What can UNC basketball expect from Jalen Washington, Tar Heels’ frontcourt this season?

Armando Bacot and Harrison Ingram aren’t walking through the Smith Center doors with UNC basketball jerseys this season.

Bacot and Ingram accounted for 707 of the Tar Heels’ 1,520 rebounds in a season that saw UNC win the ACC regular-season championship before snagging a top seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Fifth-year senior RJ Davis, who finished third on last season’s team with 134 rebounds, touched on that topic in an exclusive interview with The Fayetteville Observer in late July. 

With Bacot, Ingram and Cormac Ryan (102 rebounds) gone, Davis and Jae’Lyn Withers (133) are the only returning Tar Heels who eclipsed 100 rebounds last season.

“Rebounding has always been such a high emphasis for Carolina. I think one thing that Coach Davis always says in the locker room, even before games, ‘It’s not a Armando Bacot rebounding game, it’s a UNC rebounding game,’ ” Davis said.

“We have the potential, we have the talent to be really good. I think we’re all just going to have to dial in as far as rebounding the basketball. We have a really good backcourt and frontcourt. Armando being the all-time leading rebounder, he’s gone now, so it’s a good chance for us as a team to step up the rebounding with everyone getting a chance to get their rebounds.”

Here’s a look at the eight players in UNC’s frontcourt for the 2024-25 season, and what the Tar Heels can expect from each of those forwards.

Jalen Washington

Entering his junior season, arguably no player on UNC’s roster will enter the year with more pressure than Washington. A 6-foot-10, 230-pound forward, Washington figures to be the Tar Heels’ best bet to pick up Bacot’s minutes. After averaging 3.9 points and 2.6 rebounds in 8.4 minutes per game, Washington will be asked to do a lot more this season. He’s still vying for his first double-double performance.

Jae’Lyn Withers

Arguably UNC’s best athlete and most versatile defender, Withers averaged 4.2 points and 3.6 rebounds in 12.4 minutes per game…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/unc-basketball-expect-jalen-washington-080322601.html

Author : The Fayetteville Observer

Publish date : 2024-08-23 08:03:22

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