The North Carolina basketball team's 2017 recruiting class isn't elite.
It ranks 19th in 247Sports' team composite rankings and 17th in ESPN's. But the depth of this five-player class may be its defining characteristic.
The newcomers are led by four-star guard Jalek Felton, the nephew of former Tar Heel Raymond Felton. Felton is the Tar Heels’ highest ranked national recruit at No. 30 overall.
As a senior for Gray Collegiate Academy (S.C.), the 6-foot-3 Felton averaged 26.3 points, 5.4 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game. He's extremely athletic and is at his best when attacking the rim with intensity. His jump shot is improving but remains a work in progress.
UNC's second four-star in the class is Garrison Brooks, a 6-foot-9 forward from Auburn High School (Ala.). His midrange game could help him contribute immediately as a stretch four for North Carolina. He averaged 14.3 points per game to go along with 9.1 rebounds and 2.3 blocks as a senior.
Three-star Brandon Huffman is UNC’s lone recruit from the state of North Carolina, where he attended Word of God Christian Academy in Raleigh. Standing at 6-foot-10 and weighing 250 pounds, Huffman was dominant in the paint through high school. He averaged 16.1 points and 14.2 rebounds per game, including 4.7 offensive rebounds as a senior. A knack for offensive rebounding turned Tony Bradley into a first-round draft pick, and will reward Huffman with more minutes if he can do the same at a collegiate level.
Andrew Platek brings a different skill to this class. The 6-foot-3 guard is a pure shooter with a quick release. He averaged 13.4 points per game and shot 35 percent from beyond the arc as a senior at Northfield Mount Hermon School (Mass.). But his lack of quickness and overall athleticism could give him trouble on both ends of the floor.
Last but not least is Sterling Manley, a three-star recruit out of Pickerington Central (Ohio). He's the tallest forward of the class at 6-foot-11 but may need to bulk up his 240-pound frame a bit. His range extends to around 15 feet, and he's had some injury concerns after breaking his leg as a junior.
The 2017 class also includes one walk-on. Walker Miller is a 6-foot-10, 220 pound forward who decommitted from Dartmouth to come to Chapel Hill. He has an obvious connection to the school, considering his brother, Wes Miller, played three seasons at UNC and won a national championship in 2005.
