Tag: Theo Pinson

Theo Pinson explains what went wrong for UNC in March Madness loss

Theo Pinson breaks down what went wrong in UNC’s loss to Alabama, noting it was more of the Tar Heels losing it versus the crimson roll tide winning it.

With the dust settling from UNC’s nightmare loss to Alabama in the Sweet 16, many are now speaking up about the what-if season.

Despite a strong start to March Madness, similar issues that have plagued the Tar Heels this year showed in the loss against Alabama. Many were concerned about UNC’s ability to finish games, a narrative that has followed the team since their National Championship loss two years ago.

Inability to close out ended up being the nail in UNC’s coffin, with Alabama taking full advantage, outscoring the Tar Heels by 10 points in the second half to win the game by two points. UNC losing to Alabama left a lot puzzled, including former Tar Heel [autotag]Theo Pinson[/autotag], who spoke about the loss on his recent Run Your Race episode, powered by Tidal League.

 

Pinson echoed what many believe. It wasn’t that Alabama was the better team, more so UNC losing the game due to their own mistakes. It’s hard to beat a team throwing haymakers when your jabs aren’t landing, and that’s what happened in the Sweet 16.

It’s time to move towards next season, with the transfer portal already off to a strong start. That said, it’s always nice to hear what former Tar Heels think.

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Theo Pinson claims UNC punked Duke last game

Theo Pinson claims UNC punked Duke last game while talking with Justin Jackson on the latest episode of Run Your Race.

It’s already been ten days since UNC ran Duke out of Chapel Hill, beating the Blue Devils 93-84.

Despite taking place earlier this month, that hasn’t stopped former UNC stars [autotag]Theo Pinson[/autotag] and [autotag]Justin Jackson[/autotag] from speaking about the rivalry win. On a recent episode of Run Your Race, Pinson had Tar Heel favorite on to talk about the game and UNC’s dominance.

In a snippet sent by Tidal League, Pinson expresses how he felt the UNC punked Duke, alluding to the fact that both teams felt the Tar Heels were better. The play showed that UNC was better, but you can be the judge if you feel Pinson’s description of them punking Duke was accurate.

The conversation pinpoints the confidence that UNC played with that night, clicking on all cylinders. Since that win, the Tar Heels haven’t come out with that sort of desire, but knowing that type of fight exists, especially showcasing that against a rival like Duke.

It’s always nice seeing Pinson hype up UNC. Pinson had been on a tear lately, feeding his teammates into a franchise-record night. It will be intriguing to see if UNC can punk Duke again next month.

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Theo Pinson has impressive performance

Theo Pinson was an integral part of UNC’s 2017-2018 National Championship-winning team. What did he do in NBA G-League action Friday night?

Theo Pinson brought a little bit of everything to the UNC men’s basketball program from 2014-2018.

Pinson steadily improved his scoring ability over his four years, averaging a collegiate-high 10.3 points per game during the Tar Heels’ national championship season in 2017-2018, but he was primarily known for his passing, defense and occasional thunderous dunks.

No one selected Pinson in the 2018 NBA Draft, but he signed with the Brooklyn Nets as an undrafted free agent. Pinson also played with the New York Knicks and Dallas Mavericks, recording his first career triple-double during the Mavs’ last game of their 2022-2023 campaign.

Pinson re-joined the Texas Legends, Dallas’ G-League affiliate, on October 29 last year in hopes of one day being promoted to the Mavericks.

His latest effort might earn him a call-up.

On Friday, Feb. 9 in Texas’ 135-128 over the Memphis Hustle, Pinson recorded a double-double by scoring 11 points and dishing out a whopping 20 assists.

In Pinson’s highlights above, the thing you can easily identify most is his exceptional passing ability – particularly in the full-court. You might also recognize one recipient of Pinson’s dimes – Justin Jackson, another former Tar Heel.

Pinson might be hard-pressed for playing time in Dallas, as their guard and forward rotation includes stars Luke Doncic, Kyrie Irving and the newly-acquired PJ Washington, but Pinson at least warrants a look.

I’m not saying he needs to start in the NBA, but Pinson would certainly provide valuable minutes off the bench.

