By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — After a frustrating freshman season battling a lingering finger injury and playing sparingly, Isaiah Denis couldn’t have been blamed if he decided to continue his career at another college.
Coach Michael Malone liked the talent he saw in the 6–4 guard from Charlotte and did everything he could to keep him at Carolina. Denis said Malone made coming back for another season at Carolina an easy decision.
After Derek Dixon transferred to Arizona and Kyan Evans moved on to Minnesota, Denis figures to be in the point guard rotation.
Denis credited his decision to stay partly to his faith and partly to a coaching staff that made clear he was wanted, even as the roster turned over around him. Assistant coaches Sean May and Pat Sullivan advocated for him directly to Malone.
“They really vouched for me,” Denis said of when Malone asked which players on last season’s roster he should keep. “They told him that I was one of the kids that we needed to keep. So that meant a lot to me. Them just vouching for me and knowing who I am as a person, character-wise, and my game as well.”
He decided after hearing directly from Malone.
“To know that he has a plan for me, and that if I go in and put the work in, that there should be no reason why I shouldn’t be playing,” he said. “So, it made me feel comfortable, and I also love his playing style. I feel like I can play in his playing style, playing up and down. So, it just all fit.”
Part of what has made Denis comfortable buying into Malone’s approach traces back to a player he idolized long before the coaching change: Bones Hyland, the electric guard who came off Malone’s bench in Denver.
When Denis and his mom met with Malone, he told the coach how much he looked up to Hyland.
“He was like, ‘You know, it’s crazy, you actually reminded me of Bones a little bit, how you carry yourself off the court and your game a little bit,’ ” Denis said. “So, then the first couple weeks where I was just working out, he would come down and watch me. He was like, ‘What up, Bones?’ And so that just made my day.”
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Malone’s pursuit of Denis extended beyond their conversations. Aware of Denis’s relationship with NBA veteran and Winston-Salem native Chris Paul, Malone contacted him and former UNC star guard Jeff McInnis, his mentor back home in Charlotte.
“Coach Malone made the effort; knowing I had a good relationship with Chris Paul, he reached out to Chris Paul like, ‘Yo, I needed to tell Isaiah to get off the transfer portal,’” Denis said. “Even talking to Coach McInnis, who’s a big mentor of mine back home in Charlotte, who played here, just reaching out to guys that he knew I was close to, and making sure that it was known, like, ‘Yo, I need this kid. I need him to come back.’ ”
A finger injury, which first occurred during his senior season at Davidson Day School, complicated his freshman season before it began. He dislocated and broke a finger in his shooting hand, had surgery, and returned for the final two games of his high school career before the injury resurfaced just weeks into summer workouts before his freshman season.
“It was really hard trying to solidify a rotation spot, especially as a freshman trying to come in and earn your minutes,” Denis said.
He played only 33 minutes over 10 games, scoring 19 points and making 4 of 8 3-point attempts. Denis never played after logging two minutes in the 82–58 loss at N.C. State on Feb. 17.
Even sidelined, Denis said he treated every practice as a chance to develop, a mindset he credits for the player he’s become entering his sophomore season.
“Once I found out it wasn’t a role for me to get into, and I wasn’t getting much playing time, I just took the practices like games,” he said. “Try to better myself each and every day in practice. That was my goal all last year, and I feel like I completed that goal, and it’s helped me to be the player I am now.”
Now fully healthy, Denis said the difference in how Malone’s staff will use him has been immediately evident — playing point guard, a position he wasn’t always certain would be his.
“Just knowing that they trust me to have the ball in my hands and take care of the team, to be a leader, that means a lot,” said Denis, who says most people see him more as a combo guard. “It just instills confidence in me and makes me go out there and want to play for my teammates and be the best player I can be out there each and every day.”
As one of the few players who was on campus before Malone’s arrival, he’s helped orient a roster stocked with newcomers navigating a coaching change and a new system at the same time.
“It’s been great,” Denis said. “They’ve really taken on the Carolina family aspect of everything, and it’s been a surreal moment for a lot of these kids that are transferring from other schools. I think they’ve just done a great job embracing the family part of it, embracing what Carolina is and who we are.”
Entering his sophomore year healthy, Denis said he’s eager to show a fuller picture of his game than the flashes fans saw during an injury-shortened freshman season.
“A lot of people are gonna see the type of player I am this year in college,” Denis said. “Somebody who could get a bucket every night. Somebody who’s gonna lead their team, who’s a winner. It’s not too often you see somebody that’s 6–5 who can run the floor, and I feel like that’s something you guys are gonna see out of me.”
Underpinning all of it, Denis said, is a set of three words Malone has repeated since the team’s first meeting of the offseason, a framework the coach wants the entire program built around.
“Work, selfless, trust,” Denis said. “Those three words right there have been a big focal point. Just being selfless, knowing that the guys around you have your back, that you could trust them, trusting the coaching staff, trusting your teammates, and then committing to being consistent each and every day, having great practices, not mediocre practices.”
With a better opportunity this season and a confident approach, you’re likely to see a Denis who you never saw last season.
| 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 |
Photo by Joshua Lawton
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