Lacking Confidence A Hindrance For Tar Heels

CHAPEL HILL – Those who doubt the effect of having confidence versus the alternative in sports, this year’s North Carolina basketball team should smash to smithereens that way of thinking.

The echoes of criticism and questions about the Tar Heels’ performances this season, as a group and individuals, has caromed from one chamber to the other and back many times. It’s been particularly blinding on social media.

But, at 10-14 overall and sitting at dead last in the ACC owning a 3-10 league mark, it’s somewhat understandable. Yet, it’s also important to recognize the connectivity of meshing positive thoughts to performance. Doubt it?

At a recent practice, the Tar Heels worked on “Fast Break Drill Number 3” in which everyone – each player regardless of position – eventually ends up handling the ball at the point of the break. Assistant coach Brad Frederick stands in the lane acting as a defender and the player leading the break is supposed to stop at the free throw line and distribute the ball without charging. The latter is the purpose of the drill.

Yet, in Tuesday’s loss at Wake Forest, freshman Armando Bacot didn’t stop and ended up plowing into a Wake defender and was whistled for a charging foul. The play was synonymous with how Carolina’s night went in the 74-57 debacle.

“I’m not picking on anybody, but Armando ran over the guy,” UNC Coach Roy Williams said during Friday’s press conference at the Smith Center in advance of Saturday’s home game versus Virginia. “For 79 practices, we’ve done it every single day. So, that’s an example right there.”

Bacot’s mistake is just one of many such examples this season by the Tar Heels, who have lost nine of their last 11 contests and are 0-4 since Cole Anthony returned from a knee injury.

“Coach (Dean) Smith used to call it ‘game slippage,’” Williams said. “But we’ve had more instances of that with this team.”

Anthony said following the loss in Winston-Salem the team didn’t prepare well, Andrew Platek said they weren’t ready, and Christian Keeling said the Tar Heels embarrassed the tradition of the program and its past players.

That’s rough stuff but reflective of how this team has increasingly thought about itself as the losses have piled up.

Another example: Following UNC’s blown late lead last Saturday against Duke, in which the Tar Heels missed seven of their final nine free throw attempts, Justin Pierce said it’s become rather difficult stepping to the line when the previous player missed his free throws. The effect of one guy missing too often influences the psyche of the next guy. And so on.

Williams has found himself coaching not only that element of psychology more, but pretty much everything across the board.

“I think we’re trying to coach every possession, every pass and every dribble more than I ever have in my entire life…,” he said. “But yes, you start thinking about last guy did this or that or whatever, that’s what was so special about (Brandon Robinson) over at (N.C.) State because Christian missed two, Garrison (Brooks) missed four and BRob made five in a row.”

Preparation at this level is simple though demanding. The Heels, however, are too often veering off course before simple blends into the challenging, a clear byproduct of lacking confidence.

If Williams played billiards, he wouldn’t be a trick shot artist, that’s not his style. So, neither is trying a variety of motivational tactics to clear the minds, unite thought and spray a mist of positivity onto his team.

“I’m just old school – go to work and do the job, go to work and do the job, try to get better,” he said. “That’s what we’ve talked about for the last month, let’s try to get better today.”

That’s Williams’ simplistic approach with this team, but he has tried some things, albeit minor.

In his first season at Kansas 32 years ago, the Jayhawks endured an eight-game losing streak, so Williams tried showing them motivational sports movies such as “Rocky III” and “Hoosiers,” but neither paid off. Breaking from his comfort zone with the current team, he even tried it a few weeks ago, and it didn’t work then, either.

“You try all kinds of different things because the kids, they do want to…,” he said. “I’ve tried everything so far that I know of, but that doesn’t mean I’m not going try to figure something else out, too.”

But in the end, Williams’ approach is to simply get better, as he says. Tactics during the week haven’t carried over into game time, especially when the players reach a point where they’re trying too hard.

Williams says there’s a danger in struggling players wanting it too much.

“Yeah, they think about result instead of playing the game,” he said.

And the results this season for the Tar Heels have not been what they’ve hoped for, with the toughest part climbing out of their skin of negativity without tasting much success.

It’s a conundrum for sure, one they’re tying to fix each and every day.