UNC Trio Headed to NBA Draft

This year's University of North Carolina men's basketball team was supposed be title contenders all along. However, they were never really healthy enough to have that opportunity. Now, the season is over for the Tar Heels and the offseason decisions were to be made. The team's three star underclassmen made their decisions today. They all chose to declare for the NBA Draft.

Harrison Barnes is an amazing player, but never fully lived up to expectations in Chapel Hill. As a freshman, he was known for his clutch game-winners and cool demeanor. As a sophomore, people expected him to take his game to the next level as he was voted a preseason All-American. That didn't really happen. He still had a great season averaging 17.1 points per game and becoming a first-team All-ACC selection. He struggled in NCAA tournament games, which helped lead to the failure of his team's success. As the #1 recruit in the nation, Barnes never achieved what was expected of him.

Fellow sophomore John Henson has decided to turn pro as well. Henson decided to return to UNC for his sophomore season because he wanted to repeat as ACC Defensive Player of the Year and also improve his all-around game. Unlike Barnes, Henson showed great improvement in his second season. He developed a nice jump shot and a quality hook shot. Despite finishing the season with a sprained wrist, Henson averaged 13.7 points per game, 9.9 rebounds per game, and 279 career blocks (2nd in UNC history).

Kendall Marshall was the man who made everything happen for UNC. When he got injured in the NCAA tournament, it was clear that the Tar Heels would never be the same. Marshall is commonly known as an assist machine. This season he set the ACC single-season record for assists in a season and averaged 7.96 assists per game (a UNC single-season record). In the games prior to the injury, Marshall showed he knew how to score as well. He will always be remembered though as an excellent passer, which is one of the main reasons he won the Cousy Award, given to the nation's top point guard.

These players will certainly be missed in Chapel Hill. Their early departures are not entirely unexpected. They have had great careers as Tar Heels. I wish them the best of luck in the NBA. ESPN currently has them all being drafted in the Top 20 overall. Harrison Barnes, John Henson, and Kendall Marshall all play in very different ways. But there is no denying the talent they have. UNC will be forced to make do with what they still have, plus the core of new recruits. This should be no difficulty for the Tar Heels. They should easily remain among the top-tier of college basketball programs without any real difficulty.