The North Carolina Tar Heels are going to have a guard-heavy basketball team this year.
Reigning ACC Player of the Year RJ Davis returns to lead the deep guard group. Joining Davis will be sophomore Elliot Cadeau, defensive stalwart Seth Trimble and 5-star freshman Ian Jackson. If you look at UNC’s official roster, there’s nine players with guard eligibility.
With North Carolina expected to depart most of its guard core after the coming season, it needs to start preparing for the following two college basketball season.
That preparation includes the Tar Heels looking at Class of 2026 5-star point guard Deron Rippey Jr., the 247Sports Composite’s 21st-ranked player nationally, 4th-ranked point guard and top-ranked New Jersey recruit.
Check out Phenom Hoops’ extensive write-up on Rippey, who is also getting looks from – amongst others – Washington, Rutgers, Texas A&M and Michigan.
“When talking about his game, Rippey is one that immediately grabs your attention,” Phenom Hoops’ Patrick O’Brien wrote. “The 6’2 point guard knows how to run the show and do so effectively, displaying an excellent feel, court awareness, and playmaking with the ball in his hands. Rippey is so shifty yet strong on the court, to go along with impressive athleticism as a guard. He creates well with the ball in his hands, and excels in transition, but also shows poise within the halfcourt offense. Rippey thrived as a scorer on several occasions, finishing strong through and around defenders, getting paint touches consistently, but also doing a great job in being a 3-level scorer. Rippey is someone you simply want to have the ball in his hands, and he will make things happen no matter what is needed. And though he is already regarded as a top guard in his class, he backed that up on the national stage and showed why he is one of the elite guards in the country no matter what class.”
If UNC decides to offer Rippey, he’d be the program’s eighth Class of 2026 offer. North Carolina has yet to offer a 2026 point guard, so why not make a player of Rippey’s caliber its first?
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