North Carolina secures Jarin Stevenson's return, adding crucial size and experience to the roster under new coach Michael Malone.
Monday was an extremely busy day for the North Carolina basketball program.
Former Providence and George Mason head coach Kim English is set to join Michael Malone's staff as an assistant. English's history as a head coach will help Malone as the former NBA champion learns the recruiting game at the college level.
The Tar Heels received a boost in the transfer portal from a rival ACC program.
Virginia Tech transfer Neoklis Avdalas is set to join the Tar Heels. The six-foot-nine, 215-pound guard averaged 12.1 points and 4.6 assists per game as a freshman for the 2025-26 campaign.
Per Joe Tipton of On3, UNC forward Jarin Stevenson made a decision about his future with the program. He plans to return to Chapel Hill for the 2026-27 campaign.
"North Carolina forward Jarin Stevenson will return to the Tar Heels next season, he told On3," Tipton posted on X. "The 6-10 junior and Chapel Hill native averaged 8.1 points and 4.4 rebounds per game this season."
Fans on social media voiced their reaction to the news Stevenson would return.
"Great news for the Heels. Local kid staying home and giving Malone some size and experience to build around. Let's see what he does with another year in the system," wrote a fan.
"Hallelujah!!! I love this young man," posted another. "Thought he was very athletic and had lots of potential! He is going to thrive with the new coach. I always thought his stats didn’t represent the contributions he made to the team! GOOD LUCK, JARIN."
It was unclear if Stevenson would return after UNC's loss to VCU in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. He voiced frustration with the way the season ended.
“I thought it was fixed, too,” Stevenson said after the loss, via Sports Illustrated. “But, I guess we went back to our old ways. We should have kept our foot on the gas, and kept playing, taking good shots, getting to the basket, offensive rebounds, stuff like that. Play our brand of basketball.
"I feel like we were just getting too comfortable, we’re giving up easy points for them, and we shoot bad shots on the offensive end, and that’s not a good formula to win.”
Stevenson must feel better about the trajectory of the Tar Heels after the team hired Malone.
UNC should have better coaching, but Malone needs to find talent to build an elite roster.