North Carolina Basketball: No Kevin Knox for Tar Heels, what now?

Small Forward

Starter – Theo Pinson

Championship North Carolina teams also seem to have a player like Theo around. He could be Jackie Manuel or Marcus Ginyard, but Pinson has an additional element that those two never had – more playmaking ability. Unfortunately, he also has Manuel’s unreliable three-point shot.

Unfortunately, he also has Manuel’s unreliable three-point shot.

Pinson added more fluidity to the offense when he was on the court, which went from ‘nice to have’ to ‘needed’ in the championship game when Berry was limited by injuries. It also put more pressure on Pinson, and he didn’t always respond to that the way one would hope. Sometimes he could give you the dump off pass to Luke Maye to beat Kentucky and sometimes he could turn it over.

Pinson would be a great conduit to the middle if Bradley comes back. If Bradley does not come back, he will get more defensive attention than normal and perhaps have to produce more miracle layups like he did during the NCAA Tournament.

If one player needs the Justin Jackson treatment for his shooting, it is Pinson. An improved three-pointer would solve a lot of concerns with Theo.

Backups – Brandon Robinson, Andrew Platek, Luke Maye?

Robinson will get the first call at the small forward position off the bench. He hopefully will be a bit bigger coming into the season. He already has the distinction of fouling opponents with his face – twice. After Woods, Robinson was the second biggest winner of the Knox decision not to come. We simply will get to see more of him than we saw as Coach Williams tightened the rotation at the end of last season.

After Woods, Robinson was the second biggest winner of the Knox decision not to come. We simply will get to see more of him than we saw as Coach Williams tightened the rotation at the end of last season.

Maye’s inclusion here is only a guess. There was a time when Tar Heels’ fans joked about three post lineups, but this is a recognition of the lack of proven three-point shooting that the Heels can put on the court. Offensively, Maye does not need to be in the post. It is the question of quickness on defense that would be the only issue here.