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UNC Basketball trio dominate in NBA G-League

A UNC Basketball trio dominated in the NBA G-League Saturday night, each dropping a double-double.

A Tar Heel trio dominated the NBA G-League Saturday, with [autotag]Tony Bradley[/autotag], [autotag]Theo Pinson[/autotag], and[autotag] Justin Jackson[/autotag] combining for 63 points for the Texas Legends.

Texas took on the South Bay Lakers, and the former UNC stars put on a show. All three finished with a double-double as Bradley ended up with 26 points and 15 rebounds, Justin Jackson had 20 points and 13 rebounds, and Pinson finished with 17 points and 15 assists.

All three players were teammates on the 2017 UNC basketball team that won the national championship, so it’s great to see the trio teamed up and still dominating. All three have had opportunities in the NBA, but are still looking to find their way back permanently. Performances like this go a long way, especially as teams attempt to grab missing pieces during the second half of the season.

The trio will be back in action Saturday to take on the Motor City Cruise.

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Theo Pinson shares this year’s UNC basketball X-factor

Theo Pinson and Justin Jackson share this year’s UNC basketball X-factor.

The UNC men’s basketball program is picking up steam as one of the teams with a strong chance of becoming National Champions.

Believing that hype is two former Tar Heels, [autotag]Theo Pinson[/autotag], and [autotag]Justin Jackson[/autotag], who know what it feels like to be a NCAA champion. In a recent episode of Pinson’s, Run Your Race podcast, the two former UNC players discussed this year’s team, what they need to do to win it all, and who the X-factor is.

In previous years, UNC X-factor has been the transfer brought in that year, for example, Brady Manek for the Natty run in 2022, and last season, Pete Nance Oreos gave UNC spark a few times. So, it wasn’t shocking that their answer for X-factor was another one this season.

[autotag]Harrison Ingram[/autotag] has been ideal this season, playing a big role in the team’s success. If the Tar Heels want to make a deep run this year, Ingram’s versatility will be called on.

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Donovan Mitchell admits he wanted to be a Tar Heel

Donovan Mitchell admits to Theo Pinson that he wanted to be a Tar Heel even if that meant sitting on the bench for UNC.

Becoming a North Carolina Tar Heel is a dream for many, even if that means sitting on the bench. Well, that’s what NBA star Donovan Mitchell hoped for during his recruiting process, and he’s spilling the beans about it with former UNC star [autotag]Theo Pinson[/autotag] on his Run Your Race podcast for Tidal League.

Pinson has been good at getting NBA stars on the podcast to go over high school recruiting and collegiate and professional stories that happened behind the scenes. On this episode, Pinson didn’t have to push hard for the back story with Mitchell’s claims of wanting to be a Tar Heel even if that meant watching the game from the bench.

In the clip below, you can see Mitchell and Pinson discussing becoming a Tar Heel and why it didn’t happen.

It’s hard to imagine what Mitchell would’ve looked like at UNC, but it would’ve added on to the historic names that played in the Carolina blue threads. You can watch this episode and more on Tidal League’s website.

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Theo Pinson and Tony Bradley share a hilarious story about the 2017 natty game

Theo Pinson and Tony Bradley share a hilarious story about the 2017 national championship celebration.

[autotag]Theo Pinson[/autotag] is back dishing out the tea from behind some of UNC’s legendary moments, this time with special guest [autotag]Tony Bradley[/autotag].

Bradley appeared on the Run Your Race podcast by Tidal League, hosted by Pinson, to speak on numerous topics ranging from high school to collegiate, and pro playing days. The legendary 2017 national championship was brought up, and it was not what happened during the game that was talked about.

Instead, Pinson and Bradley joked about what happened after the net was cut down. According to the pair, due to Bradley playing more minutes because of foul trouble, Bradley experienced a full-body camp during the locker room celebration.

Watch below for the hilarious banter between the two.

Pinson continues to deliver when it comes to giving UNC fans the backstory of some great Tar Heels moments. You can watch the full episode via their YouTube .

