By R.L. Bynum
WASHINGTON — After putting on a dazzling display at the Jordan Brand Classic, Caleb Wilson said he’s ready to fulfill his dream of playing for Carolina and winning a championship.
Wilson, a versatile 6–9 five-star incoming freshman, scored 28 points while pulling down six rebounds, leading Team Air to a 141–124 victory over Team Flight at the Jordan Brand Classic at the CareFirst Arena.
“I’m ready to go; that’s all I can say,” Wilson said. “I’ve dreamed of being able to play college basketball and play for the best team in the country. It doesn’t get any better. I know when it’s time for me to get there and work, I’m working. I’m putting myself and the team on the map. I’m ready to play Kansas for one of the first few games. I’m ready to do it all. To tell you, right now, I’m ready. I’m ready to do it.”
If fans are looking for a player to take over games and be the one to take the big shots, Wilson says he’s eager to do all of that. He said Coach Hubert Davis told him during the recruiting process that he wanted Wilson to “be the guy.”
“And the thing about me is, for me to be the guy doesn’t mean I have to score 30 points,” Wilson said. “I can just affect the game in many ways, kind of like I did out here. Just whatever needs to be done to win. I’m there to do it.”
Wilson talks a lot with the current Carolina players and his two fellow incoming freshmen — four-star combo guards Isaiah Denis and Derek Dixon — and said that Indianapolis, the site of the 2026 Final Four, comes up a lot.
“We’ve got to get there. We’ve got to win,” Wilson said. “I feel like every year, we should be a top-five team in the country. That’s part of the reason why I went to Carolina. I want to be a part of the group that restores that winning culture and that winning mentality.”
Wilson was a big reason Team Air rallied from a 19-point halftime deficit to win. He was one of the few players on the court playing defense, a part of his game that makes him proud.
“I feel like you know you aren’t always gonna score,” Wilson said. “You’ve got to affect games in multiple ways. And even next year with the Tar Heels, I feel like I can have the assignment guarding the best player on the floor. I want that assignment to show what I can do.”
Wilson says he brings everything with his game and can always have an impact even if he has a bad shooting night.
“I can pass the ball really well, shoot the ball [and] rebound,” Wilson said. “I defend at the highest level. I give the effort. Even if I go 0 for 30, you’re gonna see my impact on the game somewhere else. No matter what happens, I’m always there on the stat sheet, whether it’s points, rebounds, assists, dunks … I’m there.”
Wilson got the ball much more often than in the McDonald’s All-American Game, when he only took four shots and finished with three points and six rebounds. He got many more shots and took advantage of them, hitting 13 of 14 field-goal attempts, including a couple of dunks.
How did he put up such good numbers in the Jordan Brand Classic?
“Play harder than everybody,” Wilson said. “That’s how I always try to do it. All-star games, when you’re a bigger guy, you’re not gonna have a ball in your hands as much, [so you just have to] run, defend, get out in transition, shoot the ball.”
He played with two incoming Duke freshmen but scored more than those two combined, as Cameron Boozer had 10 points and Cayden Boozer scored four.
“We talk trash every single day,” Wilson said of the Boozers. “But those are my guys. We all compete at a very high level. We all talk to each other kind of frequently. They are cool people. But in a couple more months, we’ll be right neck and neck at each other.”
The trash talk didn’t involve razzing the Boozers about Duke’s loss to Houston but rather talking about how next season will go.
“I’m saying we’re going to win the ACC championship and beat them three times,” Wilson said.
Kiyan Anthony, who will play for Syracuse, scored 26 points and three 3-pointers for Team Air. BYU-bound AJ Dybantsa paced Team Flight with 25 points, with Duke recruit Nikolas Khamenia held to five points.
Wilson said that he’s hit the weight room hard during the offseason, so much so that he lamented that it could have affected his game performance on Friday — not that anybody would have noticed with the numbers he put up.
“I felt like I needed to get started for next year, and I feel like I needed to start it before I got to campus,” Wilson said, adding that there’s plenty he wants to improve between now and the start of his freshman season. “Shooting, dealing with physicality, off-ball and on the ball, being able to move. I’m huge, so I’ve got to be able to move and guard everybody.”
He said that picking Carolina was an easy decision.
“Best school in the country, academics, athletics and basketball,” he said. “We’ve got the best arena. It’s perfect. It’s basketball heaven. I feel like it’s not too far from home also, and I’m gonna put us back on the map.”
Wilson said that following the transfer portal from afar has been interesting, as much of the roster construction has happened in the last few weeks.
“It’s crazy,” he said. “You never know what the Coach is thinking until you talk to him. And I trust in Hubert. I trust in the whole coaching staff, and I feel like we’re gonna win next year. My job is for me to be there and ready to go and it’s time to go.”
