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Heel Tough Blog: Tar Heels Finalizing Associate Head Coach Hire
Walt Beazley- Arkansas Athletics The Tar Heels introduced new head coach Michael Malone last night in the Smith Center and now it appears that he has his first staff member officially lined up. As first reported by CBS college basketball insider Jon Rothstein, the Tar Heels are finalizing a deal to bring in current Arkansas assistant Chuck Martin to be Malone’s Associate Head Coach. This comes after Martin was tied to the search for staff members by Inside Carolina. Martin, w

Anthony Pagnotta
26 minutes ago2 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Luka Bogavac to Remain at UNC
Peyton Williams- Getty Images Over the past few days, the Tar Heels have been losing members of the roster to the transfer portal, but on Tuesday afternoon the team got the news that one member of this year’s team will be staying with the program under new head coach Michael Malone. As first reported by Noah Weiskopf of TarHeel247, junior guard Luka Bogavac tells the site that he will be returning for his final season of eligibility. Bogavac will return after an inconsistent

Anthony Pagnotta
1 day ago1 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Kyan Evans & Zayden High Set to Transfer
WRAL Sports Fan After firing Hubert Davis, exactly two weeks ago, it was only a matter of time before Carolina’s roster headed to the transfer portal, after a disappointing finish to the season, highlighted by a 19-point loss to VCU in the NCAA Tournament. The process began on Sunday with freshman guard Isaiah Denis heading for the portal, and continued yesterday, as Jaydon Young, Derek Dixon, and Jonathan Powell all made it known they were transferring as well. The moves con

Joshua Marlow
1 day ago2 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Reserve Big Man Becomes 5th Transfer Portal Entry
ESPN After a flurry of transfer portal entries yesterday, the roster movement continues for the UNC Basketball program, in the wake of the Michael Malone hiring, as reserve big man James Brown will enter the portal, after two seasons in Chapel Hill. An injury cut his sophomore season short, limiting Brown to just nine games, where he averaged 1.2 points and 1.4 rebounds. For his Tar Heel career, Brown played in 27 games and averaged 1.2 points and 1.0 rebounds The former top

Joshua Marlow
1 day ago1 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Jonathan Powell Becomes Latest Tar Heel to Enter the Transfer Portal
GoHeels.com After losing Isaiah Denis, Jaydon Young, and Derek Dixon to the transfer portal, the portal entries didn’t stop there, as sophomore wing Jonathan Powell has announced he’s entering the transfer portal, after one season with the UNC program. Powell arrived in Chapel Hill with high hopes after a strong start to his career at West Virginia, and while he certainly had his moments, Powell never developed into the perimeter scorer Carolina was hoping for, averaging 4.8

Joshua Marlow
2 days ago1 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Derek Dixon to Enter Transfer Portal With Option to Return
GoHeels.com The news around the Carolina Basketball program continued after the hiring of Mike Malone as the new head coach of the Tar Heels, as freshman point guard Derek Dixon announced his decision to enter the transfer portal, making him the most significant Tar Heel to do so. Dixon, who started over the last two months of the season for Hubert Davis, experienced an up-and-down season in Chapel Hill, averaging 6.5 points, 2.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists on 37% shooting from the

Joshua Marlow
2 days ago2 min read


Heel Tough Blog: UNC Hires Former NBA Champion as Next Head Coach
Field of 68 In a move that not only shocked the UNC fan base, the college basketball world, and even the NBA world, the University of North Carolina has hired former NBA head coach Mike Malone as the next head coach of the program. Over the weekend, Carolina learned that neither Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd or Michigan’s Dusty May were leaving their respective spots to take the vacant job in Chapel Hill. The belief was that Carolina had turned their attention to Billy Donovan of the

Joshua Marlow
2 days ago2 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Second UNC Guard Set to Enter Transfer Portal
GoHeels.com After losing Isaiah Denis to the transfer portal yesterday, the Tar Heels lost reserve guard Jaydon Young to the transfer portal today, ahead of the portal's official opening at midnight tonight. Young arrived in Chapel Hill after starting his career with the Virginia Tech Hokies, and in the 31 games played this season, Young averaged 1.8 points per game, 0.9 rebounds, and 0.4 assists, while shooting 30% from the field and 28% from behind the arc. Young was brough

Joshua Marlow
2 days ago1 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Isaiah Denis to Enter Portal
Grant Halverson- Getty Images The transfer portal for college basketball is set to open on Tuesday and the first name that will be entering from a Tar Heel perspective has been revealed. As he announced via his social media on Sunday night, true freshman guard Isaiah Denis will be entering his name into the transfer portal. Denis did say that he is leaving the door open to a return to Chapel Hill, though, meaning if the new coach wants him back, he will at least consider it.

