This is the time of year when Roy Williams loves to go recruiting. He has seen a little bit of everything in the month of December. He has seen scorers and rebounders and passers and still he goes out again, virtually every night he possibly can, even while the Carolina season is ongoing, because he is still looking for that one thing he needs to see with his own eyes.
Film can show you the rotation on a player's shot and the way they make contact on a box out. But it can't show you everything, which is why—when so many of his coaching brethren are enjoying a night off or sending out an assistant—Williams spends his Decembers racking up air and road miles to see games in person, with his own eyes, so he can find that elusive quality that separates excellent, high-quality basketball players from Tar Heels: he wants to see the winners.