By R.L. Bynum
Last season, Coach Hubert Davis had trouble keeping everybody happy, leading seven players to transfer.
Now it appears that one of three members of his incoming freshman class at Carolina is already unhappy with the roster situation for next season.
Simeon Wilcher, a 6–3, 185-pound point guard, has requested a release from his national letter of intent according to a report by Inside Carolina. ESPN’s No. 28 player in the Class of 2023, the four-star player out of Roselle Catholic in New Jersey committed to the Tar Heels in October 2021 but won’t be coming to Chapel Hill.
“After careful consideration, I’ve decided to ask North Carolina for a release from my national letter of intent. We will not be commenting further and thank UNC for the opportunity to play in the ACC,” read the statement that the Wilcher family gave Inside Carolina.
Carolina has five guards on the roster with RJ Davis, returnee Seth Trimble, transfers Cormac Ryan and Paxton Wojcik, and Elliot Cadeau, who reclassified last week.
If UNC grants Wilcher’s release, that would leave four-star forward Zayden High, ranked No. 64 in the Class of 2023, and Cadeau, who was ranked No. 10 in the Class of 2024 before reclassifying, as the only freshmen on the team for next season.
Cadeau’s decision to arrive at UNC a year earlier likely was the biggest factor in Wilcher deciding to play elsewhere.
Since last season, seven players transferred in search of better situations: Caleb Love to Arizona, Dontrez Styles to Georgetown, Tyler Nickel to Virginia Tech, Justin McKoy to Hawaii, Puff Johnson to Penn State, Will Shaver to UAB and D’Marco Dunn, who hasn’t committed to a school yet.
Key events, dates
Saturday, April 27, was the deadline for players to submit their names to the NBA draft
Wednesday — 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 one of those)
May 29 at 11:59 p.m. — Deadline to withdraw from NBA draft and maintain college eligibility
June 16 at 5 p.m. — Deadline to withdraw from the NBA draft
UNC schedule so far
Nov. 8 — at Kansas (final AP rank No. 20; final NET ranking No. 19)
Nov. 22 — at Hawaii (final NET ranking No. 172)
Nov. 25–27 — Maui Invitational — Auburn (final AP rank No. 18; final NET ranking No. 5), Colorado (unranked; No. 25), Connecticut (No. 1; No. 2), Dayton (No. 24; No. 23), Iowa State (No. 8; No. 6), Memphis (unranked; No. 75), Michigan State (unranked; No. 24)
Dec. 14 — vs. La Salle (final NET ranking No. 195)
Likely in late November — Opponent TBA in ACC/SEC Challenge
December — vs. UCLA (final NET ranking No. 107) in CBS Sports Classic (date, location TBA)
December — vs. Florida (final NET ranking No. 29) in Jumpman Invitational at Charlotte’s Spectrum Center (date TBA)
— Games home and away against Duke, N.C. State and Pittsburgh
— Home games vs. Boston College, California, Georgia Tech, Miami, SMU, Stanford and Virginia
— Road games vs. Clemson, Florida State, Louisville, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest
Note: 2024 NCAA tournament teams are in bold.
Potential 2024-25 UNC 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 |
| 0 | Junior | Seth Trimble | 2 | 6–3 | 195 |
| 5 | Graduate | RJ Davis | PG | 6–0 | 180 |
| Eligible for fifth season | |||||
| 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 |
Photo via @rc_basketball
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