Nearly all North Carolina fans are only worried about what's going to happen in the transfer portal, how the Tar Heels fare with some of the top high school recruits in the country, and hoping that things go well with new head coach Michael Malone after moving on from Hubert Davis.
There's obviously a lot that needs to go well for the Tar Heels to be at what they're looking to be, and what they've been for a lot of their existence, but it's also important to remember the guys who were just on this roster, especially the ones who were loved like Caleb Wilson. Wilson, unfortunately for North Carolina fans, has decided to enter the NBA draft and is viewed at worst as the fifth-best prospect in this upcoming class.
There are certainly more ways than one for Wilson to make an impact at the highest level, but he seems to have star potential. A lot of this will depend on where he lands and the system around him, but getting his own team as a youngster will be a great sign for his future. If Wilson can land with a team like the Brooklyn Nets or Sacramento Kings, his future in the NBA might be more of a star rather than an elite-level role player, like if he were to get drafted by the Indiana Pacers and have a few stars around him.
Many seem to believe the Kings could go that route, including in a recent mock draft.
“The Kings need to rebuild and Wilson is a terrific prospect to get that process started. He is a high-flying athlete with a high-motor, budding defensive versatility and an offensive game that proved to be ahead of schedule this year at North Carolina. There may be true star potential here and on a Kings roster that isn't built to compete for the post-season right now, he should have the benefit of playing through his mistakes from the first day,” Adam Finkelstein wrote.
Wilson going fourth overall to the Kings, if things fall the way that they could right now and the lottery odds don't move much, would somewhat be a match made in heaven. The Kings have unfortunately been one of the worst teams in the NBA for a lot of their existence, and while things seem to have been getting better over the past few years, they went back to stage one this year.
Wilson would really have to be that guy for Sacramento to get where it wants to be in the future, but he also has a lot of freedom playing in the Kings' system if they make the other necessary moves that have to be made during the offseason, like moving on from some of their veterans.