National title odds for the 2019-20 college basketball season have been released and UNC has been given favorable betting odds by major sports books.

Virginia, the defending national champions, are listed as the favorites with 5-1 odds. After being the first No. 1 seed in history to lose to a No. 16 seed, the Cavaliers rebounded this season with a 85-77 overtime win over Texas Tech in the national title game on Monday evening.

https://twitter.com/lindetrain/status/1115357743148199942

North Carolina has been given 20-1 odds for the 2019-20 national title in these early rankings. The Tar Heels share the same odds as Michigan and Auburn, but are behind Virginia, Duke (8-1), Kentucky (8-1), Gonzaga (10-1), Michigan State (12-1), Louisville (15-1), and Villanova (15-1).

The Tar Heels are losing several key players from this year’s squad. Seniors Luke Maye, Cam Johnson, and Kenny Williams have exhausted their eligibility and freshmen Coby White and Nassir Little have each declared for the draft.

That leaves rising junior Garrison Brooks as the only returning starter for North Carolina next season. Brooks started all 36 games for the Tar Heels this season and ranked sixth on the team with 7.9 points per game.

Roy Williams’ squad returns several key bench players from last season as well, including Seventh Woods, Brandon Robinson, and Leaky Black. The Tar Heels have also signed five-star center Armando Bacot and three-star guard Jeremiah Francis in 2019 recruiting class. Five-star guard Cole Anthony, the No. 4 player in the 2019 class, listed UNC among his top four schools and is expected to make a final decision sometime in April.

Related Stories
‹
UNC Women's Basketball Picked to Finish Seventh in ACC Preseason Poll
As the UNC women’s basketball team prepares for its third season under head coach Courtney Banghart, Atlantic Coast Conference head coaches have picked the Tar Heels to finish seventh in the conference. The preseason poll, revealed on Wednesday morning, predicts Carolina will finish behind NC State, Louisville, Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, Florida State and Notre […]
Art's Angle: Does Honor Absolve Smith?
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) will be bestowing an annual award that honors the late Dean Smith given “to an individual in college basketball who embodies the spirit and values represented by Smith,” according to the official release Wednesday. What a marvelous idea, akin to what has been proposed by various people since Smith […]
UNC Sophomore Guard Lanie Grant to Enter Transfer Portal
Sophomore guard Lanie Grant, who helped lead UNC to back-to-back Sweet 16 appearances in 2025 and 2026, will enter the NCAA transfer portal when it opens Monday, April 6. Grant made the announcement on social media Wednesday evening. Proud of everything we accomplished over the past two years with my teammates and coaches, and so […]
Chansky's Notebook: Déjà Blue
For the second straight year, a Duke-UNC game served as an omen for the end of the Blue Devils’ season in the NCAA Tournament.
A Brief History of UNC Men's Basketball Head Coaching Searches
As we near the one-week mark of the UNC men’s basketball head coaching vacancy, rumors continue to swirl about the Tar Heels’ potential targets. If leading candidates are any indication, the next head coach will not come from the “Carolina Family,” breaking a streak that began with Dean Smith. Since Smith, each UNC head coach […]
Chansky's Notebook: Tricky Timetable
Two of the prime candidates for UNC's head coaching job will be competing against each other in the Final Four Saturday night.
March 28, 2026
This week, Dr. Deborah Stroman discusses UNC Men's basketball in the NCAA Tournament and the five ACC Women's Basketball teams who made the Sweet Sixteen.
UNC's Caleb Wilson Declares for 2026 NBA Draft
UNC star freshman Caleb Wilson will forgo his remaining college eligibility and enter the 2026 NBA Draft, he announced on social media Friday night. Wilson’s announcement comes less than a week after the university dismissed Hubert Davis as the head coach of the men’s basketball program. View this post on Instagram Wilson finished his freshman […]
UNC Women's Basketball Falls to No. 1 UConn in NCAA Sweet 16
UNC could not generate enough offense to run with No. 1 UConn in the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16 in Fort Worth, TX Friday evening, falling to the undefeated Huskies 63-42. The Tar Heels’ season is over in the Sweet 16 for the second consecutive year. The Tar Heels struggled against a suffocating UConn defense all […]
Lloyd, May or Donovan? Pros and Cons of 3 Candidates for the UNC Men's Basketball Head Coaching Job
As UNC continues to search for its next men’s basketball head coach, three names which have been floated as prime candidates for the job are Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd, Michigan head coach Dusty May and Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan. All three men have had ringing success on the college stage, but there […]
›