Caleb Wilson is special in a very special freshman class.
The Tar Heel superstar is not only a spectacular talent, but he is serving a role that very few UNC players have taken on in their first year of college basketball.
Not only has he scored double figures in his first 20 games at Carolina, he’s scored 20 points or more in 14 of those games, tying Tyler Hansbrough’s program record as a freshman in 2005-06. And that record may be broken at Georgia Tech Saturday afternoon.
It is impossible to compare the best Tar Heels because they have achieved their greatness in so many different ways. It wasn’t until halfway through Hansbrough’s rookie year that we began to realize just how great he would be for the 2009 national champions.
That was validated in his first of four straight wins at Cameron Indoor Stadium by ruining the Senior Night for Blue Devils’ All-American J.J. Redick. In the 83-76 shocker, Hansbrough had 27 points and 10 rebounds compared to Redick’s 18 points and 2 of 10 shooting from outside, his specialty.
As his four-time All-ACC career grew, Tyler always let his actions on the court speak for themselves. Wilson is one of nine new players this season and his breathtaking maneuvers are often followed by that stunning smile, gestures to fans and, lately, becoming a leader in the locker room.
We should absorb all of his Caleb actions because he is a one-and-done, listed in the projected top four of the next NBA Draft.
The first true freshman superstar at UNC was Phil Ford in 1974-75, two years after freshmen were deemed eligible for varsity basketball and football. And the four years that “Fabulous Phil” stayed around, his shooting, dribbling and passing – especially in the middle of the pre-shot clock Four Corners offense – matched his electric personality on court and made him as popular as any Tar Heel.
By decades, James Worthy was the first player picked in the 1982 NBA Draft followed by Michael Jordan as the third pick in 1984, staying three years to engrave their championship legends. Same for two-year All-Americans Jerry Stackhouse and Rasheed Wallace, then three-year Tar Heels Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison – all following the Eric Montross-George Lynch 1993 NCAA champs with no one leaving early.
The best players like Joseph Forte in 2001 stayed two years, then Felton-May-McCants hung on for three to win Roy Williams’ first national championship. The one-and-dones like Marvin Williams, Brandan Wright, Tony Bradley, Coby White and Cole Anthony, plus many transfer portal players have made the family turn over annually.
No question that the ultimate goal for thousands of college athletes is to find fame and fortune as pros. So we gratefully show appreciation for what we have in Wilson, who is one of ten freshmen projected to be drafted first.
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Featured image via Associated Press/Mike Carlson
Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro.Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
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