When Hubert Davis was introduced as the new head coach of the Tar Heels back in April, he vowed for the program to recruit at a national level, meaning that the program would entertain the potential one and done prospects coming out of high school. He also mentioned that the guys he recruited would have to be willing to unpack their bags and enjoy their time at UNC for however long they were in Chapel Hill. After using the transfer portal to fill out his roster heading into 2021-22, Davis and his staff have now turned their attention to the 2022 recruiting class. In the last week they have secured visits from De’Ante Green and Justin Taylor, and have offered multiple 5 star prospects. First it was Jalen Washington, and power forward from Indiana that received an offer from the Tar Heels, then Chris Livingston picked up an offer from UNC.
Livingston is a 6-6 wing from Akron, Ohio, and currently ranks as the sixth overall player in the 2022 recruiting cycle. As you could expect with him being such a highly ranked prospect, Livingston has offers from Louisville, Ohio State, Georgetown, Alabama, and Florida to name a few. His three seasons in high school have all been productive, as a freshman at Buchtel he averaged 24.0 points and 6.4 rebounds per contest. Those stellar numbers as a freshman prompted him to transfer to Western Reserve Academy, where he put up even more impressive numbers, averaging 32.5 points, and 12.4 rebounds per game. He transferred back to Buchtel for 2020-21, and scored 31.1 points, grabbed 15.8 rebounds, while shooting a blistering 71% from the field.
The one thing the Tar Heels have been missing ever since Cam Johnson graduated and was drafted in the first round, is an elite wing player. In 2020, Roy Williams brought in Christian Keeling and Justin Pierce, but the step up from mid-major to the ACC was proven to be steep. Leaky Black has yet to be the player Carolina thought they were getting upon recruiting him, so the void hasn’t been filled in over three seasons. Livingston is the type of player that can contribute right away. He’s a complete wing that can score the basketball in a variety of ways, while also getting to the glass, and bringing in rebounds. UNC is going to be more perimeter orientated under Hubert Davis, and Livingston will be a focus of the staff moving forward, as he’s the type of player that can elevate the program back to the top of the ACC, which automatically makes them a national contender.
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