Michael Malone's first UNC roster isn't going to invoke memories in Chapel Hill of Sean May, Raymond Felton, and Rashad McCants in 2005 or Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, and Danny Green in 2009, but it could be getting even closer to complete and total disaster.
If it wasn't bad enough that North Carolina is still waiting on its backcourt to be solidified as NC State transfer Matt Able goes through the NBA Draft process, worse news could be coming down the pipeline.
While most view Able as likely to join the Tar Heels and exit the NBA Draft, not everyone shares that opinion. College basketball analyst Ryan Hammer logged a prediction on social media in recent days for Able to stick in the draft. He appears right on the cusp of the first round, and if he gets a late promise between now and Wednesday's deadline to withdraw, he could elect to remain in the draft and throw Malone a curveball he won't even be able to swing at.
That might not be the end of the bad news, either.
Recent NCAA guidance could put a halt to the importation of international prospects into college basketball. More specifically for UNC, they could lose the recently signed Sayon Keita, and also miss out on top target Alexandros Samodurov, which would leave North Carolina extremely thin in the frontcourt with no real way of replacing them.
New NCAA guidance could pillage UNC's frontcourt in Michael Malone's first season
UNC is certainly not alone in potentially losing a player or two if the NCAA's guidance goes into effect. Duke's Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje and Dame Sarr could also be casualties of the rule, but the difference for Jon Scheyer is that he has built the depth for the Blue Devils to withstand some roster attrition.
Malone hasn't.
Losing Able, along with Keita and Samodurov, this late in the process would be an unmitigated disaster for Malone heading into his first season in Chapel Hill. Even with all three of those guys in tow, the Tar Heels look closer to a bubble team than a real contender in the ACC. Losing that trio would knock them off the bubble and a whole lot closer to the cellar of the ACC instead.
While Duke appears to be sitting pretty with next season's roster regardless of what happens with any potential rule changes, Malone's entire future at UNC could be tied directly to it.
Add us as a preferred source on Google