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What is up with the UNC admissions office?
Remember when Mack Brown went after the NCAA with strong statements about the eligibility of transfer wide receiver Tez Walker?
That sort of made sense because there seemed to be an inconsistency in restoring eligibility of undergraduate athletes. With no new information, the NCAA reacted to the Mack attack and Walker played the last two-thirds of the season and is now in the NFL.
The Luka Bogavac issue is kind of reversed with the NCAA clearing the semi-pro transfer from Montenegro, but so far not the university. Why wouldn’t UNC use the same criteria as the NCAA? With what has happened to the rule of law in this country, that should be a no-brainer.
The Tar Heels had a mixed showing in the two-point loss to BYU in last week’s exhibition. They shot it pretty well and actually out rebounded the bigger Cougars, but not on the offensive board. And they had 19 turnovers, which is concerning with no veteran or proven point guard among the nine additions to the roster.
Bogavac is a key piece to that lineup, a projected starter at small forward who will hopefully fill much of the role Cormac Ryan had in 2023-24. Luka has shot at least 40 percent from outside his last few years overseas.
The new Carolina front court is bigger and deeper than what was lost after last season. But it does not look any rougher and tougher, which means they will have to execute pick and rolls and pick and pops better than they did in the Blue-White game and against BYU. While freshman Caleb Wilson looked great with his 22-10 double double, Henri Veesaar (14 and 8) needs to be as rugged as possible in the paint since there is no real low post presence.
To make the Heels more dangerous inside, the perimeter has to be hitting its fair share of 3-pointers to stretch the defense enough to create more passing lanes to the paint.
Besides Bogavac, the best purported 3-point shooter is Kyan Evans, who did well last season at Colorado State before entering the portal and winding up here. Derek Dixon, a true freshman, could split time at the point with Evans. Senior Seth Trimble needs to be free to score, assist, penetrate and defend with his athleticism and speed all over the floor.
BYU is ranked and far superior to Carolina’s next two opponents, one a second exhibition tonight and the official season opener Monday night.
The first chance for an early intersectional win comes in the Smith Center Friday night, November 7, against ranked Kansas, a few notches higher than UNC.
Hopefully, by then, UNC will determine that Bogavac is eligible and can do more than practice with the Tar Heels these days. After all, he is eligible to attend classes, which he has been doing since the fall semester began.
Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications/Maggie Hobson
Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro.Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
