With his team returning nine of its top ten contributors from last year’s run to the Sweet 16, UNC Head Men’s Basketball Coach Roy Williams said at the team’s media day on Monday that he has the deepest squad he’s had during his thirteen years at the helm in Chapel Hill.

High expectations have surrounded the Tar Heels in each of their two national championship runs under Williams, in 2005 and in 2009. But as talented as this year’s team is, its head coach is not quite ready to make that lofty comparison just yet.

“In ’05 I thought we were if not the best, one of the two best teams in the country,” Williams said. “In ’09 I thought we were the best. I think this year we’re one of the best.

“And if we play the best down the stretch, then we could be the best,” he continued. “But there’s a big difference there.”

Roy Williams watches over practice on Monday. (UNC Athletics)

Roy Williams watches over practice on Monday. (UNC Athletics)

A balanced mix of young talent and experienced leaders—led by seniors Marcus Paige and Brice Johnson–have the Tar Heels looking like one of the top five teams in the country entering this season.

Although Paige and Johnson are great players, they aren’t viewed as high NBA draft picks, which is why Williams expected them to return and help lead this bunch to the promise land.

“There’s no Tyler Hansbrough and there’s no Harrison Barnes, but we got a pretty dadgum good basketball team out there,” Williams said. “Marcus could have left. Brice, it was gonna be a very chancy thing for him, and I think he made the best decision to try to come back,  and continue to improve.

“Marcus getting his degree has been very important to him since day one,” he added.

Hampered by plantar fasciitis for the majority of last season, Paige is fully healthy now, ready to defend his status as one of the nation’s top players.

The team’s starting point guard for the majority of his three years on campus; he may have to do that by spending more time this year at the shooting guard position–making way for talented sophomore Joel Berry, who praised Paige for always looking out for him no matter the situation.

“He’s always encouraging, and that’s the great thing about Marcus,” Berry said. “He never tries to put you down or anything. He’ll tell you what you did wrong, but at the end of the day you just have to listen to what he says, and not how he says it. He just wants to win, and that’s what I want to do too.”

Players like Berry and his fellow sophomores–Justin Jackson and Theo Pinson—are the guys who will need to make the leap for the Tar Heels to meet their goals this season. Paige is a known commodity at this point. These guys showed flashes during their freshman year, but now it’s time to become consistent.

For what it’s worth, Paige has the utmost confidence in their ability to do just that.

The sophomore class, Pinson (1), Berry (2), and Jackson (44), are expected to provide a major boost. (UNC Athletics)

The sophomore class–Pinson (1), Berry (2), and Jackson (44)–is expected to provide a major boost. (UNC Athletics)

“My younger teammates, they’re all five-star recruits—Joel, Justin, and Theo—and now that they’re a little more experienced they kind of have an expectation for themselves, and they kind of know a little bit more of what to do,” Paige said. “Now I’m just the guy that sits back and steers the ship, rather than trying to control everything that goes on, and bark at guys the whole time.”

With Paige patrolling over the young backcourt, Coach Williams expects Johnson to do the same thing down in the low post.

Along with junior center Kennedy Meeks, Johnson knows he’ll have to take on more of a leadership role as a senior—even if it means going against his natural personality to do so.

“I try to do everything I can that Coach tells me to do,” Johnson said. “It’s just [that] I’m not the most talkative person. I’ve never been the most talkative person. I’m a lot more talkative off the court than I am on the court.

“That’s just one of the things with me growing up,” he added. “I have to be able to talk more on the court and help my teammates on the defensive end, and even help out the freshmen when they mess up on a play in practice.”

Since Paige and Johnson arrived at UNC in the fall of 2012, the Tar Heels have not been able to hang a single banner. No conference titles. No national titles.

It’s been a rough past few years for the program, relatively speaking.

But when Paige looks at the talent on this roster, it’s tough for him to hold back when he thinks about his own personal expectations for the year.

“Going into the season it’s hard not to think of anything but a trip to Houston [for the Final Four] being a success for us, and anything less not meeting what we’re capable of,” he said. “I’ll just leave it at that.”