The top-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels will be without Marcus Paige to start the season
Hopes and expectations are high for the North Carolina Tar Heels heading into the 2015-16 college basketball season as the polls have them as the top-ranked team in the country coming into the year. However, the Tar Heels will be starting off the season without one of their most integral players on the team in senior point guard Marcus Paige.
On Wednesday, ESPN basketball insider Jeff Goodman reported that Paige suffered a broken non-shooting hand in practice on Tuesday and will be out for 3-4 weeks to start the season:
UNC’s Marcus Paige fractured the third metacarpal on his right (non-shooting) hand in practice on Tuesday, will miss 3-4 weeks, per school.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) November 4, 2015
Paige dealt with injuries for most of last season, though he never missed this significant amount of time. His performance slipped last season as a junior in comparison to his sophomore season with the Heels, scoring less and doing so less efficiently. The hope was that a healthy Paige would again be the leader for UNC this season as they have national title aspirations.
With Paige out to start the season, the Heels will likely rely on some combination of Nate Britt and Joel Berry to play in relief at the point guard position. While those two players gained valuable experience last year, they’ve yet to show the potential of being able to contribute and lead at the level that Paige is capable of.
In terms of schedule, the Heels’ first five games of the season are all against unranked opponents, though Paige will miss an away game against the Northern Iowa Panthers that would have been a trip home for the point guard. The big question in terms of schedule is whether or not Paige will return in time for the Tar Heels’ Dec. 1 clash with the No. 3 ranked Maryland Terrapins.
The matchup with Maryland is unquestionably one of the biggest games in the college basketball world over the course of the entire season and is by far UNC’s toughest non-conference matchup of the year. However, it will lose much of its luster and meaning if Paige isn’t on the floor for that matchup. Moreover, the Tar Heels’ chances in that game severely diminish without their starting point guard.
On the positive side, it’s fortunate that it’s Paige’s non-shooting hand that’s injured, meaning he shouldn’t be terribly affected when he does return. However, this isn’t a good way for this team to start the season. The Heels have to be praying that this doesn’t derail what could otherwise be a fantastic season for the program.