As it stands now, the five spot in the Tar Heels’ 2018-2019 starting lineup is up for grabs. There’s the possibility that Roy Williams goes small again and slides Luke Maye to the five, but let’s assume he at least kicks the season off with a traditional lineup. In this case, that spot will likely come down to two sophomores: Garrison Brooks and Sterling Manley.
We were having a similar discussion around this time a year ago. Brooks and Manley were unproven freshmen tasked with replacing the likes of Isaiah Hicks, Kennedy Meeks, and Tony Bradley, the latter of which left a glaring hole in the starting lineup.