In 2021, when long time North Carolina men’s basketball head coach Roy Williams hung up the suit to ride off into the sunset, it was his former player and assistant coach, Hubert Davis to take over the reins. 

But it’s not like Davis doesn’t know what it takes to run an elite program.

He saw firsthand how Williams conducted business on the bench, helping the Tar Heels win the National Championship in 2017, as well as placing as the runner up in 2016.

Once Davis took over, it was like Williams never left. He led the charge for the Tar Heels to make the NCAA National Championship but ultimately fell victim to the Kansas Jayhawks.

Since then, the Tar Heels have continuously been chasing that feeling again, with hopes of capturing the program’s eighth National Championship. 

The following season after their National Title appearance, UNC was invited to the NIT the following season, but turned down the invitation. Then, the previous two seasons resulted in the Heels winning the ACC and getting eliminated in the Sweet Sixteen in 2024, while 2025 was a major disappointment and were eliminated in the first round of the Tournament.

With the goal to maintain a certain level of success, Davis went on to send an incredibly strong message for his players for the upcoming season.

"There is a pressure and an expectation for us to be good this year... the standard is the highest here. There is an expectation for us to reach that standard... and to keep it there… There is a determination to get there and to stay there."

For a program with such a storied basketball history, the expectation to maintain that level of success is apparent. Davis has proven that he can recruit and coach at a high level, but can he push the program to the next level?

His first season was picking up where Williams left off, now it’s Davis’ turn to build his own legacy in Chapel Hill.

With that, he brings on four new starters, with the lone returner being Seth Trimble, the senior guard who took a major step forward in his development last season. He averaged 11.2 points per game with five rebounds.

The crown jewel of the offseason though was five-star recruit and 6-foot-10 forward, Caleb Wilson, who should immediately be placed in the starting lineup. If Wilson performs as well as he’s expected to, it just may unlock a new wrinkle in the Tar Heels.

What makes him so special is his defense, with his 7-foot wingspan and his 9-foot standing reach, Wilson will likely factor as an interior presence that UNC was missing last season. 

No one last season averaged over one block on the Tar Heels, so having Wilson’s long reach will be a breath of fresh air for Davis, not having to worry about defending the paint.

The expectation in Chapel Hill is to carry on the legacy that Williams and Dean Smith built for Davis. And with solid additions to the roster, and a veteran guard who knows what to expect from the coach, UNC sees a pathway to being one of the best teams in the nation.