Love For UNC & Wanting To Show More Fueled Black's Return

Note: Video of Leaky Black's interview is posted below this report.

CHAPEL HILL – As much as Leaky Black is driven to win a national championship, he well could have returned to North Carolina for a fifth season even if the Tar Heels managed to defeat Kansas in the national championship game in April.

The loss to the Jayhawks is a serious part of UNC’s motivation this offseason. Each player talks openly about it, as they are fully ensconced in their process in getting redemption at what happened in New Orleans.

But even had the Tar Heels cut down the nets, Black might still be around preparing for season number five in a Carolina uniform. Black loves UNC that much.

So much that his announcement later that month he was coming back didn’t really surprise many people. He led on to it late in the regular season in a postgame zoom interview. He was even nudged some to fess up on a decision he eventually made formal. But many in the media knew.

**************************************************************************************

Remember, for just $8.33 a month, YOU CAN BE A TAR HEELS INSIDER, TOO!!!

***************************************************************************************

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I did (laughter),” he said, when reminded of that night during an interview Monday at the Smith Center. “I tried to keep it all in house, though, you knew, you knew.”

Black’s reasons for returning are about completing the mission the Heels nearly achieved. But it is also very personal.

“I love this place, man,” he said. “It really changed my life. I just felt like it’s one more year, we got so close. I feel like even if we would have won it, I probably still would have come back. It’s so fun. Winning is just so fun. Winning is so fun at Carolina.”

And showing there is more to his game than just being a lockdown defender is, too.

Now, Black loves the moniker of being that guy. He embraces the toughness, physicality, and fortitude required to be that guy. And there are no plans in deviating from that. But there is more to his game, more he wants to show while still in a Carolina uniform.

“I think my teammates know my value, I feel like I want to put some numbers on the stat sheet, just be more effective that way,” he said.

Black’s scoring numbers dropped from 6.5 points per game as a sophomore to 5.6 as a junior to 4.9 last season. He also averaged 4.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists, and improved his shooting dramatically to 46.6 percent from the floor including 33.3 percent from three-point range, an upgrade from 22.2 percent the year before.

Yet, Black’s roots as a player have always been about setting a tone, being sort of an enforcer. Those are attributes developed as his father’s urging back in the day. So, Black still wants to be the guy he has been, but even better.

“Really just lead by example,” he said. “I love being a force out there, setting the tone, bruising people up doing whatever I have to do. Cussing some people out if I have to do that to set the tone.

“The last month of the season, when we started clicking and playing more aggressive, I feel like my job is to set the tone from day one so we can have a great season, not just the last month of the season.”

The last month didn’t include a made three-pointer by Black until the Tar Heels got to New Orleans. He was 2-for-5 from beyond the arc February 28 in a win over Syracuse, but missed his next 11 attempts from outside. Until the Duke game in the Final Four.

Black scored Carolina’s first basket, a three just 1:37 into the contest. And with 11:59 remaining in the contest, he hit another giving Carolina a 52-51 lead. That was an enormous shot. Duke was on a 10-2 run and the Heels appeared a bit wobbly at the time.

But Black’s shot calmed them, allowing them to quickly regain their ground for the stretch run in a game they eventually won. That is part of the Concord, NC, native’s game he would like people to see more of this coming winter.

“It was just more fluid, yeah,” Black said, before offering another layer into his personal and hoops makeup. “I really just feel like I kind of played to the occasion. Everyone was kind of nervous out there. During warmups, a lot of people were air balling and stuff, and me, I was hot during warmups.

“Playing in an atmosphere like that where people expect you not to be good, I love it. I get to prove them wrong.”

Black hopes to have more opportunities on the biggest stages of the college game this coming season, which will be his fifth full one, and perhaps a historic one as well. He has appeared in 122 games in a Carolina uniform, so the all-time record of 152 by Deon Thompson is likely Black’s provided he stays healthy.

Maybe Black will end up playing 162 games, the last of which in Houston and for the national championship. That is the mission, along with growing his game.

Those are the reasons Leaky Black is once again a Tar Heel.

Note: Video of Leaky Black's interview is posted below this report.

What were some of the factors in coming back to UNC for a fifth year, and what does he want to get out of this season personally?

BLACK: “Actually, I hinted at it late night in the (Carolina Insider) podcast with Adam (Lucas). I think my teammates know my value, I feel like I want to put some numbers on the state sheet, just be more effective that way. Really just lead by example. I love being a force out there, setting the tone, bruising people up doing whatever I have to do. Cussing some people out if I have to do that to set the tone.

“The last month of the season, when we started clicking and playing more aggressive, I feel like my job is to set the tone from day one so we can have a great season, not just the last month of the season.”

Was coming back something you’d been thinking about all along?

BLACK: “It was my senior night.”

Senior night or late night (he’d said both)? Because you did say something to us late in the season after a game, I tried to pull it out of you.

BLACK: “Yeah, yeah, yeah, I did (laughter). I tried to keep it all in house, though, you knew, you knew. I love this place, man. It really changed my life. I just felt like it’s one more year, we got so close. I feel like even if we would have won it, I probably still would have come back. It’s so fun. Winning is just so fun. Winning is so fun at Carolina.”

One of the things that stood out about you late in the season was you went from February 28 hitting a three here versus Syracuse to not hitting one until the Duke game in the Final Four. You hit two that night, one huge one in the second half ending their run. Would you have previously been able to hit that shot?

BLACK: “Absolutely.”

It seemed like it was more natural and fluid and more confidence in the release.

BLACK: “It was just more fluid, yeah. I really just feel like I kind of played to the occasion. Everyone was kind of nervous out there. During warmups, a lot of people were air balling and stuff, and me, I was hot during warmups. Playing in an atmosphere like that where people expect you not to be good, I love it. I get to prove them wrong.”

How much pride do you take in being known as a defensive guy?

BLACK: “I’ve always took pride in that. Just being tough, being physical. I remember my dad used to be my coach, and he would be on the bench and telling me when I’m playing soft and doing all of that. So that’s always in the back of my mind. I feel like defense is a way to always reinforce how tough I am, how physical I can be.”

Pete Nance has been here for about a month, what are your thoughts on him as a player, as a guy, and how he fits in?

BLACK: “Great guy, great guy. He kind of reminds you of Luke. My first time talking to him, I kind of wanted to say, ‘Yes, sir,’ to him. He has that professional – I’m not sure what it is, he’s just so mature and he’s a great player, man. Hell of a player.

“His IQ is just ridiculous. As soon as he catches it, he either has a shot or he’s right into pick-and-pop, pick-and-roll. He has a big-time lob threat. You know who his dad and his brother are, so he’s definitely got them genes, too. He’s great.”

Did he know Nance or communicate with him before his visit?

BLACK: “I didn’t know who he was at all. When they said he was coming to town, I started googling him and asking Armando and Caleb about him to see what they knew about him. I didn’t talk to him until he got on campus and until we got to Coach Davis’ house. And even then, I felt like I knew him for a while.”

One thing that stands out about having him on board is the need for another defensive presence behind Armando, especially seeing what happened last year. It looks like Nance is that kind of guy.

BLACK: “Yeah, absolutely. You can tell he’s been playing with professionals, working on his game. He has stuff you can’t really teach. His IQ and his feel for the game is just so natural and I love playing with him.”