Hubert Davis describes how he plans to challenge several young post players

North Carolina returns four of five starters of the team that sprinted to the national title game and came up just short. Plus, they just added 14-point-per-game transfer Pete Nance from Northwestern to the fold. Seemingly, they have another elite group of five guys — except this group is older.

So how do youngsters like Dontrez Styles and Puff Johnson break into the rotation? Well, the Achilles heel of the ’22 Carolina team was their bench. Styles and Johnson were underclassmen who simply weren’t very trustworthy for first-year coach Hubert Davis. That’s why he played his starters as much as any team in the country.

He hopes those two will force him to use the bench a little more in 2022-23. When speaking to the media, Davis explained that “Puff and Dontrez continued to get more playing time during the season because they just continued to get better. I want them to build on the things that they did well last year,” Davis added. To help “put them in position to have a bigger role next year.”

Finally, Davis added, “we need ’em.” They certainly do. UNC saw its starters’ legs run dead by the end of that tournament run. Larger contributions from their bench could give them enough of a stamina boost to get the job done in 2023.

Davis opens up about building North Carolina’s chemistry during offseason

Hubert Davis is reloading for an even more successful second season at North Carolina. A tall task given that the Tar Heels came within a few possessions of winning the 2022 title. Alas, they lost in brutal fashion after giving up a big halftime lead as Bill Self secured his second title at Kansas.

Those runner-up Tar Heels are back with one goal in mind: be on the other side of that scoreboard next April. UNC returns four of its five starters off of last year’s magical run to the title game. Caleb Love, RJ Davis, Leaky Black and Armando Bacot are all back in baby blue next season after turning their nose at the NBA.

According to their coach, these guys are coming back with a vengeance. “What they experienced last year has lit a fire inside all of them,” Davis said to media. Love, Davis, Black and Bacot aren’t complacent after such postseason success. Instead, they’re focused on performing more consistently in the regular season and summiting the mountain in the NCAA Tournament.

Coach Davis is “really excited about the leadership of this team,” following a year where it took a while for the leaders to really take control of the team. Heading into this fall, those roles are more set. Even some of the younger returners off the 2022 team are starting to find their voices in the locker room. Davis said he’s seen “tremendous leadership from Dontrez Styles and Puff Johnson,” who were underclassmen wings this past year.