The college basketball transfer portal has taken over the offseason the past two seasons and that has translated into not only spending a great deal of time recruiting from high school, but also out of the portal in order to get an instant impact player.
For the UNC basketball program, the addition of Brady Manek last season proved just that and is an example of how to use the portal correctly. But, not every team uses it the same way.
Some teams load up on transfers while others pick and choose very specific pieces to finish the roster puzzle. Either way, every team is active in the portal.
247Sports Isaac Trotter took a look at all of the Power Six teams and how they have attacked the portal. For the Tar Heels, they are waiting on their ‘Brady Manek’ type player.
Patience is a virtue for Hubert Davis. The UNC coach can count scholarships. He can see that four starters are running it back from a team that was seconds away from winning a National Championship. He also can see that UNC has a hole at the 4 now that Brady Manek has departed. North Carolina will undoubtedly land an impact forward. They’re playing the waiting game very well and are positioned to land a big fish.
The Tar Heels have one scholarship available after the departure of Kerwin Walton on the final day of the one-time transfer window. With the big loss of Manek, UNC has narrowed its search to two targets.
Former Northwestern forward Pete Nance and former Baylor forward Matthew Mayer are the two players that the Tar Heels are after. Both players entered their names into the NBA Draft but only Mayer was invited to the NBA Combine.
Nance participated in the G-League Elite Camp earlier this week, but didn’t receive a special invitation to the combine meaning he is most likely expected to return to the college level.
Nance, a 6-foot-10 forward, averaged 14.6 points per game, 6.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game a season ago. He also shot 45.2 percent from three on 3.1 attempts per game. For his career at Northwestern, he has a 9.6 point per game average and has added 5.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists.
Mayer, a 6-foot-9 forward, averaged 9.8 points per game last season. He also added 5.0 rebounds and shot 32.4 percent from three on 4.1 attempts. He has career averages of 6.9 points per game, 3.2 rebounds and shot 34.5 percent from three.
Both players have one year of eligibility remaining. The deadline to return to college and maintain your eligibility is June 1.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.
Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.
