One of the biggest names in the 2027 class is starting to take shape, and North Carolina is still very much in the hunt.
Demarcus Henry, a 6-foot-7 small forward and five-star prospect, has trimmed his list to eight schools: North Carolina, Kentucky, Kansas, Ohio State, UConn, Arkansas, Louisville, and BYU. For the Tar Heels, that keeps them in position for a player widely viewed as one of the best prospects in his class.
Henry is currently at AZ Compass Prep, where he posted 12.9 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game last season as a junior. He also turned heads at the NBPA Top 100 Camp this summer, averaging 20.0 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game. That kind of production explains why his reputation has kept climbing - the game is there in every phase.
The buzz around Henry isn’t just about rankings, either. ESPN’s Paul Biancardi recently put him in the same conversation as Jalen Johnson and Kawhi Leonard.
“Henry is a spitting image of Johnson -- a gifted five-star recruit in 2020 with enough feel to create with the ball in his hands either for himself or others -- and may also be the most versatile prospect in the 2027 class. Both have similar ball-handling and decision-making skills to score from any area on the floor.
Henry's offensive footwork and strong driving ability even invoke a young Leonard at the same stage. He's making strides as a leader as well,” Biancardi said.
That’s the kind of praise that puts a spotlight on a teenager fast. For North Carolina, landing Henry would mean more than just adding another elite recruit; it would give the program a potential centerpiece with the kind of versatility that can shape a roster.
It would also be a major early win for new head coach Michael Malone, who is trying to show he can build and maintain a winning program despite not holding an NCAA position in 25 years. With pressure already waiting, getting top-end high school talent is one of the clearest ways to help push the Tar Heels back toward the top.
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Tosi is now headed in a different direction, choosing to stay closer to home and align with Stanford instead. North Carolina still has 17 commitments in the class, including four offensive linemen, so the board is hardly bare, but losing an early line target is the kind of reminder that even a high-profile staff has to fight to keep momentum in recruiting. [Read more 🡒]
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Brizzi is not being brought in to reshape the offense or take over the ball. Instead, his value may come in a narrower but important lane, as a bench guard who can space the floor and fit alongside UNCs existing creators without needing the same kind of on-ball load. For a team still looking to smooth out its perimeter balance, that sort of understated addition can end up being more useful than it first appears. [Read more 🡒]
UNC Fans Still Cannot Believe How Much Changed In One Year
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What makes it feel even stranger is how many different fronts changed at once, leaving the fan base trying to process one upheaval before the next arrived. There was the debate over whether UNC should renovate the Smith Center or look toward a new building at Carolina North, and the tension around that decision only added to the sense that the ground keeps shifting in Chapel Hill. For a school that usually expects stability at the top of its biggest sports programs, this year has felt like a rare stretch where almost nothing has stayed the same for long. [Read more 🡒]