Without another significant offseason addition or two, the UNC basketball program may well begin the 2025-26 season outside the AP Top 25 Poll, which would mark the first time that has happened to the Tar Heels in 20 years. Yes, as things stand, it seems more and more insiders are viewing the 2025-26 Tar Heel roster as an unranked collection.
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Now, even Jon Rothstein is in agreement. Just two weeks after placing the fifth UNC basketball team under Hubert Davis’ command at No. 22 overall in his frequently updated ROTHSTEIN 45, the national college basketball expert forecasts the Tar Heels begin their next campaign at No. 26 in the country.
He foresees a UNC starting lineup consisting of four newcomers — three transfers plus one rookie — and potentially the lone returning member of the 2024-25 Tar Heels’ regular rotation in rising senior guard Seth Trimble.
Those new faces appearing alongside Trimble among Rothstein’s projected starters are junior guard Kyan Evans (transfer from Colorado State), junior forward Jarin Stevenson (Alabama), freshman forward Caleb Wilson, and redshirt junior center Henri Veesaar (Arizona).
The notable bench pieces in Rothstein’s eyes are freshman guard Isaiah Denis, freshman guard Derek Dixon, junior guard Jaydon Young (Virginia Tech), sophomore forward Jonathan Powell (West Virginia), and senior forward Ven-Allen Lubin, a 20-game starter for the Tar Heels who entered the transfer portal but hasn’t ruled out a return to Chapel Hill.
Rothstein has only two ACC programs in his top 25: Duke at No. 8 and Louisville at No. 15.
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