North Carolina lands former West Virginia guard Johnathan Powell

According to On3’s Joe Tipton, North Carolina has landed Johnathan Powell out of the NCAA transfer portal. Powell previously played for West Virginia but will now take his talents to Chapel Hill. Early in the cycle, UNC head coach Hubert Davis is delivering.

“BREAKING: West Virginia transfer guard Jonathan Powell has committed to North Carolina, he tells @On3sports,” Tipton said via X. “The 6-6 freshman averaged 8.3 points and 3.1 rebounds per game this season. Powell knocked down 64 three-pointers, leading all freshmen in the Big 12 conference.”

The three-pointers are certainly something North Carolina will welcome. Last season saw them rank 193rd in attempts from deep, making just 35.6% of them. Not too bad compared to the rest of college basketball, coming in at No. 87, but an area the Tar Heels would like to improve.

Powell finished out the regular season strong at West Virginia, getting into double-figure scoring in both contests. Ten points on the road against Utah before UCF came to Morgantown in the finale, where Powell dropped 15 points. He was a combined seven of 13 three-point attempts.

Coming out of Dayton (OH) Centerville, Powell was a three-star prospect. He was the No. 137 overall recruit in the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

West Virginia was able to unlock some of the potential Powell showed as a recruit. North Carolina is now hoping to better the results.

More on North Carolina, hoping for bounceback season

People across college basketball were shocked when North Carolina’s name popped up on Selection Sunday. The committee sent them to Dayton for the First Four but an outcry came via social media because of their inclusion.

Either way, the NCAA Tournament run did not last long. Breezing by San Diego State quickly turned into a loss to Ole Miss in the first round. It was back to the drawing board for Davis, needing a bounce-back season in 2025-2026.

Powell certainly gets the ball rolling from a transfer portal standpoint. You to have to imagine he will not be the last commitment of the offseason. North Carolina is bringing in a top-10 recruiting class too, highlighted by Five-Star Plus+ product Caleb Wilson.

Talent will certainly be on next year’s roster. Results will need to follow for Davis as he leads one of college basketball’s blue blood programs.