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Social media reacts to Theo Pinson and Cam Johnson’s NBA money talk

Social media reacts to the hilarious clip of former Tar Heels Theo and Johnson talking about NBA money.

There’s nothing like two Tar Heels serving it up on the mic instead of the court, but that’s what [autotag]Theo Pinson[/autotag] brought us by interviewing [autotag]Cam Johnson[/autotag] on the latest episode of “Run Your Race” podcast.

During the episode, Pinson started to ask Johnson about the new contract he signed over the summer with the Brooklyn Nets. Johnson wouldn’t get into details, sharing a hilarious exchange in the process.

Tidal League took the clip, posting it on the X platform (formerly known as Twitter), and garnered over 34 thousand views.

The clip had social media rolling, showing love to Theo and Johnson. It’s good to see Johnson in good spirits. He has been sidelined with an injury but is probable to return against the Boston Celtics on Friday night.

Let’s look at how social media reacted to the viral exchange between Pinson and Johnson.

Tyler Hansbrough shows respect to hated rival with podcast answer

UNC basketball star Tyler Hansbrough revealed the team he hated the most in college while showing respect to Duke.

Former North Carolina Tar Heels basketball star Tyler Hansbrough played four years with the program, delivering two Final Fours and a national championship. He’s considered a North Carolina legend and played a lot of basketball for the university.

Through his four years, Hansbrough had several battles against Duke, NC State, and other Atlantic Coast Conference rivals. With Duke being a hated rival of the Tar Heels, it’s pretty common for them to be the most hated team for a lot of former players.

However, for Hansbrough that isn’t the case.

While appearing on the Run Your Race podcast with Theo Pinson, Hansbrough was asked who does he dislike more. And without any hesitation, he pointed to NC State.

“I dislike State more,” Hansbrough said. “Yeah, no question. Well I think you have to respect Duke for a lot of their accomplishments. I feel like sometimes, NC State feels like they are in the same category as us and Duke. It’s not. You have to earn that. They have had some wins lately, but let’s get some more NCAA wins and make them count.”

Pinson actually agreed with Hansrbough, bringing up points that NC State can win some regular season games but can’t win where it counts.

It does make sense for Hansbrough and Pinson to respect Duke. The feeling on the other side is probably mutual and those that have been around the rivalry for a long time has that feeling of mutual respect.

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From Chapel Hill to Dallas: Justin Jackson, Theo Pinson signing with Mavericks

Justin Jackson and Theo Pinson, two integral parts of the 2017 UNC basketball National Title team, both signed with the Dallas Mavericks.

Two of the best NBA players to come out of Chapel Hill, in recent years, were 2017 NCAA champions Justin Jackson and Theo Pinson.

Jackson was selected 15th overall by the Sacramento Kings in the 2017 NBA draft, while the Brooklyn Nets signed Pinson as an undrafted free agent in 2018.

Jackson’s enjoyed a modest amount of success in the league, highlighted by an NBA title in 2021 with the Milwaukee Bucks. He started a career-high 41 games during his rookie year with Sacramento, then averaged a career-high 8.2 points per game the following season in Dallas. He’s become a bit of a journeyman since getting drafted, suiting up for six teams in six years.

Pinson has not enjoyed nearly the same level of success in pro ball as Jackson, but he did record a triple-double in the Mavericks’ 2022-2023 season finale. Pinson spent his first two years in Brooklyn, third year with the New York Knicks, then the past two years in Dallas.

The Jackson-Pinson duo is reuniting again, however, with the Dallas Mavericks signing both on Friday, Oct. 20.

Jackson and Pinson will both likely end up in Dallas at some point this year. Their recent signings likely point to them being depth pieces, with each expected to be starters on the Texas Legends, Dallas’ G-League affiliate.

Jackson averaged 13.8 points per game and drained 168 3-pointers across three seasons (2014-2015, 2015-2016, 2016-2017) at Carolina, including a collegiate career-high 18.3 in his final year.

Pinson played at Carolina from 2014-2018, averaging 6.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. He rarely started in his first three seasons, then exploded onto the scene in senior year, by averaging 10.3 points per game across 37 starts.

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