Uh Oh: North Carolina Getting Involved With Terp Priority Desmond Hubert

Whoa boy. Remember when I said that Desmond Hubert became really, really important? Things looked okay when he was down to Maryland, Wake Forest, and Princeton. Now there's a new player, and you won't like who it is.

This isn't particularly surprising. North Carolina was a big player with Adjehi Baru and needed a top-flight big. Now they'll be as empty-handed as Maryland if they don't land Angelo Chol, and that's not gonna fly in a down-trodden (for the moment) Chapel Hill. Hubert happens to be one of about two or three legitimate top-150 bigs left on the board, so it's no surprise that Roy Williams would see it as a smart move to get involved.

It also sounds like Hubert is taking this pretty seriously. Lately, there were whispers that a decision was forthcoming, probably within a month or so. Now? He's nowhere close.

Of course, UNC will probably be a big attraction for Hubert. Aside from the Carolina mystique, the academic reputation in Chapel Hill, even if only marginally better than the reputations of Maryland and Wake Forest, should be a draw (remember: he's considering Princeton, so academics are playing a part). And if he doesn't mind sitting on the bench for a year, there should be a lot of playing time later in his career. And there's the whole thing about "putting players in the league," which Carolina, admittedly, does do better than Maryland.

This has the potential to be a knock-down, drag-out fight between the four programs. He's obviously important for Maryland and likes the Terrapins. UNC is UNC. He'd represent Jeff Bzdelik's first "coup", which is incredibly important for fan support by this point. And as the Ivy League slowly becomes more and more relevant, Princeton has to see him as a gateway to success over the next few years.

This should get very interesting.