Tar Heels in the Pros: Former UNC men's basketball players excelling in new NBA season

The 2021-22 NBA season tipped off on Oct. 19 and has already seen a plethora of game-winners, posterizing dunks and smooth crossovers. Several highlights have featured former UNC basketball players, including Cole Anthony and Harrison Barnes.

Although they no longer play in a Tar Heel uniform, young stars and veterans alike are showing out on their respective teams, continuing UNC’s legacy in the NBA. 

Here’s how three former Tar Heels have fared two weeks into the season.

Harrison Barnes

In his 10th NBA season, Barnes has gotten off to a career-best start, averaging 23.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. He leads the Sacramento Kings in scoring six games into their season. Last year, he averaged 16.1 points for the Kings, and his best scoring season was in 2016-17, when he averaged 19.2 points for the Dallas Mavericks.

He’s shooting at a 45.5 percent clip from behind the arc and has scored 20 threes in six games, one of which was a game-winning fadeaway buzzer-beater over Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker last Wednesday. Other notable performances include his 36-point game against the Portland Trail Blazers, where he shot 8-11 from three.

The Kings’ record stands at 3-3, and Barnes leads the team in both minutes and points. As the only scoring forward on the team, expect Barnes to continue producing at this volume alongside a strong backcourt featuring guards Buddy Hield and De'Aaron Fox. With Fox's playmaking and Hield’s sharpshooting, Barnes should remain as Sacramento’s primary scoring option throughout the season.

Cole Anthony

With Markelle Fultz recovering from an ACL injury, Anthony has logged 33.2 minutes per game with the Orlando Magic, up from 27.1 a year ago.

The 21 year-old point guard is averaging 17.7 points and 7.4 rebounds, nearly recording a triple-double in a win against the New York Knicks on October 24. Originally from Manhattan, Anthony put on a show in Madison Square Garden, scoring 29 points, dishing eight assists and grabbing a career-high 16 rebounds. Anthony’s performance included five 3-pointers on nine attempts.

Two games later, Anthony scored 24 points in a loss to the Charlotte Hornets, including a sweet crossover into a 3-pointer on the reigning NBA Rookie of the Year, LaMelo Ball. 

The past two games, Anthony has shined from beyond the arc, shooting 5-6 from three in a 24-point performance against the Toronto Raptors and 3-4 against the Detroit Pistons.

As the season progresses, expect Anthony to gradually improve his long-range shooting and playmaking as he familiarizes himself with a nearly-brand-new Orlando Magic roster. The 1-6 Magic are the third youngest team in the NBA, behind the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Memphis Grizzlies.

Nassir Little

After averaging under 14 minutes per game in his first two seasons, Nassir Little has consistently received more playing time, averaging 24.1 minutes in six games. Little has averaged about nine points on 52.8 percent shooting, significantly higher than his previous seasons.

Perhaps the most notable addition to his arsenal has been his 3-point shooting, where he has converted 50 percent of his treys, which is up from the 23.7 percent and 35 percent in his first two seasons, respectively.

Little typically comes off the bench for small forward Norman Powell, who averages 14.0 points per game. Expect the 3-3 Trail Blazers to give Little more opportunities to score, considering his solid performances in his two starts this season.

@dthsports | sports@dailytarheel.com

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