The University of North Carolina certainly had an interesting year. It started out really well as Caleb Wilson emerged as one of the best players in the country. They started to falter a little bit in ACC play, and Caleb Wilson got hurt, which ended his season. They played VCU in the tournament and blew a 19-point lead to lose. We’ll see what happens with the coaching staff, but all things considered, it was a good year overall.
Caleb Wilson
Credit: Maggie Hobson/UNC Athletics
Caleb Wilson was a top high school recruit out of Georgia. He was a McDonald’s All-American and was expected to play for the FIBA U19 team. He was cut from the team and spent the offseason working on his offensive game. He immediately became the man for North Carolina, and it was apparent right away that he could be something special. He has the mindset of someone who doesn’t forget any grievance against him. He changes the background photo on his phone to something that will make him angry before a game. He showed hyper-competitive tendencies this year, and that will matter going into the NBA. He was also named an AP Second Team All-American this season.
Scouting Report
Drives: 12/19 = 63.2%
Layups: 47/81 = 58%
Pullups: 5/15 = 33.3%
Dunks: 67/77 = 87%
As you can see here, he’s incredibly reliant on his shots at the rim. He takes them at a very efficient level, but that’s the extent of his jump shot. He does not take many threes or shots outside of the paint. Obviously, the sell is the defense with Wilson, but the offense is going to need work in the NBA. There are outcomes where he’s just a skinny version of Obi Toppin. It’s not likely, but he’s going to have a harder time dunking everything in the NBA. I think he has some touch, but the shot is going to be the big swing skill with Caleb Wilson.