NCAA Basketball: Preseason top 25 power rankings for 2024-25 season

11. UNC Tar Heels

The Tar Heels have a great case of having the best-returning player in all of NCAA Basketball last season in RJ Davis, the ACC Player of the Year. He averaged 21.2 ppg and 3.5 apg, shooting 40% from three-point range. He and returning point guard Elliot Cadeau will be one of the best backcourts in the country.

UNC did have to replace Cormac Ryan as the team’s sharpshooter, and they found one in Cade Tyson, a transfer from Belmont. The 6’7 wing averaged 16.2 ppg, shot 47% from deep, and can play multiple positions on the court. There’s also a pair of 5-star guard/wings joining the team in Drake Powell and Ian Jackson, who could have starring roles in their first year with the program.

The big question is how the new frontcourt will look. Star big man Armando Bacot is gone, along with Harrison Ingram, an impact starting forward. The team added Vanderbilt transfer Ven-Allen Lubin, who averaged 12.3 ppg and 6.3 rpg last season. There’s also the late addition of Tyzhaun Claude, a bench forward from Georgia Tech. 

Add returning forward Jae’lyn Withers and four-star freshman James Brown, and there’s a solid, but not elite, group frontcourt. If it’s good enough, then they’ll be a top-10 team. But the backcourt will have to carry the Heels to success.