Heel Tough Blog: UNC Basketball Gets Busy in 2026 & 2027 Recruiting Classes

Summer is officially here, which means the AAU circuits are heating up, as the next wave of top prospects will be identified over the next month or so. Hubert Davis and his staff are coming off a successful off-season, which saw them bring in nine new players, five transfers, an international professional, and three incoming freshmen. Now, their attention turns to the 2026 and 2027 recruiting classes. The 2026 class is currently without a commitment, but the Tar Heels have their fair share of offers out there, and they added to that group at the end of last week. 

On Friday, Carolina officially extended an offer to Tahj Ariza, the son of former NBA champion Trevor Ariza. Ariza is a 6-7 small forward and is considered to be the No. 7 overall player in the 2026 class, and is the No. 5 player from the state of California, per 247Sports. As you could imagine, other top programs are in on Ariza, including Kentucky, Kansas, Arkansas, Arizona State, Kansas State, and others. 

That wasn’t the only offer that Hubert Davis extended over the weekend, as yesterday afternoon, he turned his attention to the 2027 class and offered in-state prospect LJ Smith. The offer follows Smith taking an unofficial visit to UNC last season. Smith averaged nearly 34 points per game for Lincolnton High School, on 45% shooting from the field, including 37% from behind the arc. But he was more than just a scorer, as he totaled over 9 rebounds per game, and a little over 3 assists, and nearly 2 steals. He is considered to be the No. 29 overall prospect in the 2027 cycle, while being ranked as the No.2 combo guard and the No. 3 player from the state of North Carolina. Smith already holds offers from Wake Forest, Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Clemson from the ACC, as well as programs like Kansas, Tennessee, Ohio State, Ole Miss, and others from the SEC, Big Ten, and Big 12.  

Lastly, Hubert Davis made one more offer, this time earlier today, as he offered King Gibson, a combo-guard in the 2027 recruiting class. Gibson hails from Montverde Academy and is the No. 15 overall player in the class, while being the No.1 combo guard and the No. 1 player from the state of Florida, according to 247Sports. Gibson currently holds offers from NC State, Florida State, Missouri, Alabama, and others. 

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