North Carolina has the talent, but can it meet expectations?

As we countdown to the start of the 2025-26 Syracuse basketball season on Nov. 3, The Juice Online will be doing a team-by-team opponent analysis of every single ACC opponent. Today, we analyze the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who the Orange will play on Jan. 31.

After Syracuse plays Notre Dame on Jan. 31, Syracuse will match up against North Carolina on Feb. 2.

Recapping the 2025-26 UNC Basketball Season

North Carolina started the season ranked ninth in the country, but a three-game losing streak during he Maui Invitational to Auburn and Michigan State followed by a loss to Alabama in the ACC-SEC Challenge dropped them out of the rankings for good.

But the Tar Heels finished in a four-way tie for fourth in the ACC after a 13-7 record in conference play, and 23-14 overall. They lost to Duke in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament before being selected as an 11 seed in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament. After getting out of the initial bracket with a win over San Diego State, the Tar Heels were subsequently bounced in the first round of the tourney by six-seeded Ole Miss.

Analyzing the UNC Roster

As per usual, North Carolina brought in another elite recruiting class, which finished fifth overall in the 247 Composite rankings. Five-star forward Caleb Wilson is the No. 8 overall recruit in the class, and he’s joined by Derek Dixon (45th overall), Isaiah Denis (53) and Luka Bogavac.

They’ll help make up for the losses of Elliot Cadeau (9.4 pts and 6.2 asts) and Jalen Washington (5.7 pts and 4.2 rpg) to the portal, and RJ Davis, Jae’Lyn Withers and Ty Claude to eligibility.

Head coach Hubert Davis made a good effort to fill out the tattered roster, bringing in a 7-footer from Arizona, Henri Veesarr. Kyan Evans, shooting guard from Colorado State brings his 40% three-point shooting to North Carolina. Other transfers: Jonathan Powell (West Virginia wing), Jarin Stevenson (Alabama forward), Jaydon Young (Virginia Tech guard) to add scoring and depth.

Expectations (as usual) are high

Like recent seasons, the expectations are high for UNC coming into the season. They were selected to finish third in the ACC in the preseason poll and sit at 33rd in the KenPom rankings.

But the concern with North Carolina is that they haven’t matched their preseason expectations in recent years. Davis spent the offseason reloading a roster that allows them to have improved spacing and take better care of the ball.

Expect the Tar Heels to be an ACC contender by season’s end.

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