NCAA Basketball: Top-25 impact incoming recruiting classes entering 2024-25 season

9.  North Carolina Tar Heels

The North Carolina Tar Heels were one of the better teams in college basketball last season, finishing the season with a 29-8 (17-3) record. They earned a one seed in the 2024 NCAA Tournament. 

Although North Carolina has lost the likes of Armando Bacot, Cormac Ryan and Harrison Ingram, optimism in Chapel Hill lies in the backcourt with the return of last year’s ACC POY, RJ Davis.

Another reason for optimism? Their incoming recruiting class.

The Tar Heels, who missed out on a few targets from the portal but still landed some quality pieces, will have to lean on their recruiting class to bolster their success in the ACC this season.

Five-star SG/SF Ian Jackson -- who expects to slot in as one of the stars on the wing spot after the departure of Cormac Ryan --  and five-star SF Drake Powell will be integral pieces on this preseason top-10 team.

Jackson is an athletic and aggressive piece whose name has consistently circulated in the lottery in recent 2025 NBA Mock Drafts. He is likely a one-and-done. Powell, on the other hand, brings in vigorous levels of defensive intensity. That's something that a team that ranked in the top 10 of KenPom's defensive efficiency last year will value.

Hubert Davis has assembled a pair of quality, instant-impact freshmen. Pairing them alongside the elite talent of RJ Davis? Things might work out quite nicely in Chapel Hill.