North Carolina Announces 2025-26 Men’s Basketball Roster

With the arrivals of Luka Bogavac and Ivan Matlekovic on Wednesday, North Carolina has officially announced its men’s basketball roster for the 2025-26 season.

The team features four returning players — including Seth Trimble, who enters his fourth year with the Tar Heels after he averaged 11.6 points and 5.0 rebounds last season. The roster has three freshmen, six transfers, an overseas pro (Bogavac) and three former walk-ons.

The squad is set ‼️

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Other returnees include senior guard Elijah Davis, who redshirted last season after three years at Lynchburg. They also include sophomore forwards James Brown and Zayden High, who appeared in 23 games in 2023-24, along with John Holbrook.

"I am very excited about this upcoming season and this year's team, led by Seth Trimble," says Hubert Davis, who is entering his fifth season as UNC's head coach. "In college basketball's current state, Carolina has been fortunate to have multiple accomplished veteran players choose to stay at UNC. Players like Leaky Black, Armando Bacot, RJ Davis, and now Seth Trimble are difference makers for us. Going into the summer, we wanted to get bigger and more versatile to give us the ability to be better on both ends of the floor, and I believe we've done that."

Backcourt

UNC — Mar 20, 2025; Milwaukee, WI, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Seth Trimble (7) works out during NCAA Tournament First Round Practice at Fiserv Forum. | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

Joining Trimble in the projected starting backcourt is Bogavac and Colorado State transfer Kyan Evans.

Luka Bogavac brings a wealth of experience to the locker room, playing for SC Derby, a club located in Podgorica, Montenegro. While playing for SC Derby last season, averaging nearly 15 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists and a steal per game. He also shot 45.1% from the field, 40% on three-point shots and 87% from the free throw line. Bogavac also competed for the Montenegro U16 and U20 teams. He won a bronze medal at the FIBA U20 European Championship in Podgorica, Montenegro.

North Carolina secured its RJ Davis replacement with Kyan Evans, who helped the Rams win the Mountain West conference tournament and recorded a win in the NCAA Tournament. The 6’2” guard averaged 10.6 points and 3.1 assists, earning Honorable Mention All-Mountain West honors. He was an extremely efficient sharpshooter as Evans ranked No. 24 nationally in three-point percentage at 44.6%. In two NCAA Tournament games (against Memphis and Maryland), he shot a combined 8-for-13 on three-pointers, averaging 16.5 points.

He also ranked No. 1 in the Mountain West Conference play in true shooting percentage (70.3%), No. 1 in free throw percentage (88.9%), No. 2 in three-point percentage (45.2%), No. 2 in effective field goal percentage (66.2%) and No. 5 in two-point percentage (63.5%).

Jonathan Powell will provide depth as well. The 6’6” wing averaged 8.3 points and 3.1 rebounds per game last season for West Virginia and has shown flashes as a perimeter shooter, shooting at a 35.2 clip from three-point range.

Freshmen guards Derek Dixon (No. 45 nationally, No. 8 combo guard) and Isiah Denis (No. 53 nationally, No. 1 out of North Carolina) will be in the mix as well.

Joining the backcourt is Jaydon Young, who appeared in 58 games over two seasons at Virginia Tech. As a sophomore, he averaged 8.1 points and shot 34.7% from 3-point range.

Young made multiple 3-pointers in 18 games, including a career-high five in a win at Miami. He reached double figures 11 times, highlighted by 27 points against the Hurricanes and 26 in an overtime victory over Syracuse.

Over two seasons, Young hit 57 3-pointers and shot 84.1% from the free-throw line.

Frontcourt

UNC — Mar 27, 2025; Newark, NJ, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Henri Veesaar (13) handles the ball against Duke Blue Devils center Patrick Ngongba II (21) during the first half during an East Regional semifinal of the 2025 NCAA tournament at Prudential Center. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

North Carolina should return to having dominance in the frontcourt with 7'0" Arizona transfer Henri Veesaar and freshman forward Caleb Wilson, a blue-chip recruit from the Atlanta area.

After missing the entire 2023-24 season due to injuries, he had an extremely productive season for Arizona last season, appearing in all 37 games while making five starts. Veesaar averaged 9.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game while shooting 59.2% from the floor and 32.7% from behind the arc.

His numbers were even better in conference play, averaging 10.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game while having 62.6% from the field and shooting 38.7% from the three-point line. He also was second in offensive rating (133.7), second in two-point field goal percentage (70%), seventh in block percentage (7.3%) and eighth in offensive rebound percentage (12.2%) according to KenPom.

He was an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection, which is a pretty impressive feat considering he came off the bench most games last season.

Wilson was a five-star recruit in the class of 2025 and was ranked No. 8 nationally, No. 3 at his position, and No. 1 in the state of Georgia. In his senior season, Wilson recorded 21.6 points, 11.1 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 3.6 blocks and 2.1 steals per game, leading Holy Innocents Episcopal School to the school’s first state championship title.

Offensively, he is a menace to guard in the paint as his athleticism and physicality is hard for anyone to guard. On defense, it’s hard to get past Wilson as he have averaged nearly four blocks a game since his sophomore season in high school.

The depth extends beyond the top trio. UNC also added 6-foot-11 High Point transfer Ivan Matlekovic, joining Veesaar, Wilson, Stevenson, High and Brown in the frontcourt. While Matlekovic’s numbers at High Point — 2.6 points, 1.8 rebounds in five games — were modest, his size offers practice value and situational in-game impact. Former UNC star Sean May will oversee his development.

UNC Basketball 2025-26 Numerical Roster

0 Kyan Evans

1 Zayden High

2 James Brown

3 Derek Dixon

4 Jaydon Young

5 Isaiah Denis

6 Elijah Davis

7 Seth Trimble

8 Caleb Wilson

11 Jonathan Powell

13 Henri Veesaar

15 Jarin Stevenson

25 John Holbrook

32 Evan Smith

40 Ivan Matlekovic

44 Luka Bogavac

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