Things are heating between UNC and top college basketball transers.
Grant Hughes
Inside Carolina has confirmed that North Carolina has contactedten players in the transfer portal as it looks to build out its roster for next season. Hubert Davis and his staff have likely spoken with other transfers, but IC has sourced and confirmed theten on this list.
Replacing big man Armando Bacot has been the Tar Heels' top priority since the portal opened on March 18. Of theten transfers with confirmed UNC contact, six are post players. UNC is still awaiting stay-or-go decisions from RJ Davis and Harrison Ingram but has reached out to a handful of players who are viewed as insurance if the two Tar Heel stars opt to turn pro.
Two transfers with UNC contact have already committed elsewhere, while Stanford big man Maxime Raynaud opted to withdraw his name from the portal and re-commit to the Cardinal. Here are theten transfers with confirmed contact with UNC this offseason:
UNC’S CONFIRMED TRANSFER PORTAL CONTACTS
Andrej Stojakovic | SF | Stanford
Transfer Portal Rating:No. 48 OVR, No. 9 SF
Stojakovic is the latest transfer to have confirmed contact with UNC and is a candidate to visit Chapel Hill in the coming weeks. He has an extensive list of suitors, including Kentucky and Cal. The son of longtime NBA small forward Peja Stojakovic averaged 7.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 0.9 assists as a freshman last season. He shot 40.9 percent from the field and 33.7 percent from three.
Jonas Aidoo | PF | Tennessee
Transfer Portal Rating:No. 10 OVR, No. 1 PF
North Carolina has set its sights on Aidoo, a 6-foot-11, 240-pound All-SEC performer out of Tennessee. Aidoo confirmed with Inside Carolina on Monday that he had spoken with the UNC staff. A source close to Aidoo confirmed multiple UNC conversations, first with assistant coach Jeff Lebo, and then head coach Hubert Davis this week. More conversations are scheduled. Aidoo earned All-SEC Second Team and All-SEC Defense Team honors with the Vols this season. He averaged 11.4 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game and shot 51.5 percent from the field.
Cliff Omoruyi | C | Rutgers
Transfer Portal Rating:No. 5 OVR, No. 2 C
Omoruyi has 'high' interest in UNC and included the Tar Heels in his top 12 finalists. The 6-foot-11, 240-pound center averaged double-digit scoring in each of his final three seasons with the Scarlet Knights. He put up 10.4 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game (third-most in Division I) during the 2023-24 campaign. The 6-foot-11, 240-pound big man entered the portal as a grad transfer and is expected to take his time before making a decision.
Jordan Pope | PG | Oregon State
Transfer Portal Rating:No. 48 OVR, No. 12 PG
Pope is the only guard who has confirmed contact with UNC. Texas has emerged as the favorite for the rising junior, and a decision could be made early this week during his trip to Austin. Pope was one of the top freshmen in the Pac-12 in 2022-23 before taking a sophom*ore jump. He averaged 17.6 points and 3.4 assists this past season for the Beavers. He shot 37 percent from 3-point range on 174 attempts.
Adou Thiero | SF | Kentucky
Transfer Portal Rating:No. 20 OVR, No. 5 SF
North Carolina has reached out to a handful of small forwards as insurance if Harrison Ingram opts to go pro. Hubert Davis and Co. have had contact with Thiero and could make a push at the former Kentucky star if Ingram doesn't return. Thiero has heard from a host of other schools, including Pittsburgh, Miami, Arizona, Oregon, Gonzaga, Ohio State, Indiana and NC State. The 6-foot-8 forward averaged 7.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.1 steals in 21.3 minutes per game last season. He shot 49.2 percent from the floor and 31.8 percent from three-point range.
Cade Tyson | SF | Belmont
Transfer Portal Rating:No. 30 OVR, No. 7 SF
Tyson is UNC's primary perimeter shooting target and is set to visit UNC this weekend. He's already visited Tennessee, and national basketball analyst Eric Bossi said it's a "two-horse" race between the Tar Heels and Volunteers for his services. The 6-foot-7 forward enjoyed a breakout sophom*ore season for Belmont in 2023-24, averaging 16.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game while shooting 46.5 percent from the three-point line. UNC leads by a slight margin, but Tennessee is right there with the Tar Heels. Tyson's visit to Chapel this weekend is huge.
Danny Wolf | PF | Yale
Transfer Portal Rating:No. 14 OVR, No. 3 PF
Wolf entered the transfer portal with a "do not contact" tag but initiated contact with UNC and visited Michigan over the weekend. He hasn't set a visit date with the Tar Heels, but one could be in the works. The 7-foot-1, 255-pound forward averaged 14.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.3 blocks per game as a sophom*ore last season. He shot 47.2 percent from the floor and 34.5 percent from the three-point line.
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CONTACTS WHO COMMITTED ELSEWHERE
Oumar Ballo | C | Arizona
Transfer Portal Rating:No. 1 OVR, No. 1 C
New School:Indiana
North Carolina reached out to Ballo during the process and wanted to set up more direct conversation. Ultimately, the transfer portal's top-ranked prospect was further along with Indiana and committed to Mike Woodson and the Hoosiers on Tuesday. The 7-foot, 260-pound center averaged 14.2 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 27.6 minutes per game with Arizona last season. He shot 64.7 percent from the field and 56.5 percent from the free-throw line.
Aaron Bradshaw | C | Kentucky
Transfer Portal Rating:No. 25 OVR, No. 5 C
New School:Ohio State
Bradshaw met with the North Carolina via Zoom this week, and an official visit to UNC was reportedly on the table. However, the former five-star visited Columbus this week and committed to Ohio State and new head coach Jake Diebler on Monday. The 7-foot-1, 226-pound rising sophom*ore averaged 4.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, 0.7 blocks in 26 games for the Wildcats last season. He shot 57.6 percent from the field, 56.8 percent from the free throw line and 28.6 percent from three.
Maxime Raynaud | C | Stanford
Transfer Portal Rating:No. 5 OVR | No. 2 C
New School:Stayed at Stanford
Raynaud entered the transfer portal following a three-year stint at Stanford and immediately jumped to the top of transfer portal wish lists for a handful of elite programs, including UNC. He ultimately withdrew his name from the portal and re-committed to Stanford. The 7-foot-1, 250-pound big man averaged 15.5 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game as a junior en route to Pac-12 Most Improved Player honors.
