Back to the Blueprint: Williams takes yet another new group of Tar Heels out in search of a crown

A fifth NCAA Tournament championship banner hangs in North Carolina's Smith Center, the spoils of four years of determination, hard work and personal suffering.

Six players instrumental in last season's title run are gone, four swept away in June's NBA Draft. Coach Roy Williams will craft another team, built on holdovers from last season and a freshman class rated among the nation's best.

Williams has dealt with change before.

He went into the 2005-06 season missing seven players from the team that gave him his first NCAA Tournament title in 2005.

Banking on freshmen, UNC won 20 games and played in the NCAA Tournament. That season set in motion all the events that led to the 2009 title after a whipping of Michigan State in Detroit.

"The one thing that that team in '06 really had going for them is that they were mentally so tough," Williams said. "And, they had come from the backgrounds where they had sat around the table and talked about sacrificing and being focused, and they had talked about team play.

"It remains to be seen if these guys are going to be as mentally tough. Complacency has not been an issue. It hasn't been a thought. It hasn't been anything whatsoever. Our guys are hungry."

Outsiders look at North Carolina and still expect greatness. Media voting at the ACC's Operation Basketball had UNC and Duke tied as the teams picked to finish first in the regular season.

Most preseason polls have UNC among the nation's top 10, although Williams cringed when he saw one No. 4 ranking. He has concerns. He has four starting positions that need to be filled.

He has five first-year players whose only experience of what an ACC game is like comes from television or from sitting in the stands on a recruiting visit.

"It's a continual process," senior swingman Marcus Ginyard said. "Yeah, we won the national championship last year, but we don't have any carryover minutes or anything like that. Nothing has carried over from last year."

Deon Thompson, a 6-9 forward, is the only returning starter from last season's 34-4 team. He played in Tyler Hansbrough's shadow his first three seasons but now must step into a starring role.

He enjoyed UNC's title only briefly before he started working out with conditioning coach Jonas Sahratian in the spring. He played for USA Basketball in the summer, then returned to campus to resume work with Sahratian.

"I don't think I've taken a break since last season ended," Thompson said. "I keep working on everything I can do to possibly make myself better. I can't take a day off. I feel that since I was so late coming to the game of basketball I need to catch up, and that's why I play as much as I can."

Thompson will be part of what could be a big front line. Ginyard said that this season's team is, without question, the tallest on which he has ever played. Williams said that UNC's frontcourt depth is as good as anyone's, but he can't say that the Tar Heels will have the nation's best frontcourt.

Ed Davis, a 6-10 sophomore, could start at center. Tyler Zeller, a 7-footer, should push for a starter's job in his second season. John Henson, a 6-10 freshman, has played almost exclusively on the perimeter since practice began. Twins David and Travis Wear, both 6-10, have impressed Williams with their fundamentals.

Ginyard also will be a starter. He was for most of his first three seasons, but foot surgery and complications in recovery shelved him after only three games last season.

Williams said that Ginyard will have to be the Tar Heels' jack of all trades. Ginyard could play small forward, his normal position, or shooting guard or point guard. Williams has no worries wherever Ginyard lands.

"To me, he looks like the Marcus of old," Williams said. "He's been really good defensively. He's been a really good leader. He's made some outside shots. So far I'm more pleased with him than anybody on our team."

The backcourt situation is shaky. Sophomore Larry Drew II is the only point guard with experience. He struggled at times as a reserve last season, but Williams is confident that he can be consistent and productive. Drew spent the summer shooting hundreds of mid-range jump shots every day.

Dexter Strickland, another freshman, is the backup point guard. Leslie McDonald, the last member of the freshman class, should help at shooting guard. Junior Will Graves is back after last season's suspension for breaking team rules and is the only proven 3-point shooter in the program.

"Larry's been OK," Williams said. "I want him to do better. The biggest thing is that Larry's got to gain experience every day in practice, go through the repetitions, get in the games.

"If he gets in the games and has some success, that's going to help his confidence. And that's basically all he needs."

Ginyard said he thinks this UNC team could be the best defensive team on which he has played. Williams is confident that the Tar Heels can play strong defense and do so early in the season, a somewhat unexpected projection for a team that lost so many veterans.

"Last year's group of guys had been through everything," Williams said. "They were so experienced there was nothing I could give them that we hadn't at least touched on a little bit. Now when I talk about anything, five guys have no clue what I'm talking about. I can say ‘point zone,' and they think it's zone 2 or 3 for getting on an airplane."

bcole@wsjournal.com