North Carolina Tar Heels (2008-2009) Men's Basketball Preview

Hey, do you remember that North Carolina team that made it to the Final Four last year? Well, this is the same team. It almost gets a little tiring hearing about how good North Carolina is going to be in men's basketball. After all, they have been ranked number one in the Associated Press's preseason poll more than any other team in college basketball.

This year, however, speculation might just turn out to be true. According to baltimoresun.com, for the first time in the AP's history, a single college basketball team was picked number one unanimously. That team is North Carolina. Hamptonroads.com states that they are returning all six of their top scorers from last season, and have recruited some very promising young players to add to their formidable attack. The veterans are owed much respect for turning down the immediate gratification and riches of the NBA. They all returned for one last shot, a swan song of sorts, to go after the elusive National Title.

Their main competition in the ACC it seems will be Wake Forest and Duke. Both are perennial powerhouses in college basketball, and both are ranked highly this year. But these two are looking up at a pretty steep grade. This is not to say that upsets don't happen, though. Parity has always been a big strength in college basketball. And trends in the ACC the last few years have shown that games are generally pretty close, especially between teams as good as the conference is showing this year.

North Carolina will not be completely without adversity, though. Pilotonline.com states that Tyler Hansbrough had a "stress reaction" in his shin in October. This is some really tough news considering Hansbrough, a native of Poplar Bluff Missouri, was the National Player of the Year last season. His status on North Carolina's disabled list is indefinite, which means he could be nursing this injury for awhile. But the true test of a great team is its resilience and ability to press on through adversity like this. If there is one squad to count on to overcome something like this, it would have to be this experienced and season North Carolina team.

Odds are that the team will be getting into full swing and injury free by January, well in time for conference play. This makes them, unanimously, the biggest threat to take the ACC title and perhaps National Title. They will no doubt be an exciting and dominant team.

References & Sources Cited: "Veteran Tar Heels are Talented and Deep" by Ed Miller, "UNC and That's All" by Don Markus