North Carolina is heading into the season with a roster that looks almost brand new, and that creates one obvious challenge: chemistry.
Michael Malone is working with a Tar Heels group that has a lot of unfamiliar faces, and that matters more than it sometimes gets credit for in college basketball. Knowing where teammates like to be, how they move, and what they do under pressure can separate a smooth start from a rocky one. Carolina, right now, is still in the early stages of building that kind of trust.
The backcourt is where the reset is most obvious. All three projected starters there have never shared the floor together, and the depth behind them isn’t much different.
Jaydon Young and Isaiah Denis are the only returning guards, so at least there’s some existing connection in that part of the roster. But even that comes with a wrinkle, since the way the rotation appears to be shaping up, those two likely won’t be on the court together very often.
The frontcourt isn’t exactly loaded with continuity either. Jarin Stevenson is the lone returner there, and he’s expected to line up alongside one of Sayon Keita, Alexandros Samodurov, or most likely recent addition Cameron Fens. That means Carolina’s interior group is also starting from scratch in terms of chemistry.
Of course, that kind of early uncertainty isn’t completely new for this program. Carolina’s frontcourt last season opened with zero chemistry too, with Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar having never played a college game together. Still, they managed to look much more comfortable than you might have expected once things got going.
Even so, this roster has enough new parts that a slow start is a real possibility. The next few months will matter a lot as the staff works to get everyone on the same page and turn talent into something that functions as a team.
Malone will be focused on getting the Tar Heels as sharp and connected as possible before the season begins, and North Carolina should at least get a little breathing room early on. The 2026 season starts with some favorable home matchups, giving the staff live reps and a chance to clean up mistakes in a game setting.
With college basketball season approaching fast, North Carolina’s new-look roster has a simple assignment before opening night: figure out how to play together.
In Other News...
Michael Malone Revealed What Convinced Him To Take Over At UNC
Michael Malones arrival at North Carolina already stood out as a break from the programs usual way of doing business, with the Tar Heels turning outside the familiar family tree for their next mens basketball coach. What has made the hiring even more notable is the way Malone has begun to frame his decision, crediting Hall of Famer Roy Williams as a major influence in getting him comfortable with the move after he had first been reluctant to take it.
Now the attention shifts from why he said yes to what comes next. Malone has already put together a strong transfer portal class and has made it clear that he still sees UNC as a place that has to win on the high school trail, too, blending roster-building in the modern game with the programs traditional recruiting reach. For Tar Heel fans, the next step is seeing how that approach translates once the pressure of a new season starts to build. [Read more 🡒]
Former UNC Big Man Now Gives NC State A Painful Twist
Ven-Allen Lubins move across the Triangle already had plenty of irony attached to it, and now it comes with a fresh layer of tension for North Carolina. After spending one season in Chapel Hill, the big man is set to play for NC State this upcoming season because of a recent NCAA injunction, giving the Wolfpack a frontcourt piece who knows exactly what this rivalry feels like from the other side.
Lubin started all 34 games for NC State last season and averaged 13.6 points and 7.1 rebounds, production the Tar Heels will notice right away if he ends up in the same matchup. North Carolina, meanwhile, has reshaped its roster with recruits Drake Powell and Ian Jackson, plus returning guards Elliot Cadeau and RJ Davis, while the frontcourt has turned over with Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar in the mix. [Read more 🡒]
Bill Belichick Faces A UNC Concern Right Before The TCU Opener
North Carolinas preparation for its season opener against TCU in Dublin, Ireland has been shaped by two notable staff absences during training camp. Bill Belichick has already said others have stepped up to help bridge the gap, but the Tar Heels have still had to keep moving through camp while adjusting to a different day-to-day rhythm than the one they expected when August began.
The timing adds an extra layer of uncertainty for a program trying to get organized before the first game of the year. With the opener closing in, the focus now is on how smoothly the Tar Heels can carry the work of camp into game week, even as parts of the staff structure remain in flux. [Read more 🡒]