Ian Jackson’s entry into the transfer portal is a horrible, horrible look for Hubert Davis and the UNC basketball program.
A highly-touted prospect out of high school, Jackson was regarded as a likely “one-and-done” player. They were right about one thing: he was “one-and-done” at North Carolina, as it now looks like the Bronx, New York native will continue his college career elsewhere.
While the NBA Draft is still likely an option, there’s a very good chance Jackson ends up on another college roster for next season. Hubert Davis deserves a ton of blame, given that he failed this five-star prospect miserably.
At times, Jackson looked like the Tar Heels’ best player on the floor. From December 21 to January 15, Jackson put together six 20+ point outings over seven games, including a 27-point outburst against Notre Dame. That stretch of games made it seem likely that Jackson was well on his way to becoming a sure-fire first-round pick, but that drastically changed as his role decreased throughout the season.
In fact, Jackson didn’t play more than 20 minutes in any of the Tar Heels final six games. Sure, he wasn’t scoring the basketball at a high level, but it never felt like North Carolina’s coaching staff did anything to help get him going.
A few key thoughts regarding this whole situation:
Coming off the bench to start the season, a perfect role could’ve been carved out for him. As a sixth man, Jackson should’ve been the guy to focus the offense around when the second unit took the floor, as there should have been lineups that helped cater to his strengths better.
Speaking of lineups… when Jackson did start, he was playing out of position. When Davis was adamant on playing a smaller lineup, Jackson served essentially as the “3,” mostly having to score against (and defend) players of bigger size. Not to mention the fact that he was working alongside a very small backcourt of RJ Davis and Elliot Cadeau, both of whom aren’t the best defensive players by any means.
When RJ Davis was struggling, Hubert Davis still made it an emphasis to put the ball in No. 4’s hands. It felt like a round peg in a square hole type of situation, as Davis wasn’t nearly the same player he was during his consensus first-team All-American season. Not a knock on Davis, but when things aren’t working, adjustments need to be made.
In an effort to get more offense generated, wouldn’t it have made sense to go with the bigger lineup with Davis at the point and Jackson at his true position as an off-ball guard?
I guess it didn’t make sense to Hubert Davis.
We heard the story over and over again (thanks Cory Alexander) about how Jackson would text his head coach everyday to see how he can improve. Unfortunately, Davis wasn’t looking for ways to improve to help arguably the most talented player he was able to recruit to North Carolina as the program’s head coach.
While we don’t know what goes on inside the walls of the Dean Smith Center, it almost felt like there were empty promises made by Davis to Jackson and his family. Even though the situation with certain players receiving a fifth season of eligibility added a weird element to the mix, RJ Davis’ return seemed to really impact Ian Jackson’s short tenure in Chapel Hill, as Hubert Davis was often too reliant on the fifth-year senior instead of finding ways to capitalize with both of them on the floor.
Hubert Davis wasn’t turning down the chance to coach RJ Davis another year (heck, who wouldn’t want an All-American player back in the mix?). However, it really impacted the rest of the roster, as Ian Jackson was the player most impacted by the decision.
Make it two five-star talents who have now left the program this offseason. Elliot Cadeau was the first, as he’s taking his talents to Michigan. Ian Jackson will be next, as both players aim for a fresh start elsewhere.
It’s an extremely bad look for the UNC basketball program, as this can really hurt recruiting in the future. Why would a five-star talent come to North Carolina given the current circumstances?
Let’s remember: Ian Jackson chose North Carolina to play for Hubert Davis. Seems like that relationship too a massive hit over just a few months.
Fans are already unhappy with Hubert Davis. If this trend continues, the noise will only get louder, especially if Jackson lands at another university and lives up to the hype that surrounded him as a high school prospect.
