process, where he is expected to be a high lottery pick.

Wilson had already missed the last several games due to a fractured left hand. Prior to the practice injury to his right thumb, the Tar Heels star was aiming to return to the floor sooner rather than later. But now, with surgery behind him, he will likely forgo his remaining college eligibility and head to the NBA.

For North Carolina, this is a huge loss. The Tar Heels were hoping to get Wilson back in time for the NCAA tournament, which would exponentially increase the program's chances of making a deep run. Wilson has been a difference maker when he's been in the lineup, averaging 19.8 points and 9.4 rebounds on 57.8% shooting from the floor in 24 games this season. He's also averaged 1.4 blocks per game, anchoring the Tar Heels defensively in the frontcourt.

The Heels will continue forward relying heavily on Henri Veesaar and Jarin Stevenson in the frontcourt to fill the void. But without question, the loss of Wilson for the season is a significant one for Hubert Davis's club, which had its sights set on trying to make a deep tournament run.

It’s not the first time the Tar Heels have been hit with a devastating injury in March

For North Carolina fans, Wilson’s injury late in the season might stir up some frustrating memories of seasons past, as several star Tar Heels players have been forced out of action at the most inconvenient of times.

You only have to go back a few years to North Carolina’s loss in the championship game to Kansas, which saw center Armando Bacot go down with an ankle injury he had been nursing all night in the final minute of action during the Jayhawks’ stunning comeback effort.

Dig further back in the archives and you might remember the 2012 tournament, where Kendall Marshall fractured his right wrist in the second round in a matchup against Creighton. The Tar Heels, who entered the year as the AP No. 1 and finished with a 32–6 record, would reach the Elite Eight, but were unable to hang with No. 2 Kansas to win their quarter of the bracket.

And those really looking to relive some painful memories might call all the way back to 1977, where successive injuries to center Tommy LaGarde, forward Walter Davis and guard Phil Ford shuffled the lineup throughout the postseason. Those Tar Heels were able to reach the championship game bumped and bruised, but could not finish the job, ultimately falling to Marquette.

This year’s Tar Heels weren’t as close to a title as any of the teams above, as they had plenty of work to do to jump from solid March contender to true title threat, but Wilson’s injury makes a deep run in the tournament all the more unlikely.

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