Carolina Basketball Media Day: Observations from practice

The Tar Heels allowed the media to stick around after practice on Wednesday

After North Carolina concluded its interviews, media was invited to stick around to watch the Tar Heels' two-hour practice.

A few observations from section 109 at the Smith Center:

Squads

The group of players on the "White Team" was Cole Anthony, Leaky Black, Brandon Robinson, Armando Bacot, Christian Keeling, Garrison Brooks and Justin Pierce.

Anthony Harris, Andrew Platek, Jeremiah Francis and Sterling Manley were limited to individual work, while Black occasionally sat during team periods.

Cole Anthony

Before practice even began, it was clear that this is something of a new era in Carolina basketball, as freshmen were allowed to speak with media before playing in a game.

Anthony was the center of attention during the interview session, and that didn't change during practice.

A few points on his game:

• No player on the floor was louder or more talkative than Anthony, who clearly won't have any trouble taking command of this team as its point guard.
• In every running drill and every 33, Anthony was the first to finish. He made an effort to win every rep. That's impressive for a freshman.
• His shot appeared more consistent than he got credit for in high school. His reputation was built as slashing finisher at the bucket, but he looked confident shooting from beyond the arc and knocked down a good percentage.
• After his White squad lost a period of halfcourt play, Anthony took it upon himself to beat his man off the dribble and finish. On one play, he hit Kenny Williams with a spin move that caused Williams to stumble while Anthony finished with a floater.
• When practice ended, Anthony immediately grabbed a ball and went back to getting up shots from several steps behind the arc. 
• Roy Williams called him the best rebounding guard he's seen at the high-school level, and Anthony showed a willingness to go to the boards and battle.

Guards 

• With the amount of injuries Carolina is dealing with at the moment, it was a big deal to have Williams on the floor for team periods, pitting an experienced, physical defender against Anthony.
• Black will truly be a Swiss Army Knife for the Tar Heels this season. On a few occasions, he handled the ball on the perimeter and set up teammates for buckets. Think Theo Pinson 2.0. Black appears to have added significant muscle.
• Keeling will bring a ton to this team both as a personality and a scorer. The graduate transfer is confident in his offensive game and knows exactly where to be on the break to find a perimeter 3-point attempt.

Big men

• Known for his defensive ability last season, Brooks appears to have added a few elements to his offensive game. First, he moved incredibly well and made a few nice cuts, allowing guards to set him up for easy buckets. In addition, he stepped out to the top of the key and looked confident in taking jumpers from just beyond the free throw line.
• Bacot is in incredible shape. It's hard to state just how far he's come in the past few years in sculpting his body and losing weight. And it's not just for looks, as he was the first to finish a 33 at the end of practice. He showed his touch around the basket a few times and after practice, he stepped out beyond the free throw line and knocked down one jumper after another with a fluid shooting motion. Williams also told him that he liked his hair better when he's running as well as he did. 
• It's hard to say Pierce is a big man because of his versatility, but he'll perform like one on the boards. The graduate transfer has a great feel for rebounding and will surprise some with his athleticism.

Roy Williams

• If I had a dollar for every time I heard Williams yell "Go" during practice, I'd have enough money to buy a hundred Sprite Zeros from a vending machine.
• As a fan of the game and someone who is generally fascinated with the strategy of basketball, it was interesting to watch the detail in which Williams explained defending against screens and how he taught players to get from Point A to Point B.
• When it came to teaching the specifics of certain defensive situations, Williams stopped practice several times to explain something to a walk-on in the same way he'd explain it to a five-star recruit.
• If there's one way to irk him, it's not rebounding. After Justin Pierce failed to follow his shot to the offensive boards, Williams whistled play dead and yelled, "Get your butt on the damn backboard!"