By R.L. Bynum
After battling injuries during most of his three seasons at Carolina, Puff Johnson announced Wednesday that he is entering the transfer portal
He is the fourth UNC player to enter the portal, joining Justin McKoy, Tyler Nickel and Dontrez Styles. Those players only got 11% of the minutes last season, combining to make only 28% of their 3-point attempts.
“I am grateful to be a Tar Heel,” he said in an Instagram post. “My time in Chapel Hill has taught me lessons that extend far beyond the basketball court. I have given 100% to the university on and off of the court. A heartfelt thanks to Coach [Roy] Williams for recruiting me and giving me the opportunity to play at Carolina. I also want to thank Coach [Hubert] Davis and the entire UNC staff for giving me the opportunity to play under their leadership for the last two years. To my teammates, thank you for always being by my side and for being my brothers.
“Most importantly, thank you Carolina Nation for embracing and supporting me throughout my time here,” he said. “I will always love you, but the time has come for me to enter the transfer portal and take that next step as a basketball player. Thank you all for respecting my decision. I will always be a Tar Heel!”
Johnson figured to be penciled in to start at the 4 spot in the last offseason before Pete Nance decided to transfer to UNC from Northwestern.
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His brother Cam had two productive seasons at Carolina after transferring from Pittsburgh but Puff, a four-star recruit out of high school, could never get into a consistent groove in Chapel Hill.
Puff Johnson, who scored 200 points in 65 games, scored in double figures six times, led by his 16 points and two 3-pointers in the Tar Heels’ 84–74 victory at N.C. State on Feb. 26, 2022.
In the 2022 NCAA tournament, he scored 11 points in the first-round 95–63 victory over Marquette and the 72–69 championship-game loss to Kansas.
Roster assuming all players with eligibility other than Caleb Wilson, Henri Veesaar and the seven players who entered the transfer portal return, which would put UNC three under the 15-player limit. The class for next season is listed.
| No./ Stars | Class | Player | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 star | Freshman | Maximo Adams | SF | 6–7 | 205 |
| 3 star | Freshman | Malloy Smith | CG | 6–5 | 190 |
| 5 star | Freshman | Sayon Keita | C | 7–0 | 215 |
| RS freshman | Cade Bennerman — W | C | 7–0 | 205 | |
| Sophomore | Neoklis Avdalas — X | G | 6–9 | 215 | |
| Sophomore | Isaiah Denis | G | 6–4 | 180 | |
| Sophomore | Matt Able — Y | G | 6–6 | 205 | |
| Senior | Terrence Brown — Z | G | 6–3 | 174 | |
| 4 | Senior | Jaydon Young | G | 6–4 | 200 |
| 15 | Senior | Jarin Stevenson | 4 | 6–10 | 215 |
| Walk-ons | |||||
| 25 | Junior | John Holbrook | 4 | 6–8 | 230 |
| 32 | Senior | Evan Smith | 2 | 6–1 | 195 |
W — Northwestern transfer. X — Virginia Tech transfer; Y — N.C. State transfer; Z — Utah transfer
In transfer portal
| Player | Class next season | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luka Bogavac | Senior | W | 6–6 | 215 | Oklahoma State |
| James Brown | Senior | C | 6–10 | 240 | Howard |
| Derek Dixon | Sophomore | G | 6–5 | 200 | Arizona |
| Kyan Evans | Senior | G | 6–2 | 175 | Minnesota |
| Zayden High | Junior | C | 6–10 | 230 | South Florida |
| Jonathan Powell | Junior | G | 6–6 | 190 | Pittsburgh |
| Ivan Matlekovic | Junior | C | 7–0 | 255 |
Key offseason dates
Through Sunday — NBA Draft Combine in Chicago
May 27 (11:59 p.m.) — NCAA early-entry withdrawal deadline
June 13 — Deadline for international players to withdraw from NBA draft and maintain college eligibility
June 23–24 — NBA draft at Barclays Center in Brooklyn
Nonconference schedule so far
(Other than the ACC/SEC Challenge, games without links revealed from reporting by Alex Rosinski)
(10 of 14 games)
Nov. 2 — vs. Western Carolina
Nov. 6 — vs. Wofford
Nov. 10 — vs. Wyoming
Nov. 13 — vs. Georgia
Nov. 20 — vs. Marshall
Dec. 1 or 2 — vs. SEC team in ACC/SEC Challenge (announced last year on June 12)
Dec. 12 — at Georgetown
Dec. 19 — vs. Kentucky in CBS Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden
Dec. 21 — vs. The Citadel
November or December — vs. Butler
