By R.L. Bynum
North Carolina couldn’t lure a top-line center last offseason but already has one 11 days after the transfer portal opened this offseason.
Former Arizona center Henri Veesaar (pronounced “VAY-sar”), a 7–0, 235-pound Estonian who visited the UNC campus on Wednesday two days after entering the portal, will transfer to Carolina, according to multiple reports, first reported Friday by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. He has two seasons of remaining eligibility.
The next mission for UNC is to get a top point guard.
Veesaar, who enjoyed a breakout season after missing the 2023–24 season with an elbow injury suffered in a golf cart accident, scored double-figure points 16 times during his redshirt sophomore season, including 13 in the 100–93 Sweet 16 loss to Duke, to go along with six rebounds and a block.
He averaged 9.4 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1.1 blocks in 20.8 minutes per game and collected 22 points and four blocks, both career highs, in a 113–110 win in the home finale against rival Arizona State.
Veesaar, who shot 32.7% from 3-point range last season and scored multiple 3s four times, took advantage of the chance given to him when center Motiejus Krivas suffered a season-ending ankle injury eight games into the season.
After the team’s season-ending loss, Veesaar praised his teammate, former UNC star guard Caleb Love.
“In the tournament, I was struggling; he talked to me,” Veesaar said. “He came up to me after I missed the free throw because he made me practice free throws after that game. After that, he just came up to me, ‘Hey, we worked way too hard, you got this.’ After that, I didn’t miss a free throw; I made seven in a row.
“I just want to set the record straight,” Veesaar said. “For any scouts or anybody who thinks he’s not a good teammate, he’s the best person. Everybody loves him on the team. There’s no problems with him. The best person we have.”
Before joining Arizona, he played three seasons for the Real Madrid youth program.
At age 17, he averaged 16.2 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.8 blocks and 2.6 assists playing for Estonia in the FIBA U18 European Challengers event and was the youngest player to play for the Estonian senior national team in 2021.
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 two 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 |
| 4 star | Freshman | Kevin Thomas | W | 6–7 | 190 |
| 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
Michael Malone’s coaching staff: Chuck Martin, Bryan Tibaldi, Sean May and Pat Sullivan; Deon Thompson will be a graduate assistant, and Brandon Robinson will reportedly have a support staff position.
Players who left for the 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
Thursday through May 28 — Kevin Thomas at USA Basketball U18 national team tryouts in Colorado Springs
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 or Rocco Miller)
(11 of 14 games)
Nov. 2 — vs. Western Carolina
Nov. 6 — vs. Wofford
Nov. 10 — vs. Wyoming
Nov. 13 — vs. Georgia
Nov. 20 — vs. Marshall
Nov. 27 — vs. West Virginia at the Dick Vitale Invitational at Charlotte’s Spectrum Center
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
Photo via arizonawildcats.com
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