UNC Basketball: How could Luke Maye win the 2019 Karl Malone Award?
3. Maye is one of the top power forwards in the country
After having a season where he was one of the five finalists for the Karl Malone award, him and Mike Daum are the only players returning that were nominated for the award.
That means Maye will be one of the top power forwards in the country going into this season.
Maye will look to have a great season and dominate down low as he did last year. Maye was seventh in the NCAA in total rebounds with 373 if he is able to get higher in those ranks that could propel him into the final five again.
Maye will have to get into the top ten in rebounds per game. Twelve rebounds per game would have had him in a tie for third in that category last season.
He and Kenny Williams are the two impact seniors on the team that has been with the team their whole career. Maye will get more than enough chances to be able to become one of the best players in the country.
The Tar Heels like their best players to be experienced players. On the 2016-17 National championship team, the whole starting lineup were upperclassmen. Theo Pinson was a junior, Kennedy Meeks was a senior, Justin Jackson was a junior, Isaiah Hicks was a senior and Joel Berry II was a junior.
Maye being one the impact seniors will give the team a great option as a four-year player.
Next. Why UNC will be better than Duke in 2018-19. dark
Maye was not the first option for the Tar Heels last season. He was not able to fully display his talents. Last year Maye was still under the shadow of players like Berry and Pinson. This year Maye will be a primary factor for the team. He will have a better chance to get better stats.