By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — Of the 16 players on Michael Malone’s first UNC roster, only two scholarship guards remain from last season’s group: Isaiah Dennis and Jaden Young.
The rest of the backcourt had to be built from scratch after the departures of Seth Trimble, Derek Dixon, Kyan Evans and Jonathan Powell.
Malone didn’t waste time.
“When that portal opened the day I got the job, it seems like five months ago, we addressed the backcourt,” Malone said at a Thursday morning Smith Center press conference. “We added Terrence Brown, we added Matt Able, we added Neo Avdalas, and I think those three guys combine for one of the more dynamic and exciting backcourts in all of college basketball.”
Brown (top photo) arrived with a proven scoring pedigree, but Malone was direct about what comes next in his development of a player he called an elite scorer at FDU and Utah.
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“Now his challenge is if he wants to play at the next level: Can he show teams at the highest level that he is more than just a scorer, that he can also run his team? He can facilitate and make his teammates better,” Malone said.
The scoring, in other words, was never in question. Whether Brown can expand into a facilitator role is the question Malone wants answered this season.
Able presents a different kind of potential. A player Malone noted could have stayed in this year’s NBA draft, Able instead returns for a second college season carrying momentum from his freshman year at N.C. State.
“[Able] proved last year at N.C. State that he can come off the bench and impact the game with his 3-point shooting, his defense,” Malone said.
But Malone made clear he sees more in Able’s game than a specialist role.
“I think he has a lot more to show,” Malone said. “I think Matt is a guy who can also be a facilitator and a playmaker, as well as being an elite shooter and scorer. And I think Matt Able’s got just incredible potential as well.”
Avdalas, meanwhile, was one of the very first commitments of Malone’s tenure. One of the first players Malone identified as a target in the portal, the coach described him in terms that go beyond box scores.
“Neo is a guy who was such an important get because, to me, his positional size, but also his vision, his playmaking, are what separate Neo Avdalas from a lot of other players,” Malone said.
“poised to have an outstanding season.”
Malone also pointed to Avdalas’s work ethic as a defining trait, recalling their first conversation about his previous season at Virginia Tech.
“He talked about how he got to school late, and it was such a new experience, a new country. And right after he committed to us, he came to Chapel Hill. He was here the whole summer. You want to talk about a guy that put the time in, the work in, got stronger, his game has improved,” Malone said. “I think Neo is about to have an incredible season, and the guys love playing with him because he’s such a dynamic and willing facilitator and makes everyone around him better.”
Among the returners, Young, another former Virginia Tech player, enters the season with quietly rising expectations after a summer Malone said has carried directly into September workouts.
“Jaden Young had an outstanding summer and has transferred that and carried that over into the fall workouts,” Malone said. “Didn’t get a great chance to play a ton of minutes last year, but I think Jaden Young is poised to have an outstanding season for us.”
Isaiah Dennis, who missed significant time last season due to injury, represents a different kind of opportunity, one built around translating raw physical tools into winning basketball.
“Isaiah’s athleticism has burst, and his willingness to understand that, ‘I have to start reading the game and seeing the game, and using my athleticism to the benefit of the team,’ ” Malone said of Dennis’s growth heading into the year.
Two names came up only in passing during his press conference, but are worth watching: Buffalo transfer Angelo Brizzi and freshman Malloy Smith. Malone mentioned them while running down the full list of newcomers who round out the roster, grouping him among the additions he listed.
Malone summed up the group’s collective ceiling, pointing to size and flexibility as its defining traits.
“Those guys have all been working very, very hard, and I think our backcourt has size, versatility, and we can go in a lot of different ways with how we use that backcourt,” he said.
Malone’s backcourt now enters a stretch of preparation that will determine how quickly an established scorer learns to distribute, a shooter proves he’s more than a specialist, a passer builds on a strong offseason, and how they come together as a unit.
| 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 | Alexandros Samodurov (Alex-ANN-drose 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.
Players who entered 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 | Pacific |
Non-conference schedule
| Date | Month/day | Opponent/event (final ranks) |
|---|---|---|
| October | Exhibitions | |
| 9 | 7 p.m. Friday | vs. USC in Greensboro |
| 18 | 5 p.m. Sunday | vs. Indiana in Indianapolis |
| 27 | Tuesday | 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 | Dick Vitale Invitational vs. West Virginia in Charlotte |
| December | ||
| 1 | Tuesday | ACC/SEC Challenge vs. No. 13 Arkansas |
| 6 | Sunday | vs. Butler |
| 12 | Saturday | at Georgetown |
| 15 | 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 |
| January | ||
| 30 | Saturday | Nashville Hoops Showdown vs. No. 5 Illinois in Nashville, Tenn. |
ACC opponents
Home and away: Duke and Louisville
Home only: California, Georgia Tech, Miami, N.C. State, SMU, Stanford and Virginia
Away only: Boston College, Florida State, Notre Dame, Pitt, Syracuse, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest
Don’t play: Clemson
Photos via @UNC_Basketball
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