By R.L. Bynum
Caleb Love is joining former UNC assistant coach Steve Robinson in Arizona.
After credit issues prevented Love from transferring to Michigan, he’ll play for the Wildcats of the Pac-12 Conference, coached by Tommy Lloyd.
Robinson has been an assistant coach at Arizona for the past two seasons after spending 13 seasons as an assistant on Coach Roy Williams’ Carolina staff.
“Caleb is a tremendously talented guard who has significant experience playing college basketball,” Lloyd said in a social media post. “We look forward to helping Caleb grow his game at Arizona.”
Although Love won’t play for Carolina anymore, he’ll still go to Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Wildcats visit Duke on Nov. 10. Love never faced Arizona in his time at UNC.
Arizona went 28–7 last season, winning the Pac-12 tournament with a 61–59 victory over UCLA before losing to Princeton 59–55 in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
The Wildcats’ starting point guard last season, Kerr Kriisa, transferred to West Virginia and forward Azuolas Tubelis left for the NBA.
In addition to Love, Arizona has added Alabama transfer guard Jaden Bradley and San Diego State transfer forward Keshad Johnson.
“… as we near the completion of the roster for the upcoming season, we feel great about how everything has come together,” Lloyd said. “Now, it’s time for the real work to start!”
Love’s 3-pointer against Duke in the 2022 Final Four is one of the most iconic shots in Carolina basketball history, immortalized in the Carolina Basketball Museum.
Love shot 29.9% from 3-point range last season while attempting a team-high 244 shots from outside the arc (RJ Davis attempted the second-most with 174). He averaged more turnovers (2.4 per game) than 3-pointers (2.2).
Love is third in program history in 3-point attempts (630), ninth in 3-pointers (200) and 17th in free-throw percentage (81.5). He made at least one 3-pointer in 85 games, including a school-record 45 consecutive games.
Love scored a career-high 34 points in the four-overtime loss to Alabama. Two of his four top-scoring games were against Duke — 29 in the win in the Final Four when he hit a huge 3-pointer late in the game, and 25 in a win at Duke on Feb. 6, 2021. He scored 30 in UNC’s regional semifinal victory over UCLA.
Love scored a career-high six 3-pointers four times — against UCLA and Marquette in the 2021 NCAA tournament and at home last season against Clemson and Florida State.
He finished his career at Carolina averaging 14.6 points per game over three years, including 16.7 last season.
Key events, dates
April 27 (at 11:59 p.m. ET) — Deadline for players to submit their names to the NBA draft
May 1 — Transfer portal closes
May 11–12 — NBA G League Elite Camp in Chicago
May 12–19 — NBA Combine in Chicago
May 17–19 — Evaluation for high school players at NCAA-certified events (EYBL in Indianapolis is on those)
Potential 2024-25 UNC men’s roster
| No. | Class | Player | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Freshman | James Brown (4 star) | 5 | 6–8 | 225 |
| — | Freshman | Ian Jackson (5 star) | 2 | 6–4 | 180 |
| — | Freshman | Drake Powell (5 star) | 2 | 6–5 | 185 |
| 2 | Soph. | Elliot Cadeau | PG | 6–1 | 180 |
| 1 | Soph. | Zayden High | 4 | 6–9 | 225 |
| 13 | Junior | Jalen Washington | 5 | 6–10 | 230 |
| 55 | Senior | Harrison Ingram | 4 | 6–7 | 235 |
| Eligible for fifth season | |||||
| 5 | Graduate | RJ Davis | PG | 6–0 | 180 |
| 24 | Graduate | Jae’Lyn Withers | 4 | 6–9 | 215 |
| Walk-ons eligible for 5th season | |||||
| 14 | Graduate | Creighton Lebo | PG | 6–1 | 180 |
| 22 | Graduate | Rob Landry | 2 | 6–4 | 190 |
2023–24 UNC players to enter transfer portal
| Class | Player | Date entered | Pos. | Hgt. | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senior | James Okonkwo | April 5 | F | 6–8 | Akron |
| Junior | Seth Trimble | April 9 | G | 6–3 | TBA |
Photo via @UNC_Basketball
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