He can’t wait to arrive in Chapel Hill in mid-June and get to work.
Team Air 141, Team Flight 124
| No. | Class | Player | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | Freshman | Maximo Adams (MAX-ih-mo) | F | 6–7 | 220 |
| 30 | Freshman | Malloy Smith | G | 6–5 | 180 |
| 21 | Freshman | Sayon Keita (SIGH-on KAY-tuh) | C | 7–0 | 205 |
| 5 | Freshman | Kevin Thomas | W | 6–6 | 205 |
| 35 | Sophomore | Cade Bennerman — U | C | 7–0 | 205 |
| 17 | Sophomore | Neo Avdalas — W (NEE-oh ahv-DOLL-lus) | G | 6–9 | 220 |
| 2 | Sophomore | Isaiah Denis | G | 6–4 | 185 |
| 3 | Sophomore | Matt Able — X | G | 6–5 | 200 |
| 22 | Junior | Alex Samodurov (SAH-muh-DUHR-off) | C | 6–11 | 225 |
| 1 | Senior | Terrence Brown — Y | G | 6–3 | 180 |
| 4 | Senior | Jaydon Young (JAY-din) | G | 6–4 | 200 |
| 15 | Senior | Jarin Stevenson (JARE-in) | F | 6–10 | 220 |
| 14 | Graduate | Angelo Brizzi — Z (BRIZZ-ee) | G | 6–3 | 200 |
| 54 | Graduate | Cameron Fens — V (Fenz) | C | 7–0 | 255 |
| Walk-ons | |||||
| 99 | Junior | John Holbrook — SA | F | 6–8 | 230 |
| 32 | Senior | Evan Smith | G | 6–1 | 200 |
V — South Dakota transfer; U — Northwestern transfer; W — Virginia Tech transfer; X — N.C. State transfer; Y — Utah transfer; Z — Buffalo transfer; SA — Holbrook is a designated student-athlete, so he doesn’t count against UNC’s 15-player limit.
Coach Michael Malone’s coaching staff — Associate head coach Chuck Martin; assistant coaches Bryan Tibaldi (tih-BALL-dee), Sean May, Jorge Sanz (HOR-hey sahnth), Pat Sullivan and Brandon Robinson; Director of player development Deon Thompson.
Former players at other schools
| Player | Class | 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 | Pacific |
UNC schedule
| Date | Month/day | Opponent/event (final ranks) |
|---|---|---|
| October | Exhibitions | |
| 9 | 7 p.m. Friday, ACCN | vs. USC in Greensboro |
| 18 | 5 p.m. Sunday | vs. Indiana in Indianapolis |
| 27 | 7:30 Tuesday, ACCN Extra | vs. Charlotte |
| November | Regular season | |
| 2 | Monday | vs. Western Carolina |
| 6 | Friday | vs. Wofford |
| 10 | Tuesday | vs. Wyoming |
| 13 | Friday | vs. Georgia |
| 20 | Friday | vs. Marshall |
| 23 | Monday | vs. Monmouth |
| 27 | Friday, 7 p.m. | Dick Vitale Invitational vs. West Virginia in Charlotte |
| December | ||
| 1 | Tuesday, 7:30, ESPN2 | ACC/SEC Challenge vs. No. 13 Arkansas |
| 6 | Sunday | vs. Butler |
| 12 | Saturday afternoon | at Georgetown |
| 15 | 7 p.m. Tuesday | Tobacco Road Classic vs. N.C. State in Greensboro |
| 19 | 2:30 Saturday, CBS | CBS Sports Classic vs. Kentucky in New York |
| 21 | Monday | vs. The Citadel |
| 30 | Wednesday | vs. California |
| January | ||
| 2 | Saturday | at Boston College |
| 5 | 7 p.m. Tuesday | at Louisville |
| 9 | Saturday | vs. N.C. State |
| 13 | Wednesday | at Florida State |
| 16 | Saturday | vs. Stanford |
| 19 | Tuesday | vs. No. 17 Virginia |
| 23 | Saturday | at Syracuse |
| 26 | Tuesday | vs. SMU |
| 30 | Saturday | Nashville Hoops Showdown vs. No. 5 Illinois in Nashville, Tenn. |
| February | ||
| 2 | Tuesday | at Notre Dame |
| 6 | Saturday | vs. Georgia Tech |
| 8 | Monday, 7 p.m, ESPN | vs. Louisville |
| 13 | Saturday | at No. 4 Duke |
| 20 | Saturday | at Wake Forest |
| 22 | Monday, 7 p.m, ESPN | vs. No. 24 Miami |
| 27 | Saturday | at Virginia Tech |
| March | ||
| 2 | Tuesday | at Pittsburgh |
| 6 | Saturday | vs. No. 4 Duke |
| 9–13 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament in Greensboro |
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