Anthony Pagnotta
3 days ago1 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Dusty May Announces He is Staying At Michigan
Michael Reaves- Getty Images When Tommy Lloyd announced on Friday that he would be staying at Arizona and signing a long term extension, the focus of the Tar Heels search turned to Michigan head coach Dusty May. While he may have been another longshot, especially after his victory last night over Arizona in the Final Four, he was someone that you had to have tell you no before you moved to the next tier of the search. That day came on Sunday prior to tomorrow’s national champ

Anthony Pagnotta
3 days ago2 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Is It Billy Donovan or Bust for UNC?
Sports Illustrated After missing out on Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd as the replacement for Hubert Davis, Bubba Cunningham, Steve Newmark, and the UNC search firm are now forced to turn their attention elsewhere to find the right man to lead Carolina Basketball back to national prominence. Lloyd was the top target for Carolina and is coming off his first appearance in the Final Four, a blowout loss to a Michigan team that is poised to win their first national championship since 1989

Joshua Marlow
3 days ago5 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Who Should UNC Be Focused on Now?
With the announcement from Tommy Lloyd on Friday afternoon that he was going to be staying at Arizona, the Tar Heels have been forced to shift their focus in the search for their next head coach. As the Tar Heels reset their board, I have done the same with my wishlist today. Here is a look at the five coaches that I believe the search committee should be turning their attention to as soon as possible. Dusty May (Current Michigan Head Coach) Michael Reaves- Getty Images Caree

Anthony Pagnotta
4 days ago4 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Tommy Lloyd to Stay At Arizona
Arizona Sports Before his team competes in tomorrow night’s Final Four, Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd agreed to a five-year contract extension that’ll keep Lloyd in Tucson, after a week’s worth of speculation that he might leave for the vacant UNC job. After UNC fired Hubert Davis after losing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, and hired a search firm to help conduct the search, they identified Lloyd, as their top candidate, after setting a record for most wins by a

Joshua Marlow
5 days ago2 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Tar Heels Make Another Late Addition to OL
@ c.al varez__- Instagram The Tar Heels may be in the middle of spring practice, but the team has just added another offensive lineman who will be a part of the roster in 2026. As he announced via social media earlier this afternoon, 2026 3✮ IOL Cristian Alvarez has committed to UNC to participate in both football and wrestling. Alvarez had previously been committed to UMass, but flipped and signed with Delaware during the early signing window back in December. Back in late F

Anthony Pagnotta
6 days ago2 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Tar Heels Lose Commitment From Top Prospect in 2027 Class
@quisbryant- Instagram For the second time in the 2027 recruiting class, the Tar Heels have lost their top commitment in the class to decommitment. As first reported by Hayes Fawcett of Rivals, 2027 4✮ safety Marquis Bryant has decommitted from the Tar Heels following a visit earlier in the week to Tennessee as part of his spring visit schedule. He had been committed to UNC since December 16th. Bryant's decommitment is a significant one, considering he is one of the top-rated

Anthony Pagnotta
Apr 11 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Underclassmen Who Could Shine in Spring Practice
@itztreyblue- Instagram The Tar Heels opened spring practice last week as they look to put together a better second season under the direction of head coach Bill Belichick. In order to do that, the team will need some young guys to step up and shine starting here in spring practice. Let’s take a look at some underclassmen that could shine over the next few weeks. Jaylen Harvey Harvey is one of the transfers that Tar Heel fans were most excited about this offseason and for goo

Anthony Pagnotta
Mar 313 min read


Heel Tough Blog: 2027 RB Commits to UNC During Visit
@shotzbyab- Instagram The Tar Heels picked up two commitments on Saturday within minutes of each other. The second of the two came in the form of one of the team’s top running back targets in the middle of his visit to Chapel Hill on Saturday. As first reported by Inside Carolina, the Tar Heels landed a commitment from 2027 unranked running back Isaiah Stephens during his unofficial visit to campus to watch a Tar Heel spring practice session. He chooses the Tar Heels over Ole

Anthony Pagnotta
Mar 282 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Tar Heels Land 2027 3✮ LB
@tasheem.butler- Instagram The Tar Heels picked up two commitments on Saturday within minutes of each other. The first of the two came in the form of a recent offer at the linebacker position following his visit to Chapel Hill yesterday. As first reported by Inside Carolina, the Tar Heels have picked up a commitment from 2027 3✮ LB Tasheem Butler after he was on campus yesterday afternoon. He commits to the Tar Heels over Syracuse, Pittsburgh and Appalachian State amongst oth

Anthony Pagnotta
Mar 282 min read


Heel Tough Blog: Caleb Wilson Hints at NBA Decision
Bob Donnan- Imagn Images While the search for a new head coach is the top priority for the UNC athletic department, roster decisions are being made in the meantime, as players are determining whether or not to stay committed during the search, or to enter the draft or the transfer portal. The player with the biggest decision to make is Caleb Wilson, who had his historic freshman season cut short due to multiple injuries, and there was a sliver of hope that he’d return for his

Joshua Marlow
Mar 271 min read


Heel Tough Blog: UNC Assistant to Join Wes Miller's Staff at Charlotte
247Sports After Hubert Davis was fired on Tuesday night, staff changes are expected, as Carolina’s head coaching search is on the way. But before Carolina could make their hire, they had already lost a valuable assistant, as Marcus Paise is leaving UNC to join Wes Miller’s new staff at Charlotte, according to Inside Carolina. Paige is a former standout UNC player, playing at Carolina from 2013-16, guiding the Tar Heels to the 2016 Final Four, before losing the national champi

Joshua Marlow
Mar 271 min read
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