While Carolina has been busy identifying other players in the transfer portal, they did receive news today that they have missed out on Nick Timberlake from Towson, who was believed to be on his way to Chapel Hill after visiting last month. Timberlake, who entered the portal after spending the last five seasons at Towson, chose Kansas over UNC, where he will be an impact player right away. The biggest reason Carolina got involved with Timberlake was because of his experience, having played five seasons of college basketball, totaling 90 career starts. He is also a career 38% three-point shooter, and after UNC produced the second-worst three-point shooting team in program history, Hubert Davis has been busy trying to find shooters to add to the roster for next year.
With the way that Carolina has operated in the transfer portal over the last couple of days, the staff had an indication that Timberlake wasn’t coming to Carolina, so today’s news was all but a formality. With that though, it does continue to exemplify the struggles the staff has had so far this off-season, selling their vision to current college basketball players. When Hubert Davis was first hired, he experienced the excitement around a new coach, at the best job in the sport, and was able to land the likes of Dawson Garcia, a highly sought after transfer, and of course Brady Manek, the heart and soul of the team during the run to the 2022 national championship game. Last year, Carolina did miss on some of the top transfer targets, but in large part because of how long it took players to announce their decision to return, and with four starters returning, playing time wasn’t going to be as available as this off-season.
Adding Timberlake wouldn’t have solved the biggest issue when you break down the roster for next season, as outside of Jae’Lyn Withers, Carolina only has one true wing committed to play next season. Brown transfer, Paxson Wojcik has the size to play the wing, but he will probably be more comfortable and effective playing in the backcourt. Carolina does have five-star prospect Simeon Wilcher joining the team before next season, and there’s still a chance that 2024 five-star Ian Jackson may reclassify and join the program this year as well, nonetheless, it’s becoming more and more clear that Carolina may feature a three-guard lineup, something that Hubert Davis envisioned when he took over after the retirement of Roy Williams.
The good news is that Carolina has still been very proactive in the portal, as Notre Dame transfer, Cormac Ryan, and Stanford transfer Harrison Ingram are both set to visit campus. Hubert Davis and his entire staff conducted an in-home visit with Ingram last weekend, so his decision to visit should give them hope he’ll end up in Carolina Blue, but after missing out on Timberlake, who all visited, means you can’t be certain. Additionally, Carolina has expressed interest in Florida State transfer, Matthew Cleveland, who at 6-7, could play the wing, a position the Tar Heels are in desperate need of adding depth and talent.
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