Hubert Davis Raises the Roof With Added Size

Hubert Davis did it; he added size to his roster heading into his fifth season as the UNC men's basketball head coach. Coach Davis is raising the roof with the additions of Caleb Hood, Henri Veesaar, Jarin Stevenson and Ivan Matletkovic. North Carolina returns James Brown from last year, along with Zayden High, who has not played since the 2023-2024 season as a freshman.

Coach Davis' team will improve in the rebounding department and have the depth to mix and match frontcourt pairings to fit the current in-game situation. Creativity, strategy and execution will be on display for UNC.

"The added height that we have in regards to defensively, but I would also say the versatility to be able to do different things on a defensive end. In order to be good, you got to defend and rebound and take care of the basketball. But, being in a position to be elite defensively on both ends of the floor."

Mar 18, 2025; Dayton, OH, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Hubert Davis talks with against the North Carolina Tar Heels official in the first half against the San Diego State Aztecs at UD Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

"I talked about, you know, defensive rebounding percentage. But, a huge staple of Carolina basketball, even before I was head coach, with Coach Williams, was offensive rebounding. And so that's an area that's a major emphasis for us. And having that positional height, having that height in the front court, just allows us to be able to do that and do the things that we want to do."

How Much Better Can UNC Be With the Upgraded Frontcourt?

The Tar Heels should see a difference in their rebounding numbers compared to last season, as the 2024-2025 roster averaged 36.7 rebounds per game. For reference, here are rebound averages for the last five seasons before that:

2023-2024 - 41.1 rebounds per game

2022-2023 - 39.5 rebounds per game

2021-2022 - 39.8 rebounds per game

2020-2021 - 43.2 rebounds per game

2019-2020 - 41.9 rebounds per game

It's worth noting that all five seasons listed above had former big man Armando Bacot, UNC's all-time leading rebounder. However, those rosters also had other big men. Take the 2020-2021 year (also referred to as the COVID season), for example, a then-Head Coach Roy Williams had Day'ron Sharpe, Walker Kessler and Garrison Brooks, too. In that season, UNC was all over the glass, making life hard for opponents.

Mar 19, 2021; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Garrison Brooks (15) grabs a rebound over forward Armando Bacot (5) and Wisconsin Badgers forward Micah Potter (11) during the first half in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament at Mackey Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images | Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images

Perhaps, in some capacity, the Tar Heels can replicate similar success, given that it has six different players to work with throughout games. And maybe, it can lead to better success further down the road during the 2025-2026 campaign.

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