Blanca Thomas brings versatile scoring, height to UNC's frontcourt

As a 6-foot-3 middle schooler towering above kids in their awkward growing phases, Blanca Thomas always stood out. 

Forced to squat in pictures for most of her life, Thomas struggled with confidence. Then, she found basketball. What used to make her feel insecure led to more opportunities, eventually leading to UNC.

Now, listed at 6-foot-5, the first-year center actually stands closer to 6-foot-6, head coach Courtney Banghart said. She still stands out, but it's an asset she's embraced.

“I'm trying to be the best I can in empowering [taller girls] and showing them there's nothing to be embarrassed of,” Thomas said. 

North Carolina's best recruit in the first-year class may be tall and consider herself a true center, but her game isn't limited to classic bully ball and layups in the low post. Thomas, a versatile scorer, will bring both height and physicality to the North Carolina offense. 

Banghart describes Thomas as a shot-blocker, a two-hand rebounder and a floor-stretcher. The part of her game that Thomas actually prides herself on the most, though, is her face-up play. 

“I like to face up, and I can score off the dribble, and I can shoot it pretty well,” Thomas said, “which is nice to find a big that can do that as well as running the floor and being mobile on your feet.”

And the Charlotte native's favorite move? Not a drop step. Not a hook shot. Nope, Thomas loves the fadeaway.

ESPN's No. 32 recruit in the class of 2024 also isn't afraid to step out even further past the paint. As long as it's not heavily contested, Thomas has the green light to shoot from downtown. It was late in her high school career that she expanded her midrange and 3-point shot.

“By her senior year, she was draining threes,” Kristal Mainsah, who coached Thomas at Charlotte Catholic High School, said. “She had established that outside presence, so she was a triple-level scorer.”

Since settling into Chapel Hill this summer — a place she said hasn't changed since her first visit at 14 years old — Thomas has been forced to make adjustments with her new team. For instance, no more getting away with jogging down the court like in high school.

Her “welcome to college” moment occurred during the first workout when she was so exhausted she could hardly breathe.

“Everyone was like, ‘Blanca, are you crying?’” a laughing Thomas said. “I was like, ‘No, I'm not crying, I swear. This is great.’”

She's also realized that her frame can only take her so far. It was a cakewalk for Thomas to finish over defenders prior to playing at UNC. She rarely matched up with anyone close to her size.

Now, the center is having to learn to be physical. 

According to Thomas, the best method to learn how to use her strength in the post so far has come from competing with the likes of fellow bigs on the team, including redshirt first-years Ciera Toomey andLaila Hull and graduate Alyssa Ustby. But no teammate has been more challenging or rewarding for Thomas than the other true center, senior Maria Gakdeng, who is also reaping the benefits.

“You have to be pretty big or skilled to score over Blanca,” Banghart said. “I mean, she's gotten Maria better, too. She takes away her left shoulder, and Maria's gotten a lot better not being able to go to that move.”

Gakdeng and Thomas are partners in the “buddy system” the women's basketball team boasts. With three years of experience, Gakdeng often gives Thomas pointers to help prepare her for collegiate basketball. And as the only centers, they are always on opposing squads. 

“Her being more physical is something that she has to work on,” Gakdeng said. “But that face-up game is really something that's going to set her apart, especially in the coming years as she continues to play for us.”

As Thomas learns to use her stature to bump, bully and bury other bigs, her personality, on the other hand, stays light as a feather, and her confidence stays high as ever.

“She's the opposite of intimidating,” Banghart said. “She is the nicest, most fun [person]. She's very joyful — that's her superpower.”

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