ACC Basketball: 10 early impact transfer pickups from 2023 offseason

GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 19: The ACC logo on the floor before the second round of the 2023 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament game between the Xavier Musketeers and the Pittsburgh Panthers at Greensboro Coliseum on March 19, 2023 in Greensboro, North Carolina. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

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ACC Basketball Cormac Ryan #5 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /

Cormac Ryan (UNC)

We talked above about North Carolina’s ghastly assist rate last season, but the other pressing need for a team that fell so short of preseason expectations is outside shooting. To that end, the Tar Heels’ addition of Notre Dame grad transfer Cormac Ryan makes a lot of sense.

Ryan is just one of many that exited the Notre Dame program following head coach Mike Brey’s departure, and the fit with Carolina figures to improve his efficiency after he took on a more high-usage role last season. Ryan won’t be asked to carry as heavy a workload as he did at Notre Dame, and his senior leadership should bolster the Tar Heel locker room alongside Armando Bacot and fellow New York native RJ Davis.

For his career, Ryan shoots over 35% from three, though he eclipsed the 40% mark his junior year. At 6’5″, he has the size to easily get his shot off on the perimeter, though he was never asked to rebound much at Notre Dame.

Carolina head coach Hubert Davis has endured increased scrutiny from fans following this past year’s disappointment, but he’s remade the roster in impressive fashion. Highly touted freshmen Simeon Wilcher and Zayden High are Chapel Hill-bound, and Davis has been active in the transfer portal, signing not only Harrison Ingram and Cormac Ryan but Louisville transfer Jae’Lyn Withers and Brown transfer Paxson Wojcik. If Carolina can’t shoot next year, it won’t be for lack of trying.