Men’s basketball

NC State: NC State hired Tennessee associate head coach and former player Justin Gainey to be its next head coach, replacing Will Wade, who left for LSU after just one season. The Wolfpack could be in store for another massive roster rebuild. 

G Matt Able: A four-star recruit, Able played in 34 games and averaged 8.8 points in his lone season in Raleigh. He wrote that he is also declaring for the NBA Draft and could return to NC State. (April 6)

UNC: The Tar Heels, after checking in on some of the biggest coaching names in college basketball, intend to hire former NBA coach Michael Malone, who won a championship with the Denver Nuggets in 2023. He hasn’t been formally hired.

F Caleb Wilson (NBA): A freshman star and second-team All-America, Wilson declared for the NBA Draft, where he is expected to be a top-five pick. Wilson, who averaged 19.8 points and 9.4 rebounds, suffered a left hand injury on February 10th vs. Miami and didn’t play the rest of the season. He broke his right thumb on a dunk in practice before UNC’s final regular-season game.

G Isaiah Denis: A three-star recruit, Denis played sparingly for UNC in 2025-26. In 10 games, he averaged 1.9 points. He played a season-high eight minutes against ECU. He said he is keeping open the option to return to UNC. (April 6)

G Jaydon Young: Young, a junior from Greensboro who played two seasons at Virginia Tech, played in 31 games (four starts) for UNC in 2025-26. (April 6)

G Derek Dixon: Dixon, a freshman, took over as the Tar Heels’ starting point guard in the final months of the season. In 33 games (16 starts), he averaged 6.5 points and 2.7 assists per game. Dixon wrote on social media that he is entering the transfer portal “with the option to return to UNC.” (April 6)

G Jonathan Powell: Powell, a sophomore who played one season at West Virginia, played in all 33 games for UNC. He averaged 16.4 minutes per game off the bench. He averaged 4.8 points and 2.4 rebounds per game. (April 6)  

Duke: The Blue Devils, the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, lost to UConn in the Elite Eight in a game they led by as many as 19 points. Duke was led by national player of the year Cameron Boozer, who is expected to be a top pick in the NBA Draft.

Women’s basketball

NC State

G Zamareya Jones: Jones, a sophomore, started 30 games for the Wolfpack, averaging 14.9 points per game and shooting 36.6% from 3-point range.

C Mallory Collier: Collier, a junior, played 16 games for NC State in 2025-26. She averaged 2.6 points and 1.1 rebounds per game.

C Tilda Trygger: Trygger, a sophomore from Sweden, averaged 10.6 points and 7.0 rebounds per game in 2025-26. She started 53 games (64 total games) across two seasons with the Wolfpack.

G Devyn Quigley: Quigley, a sophomore, averaged 16.5 minutes per game in 29 games for the Wolfpack. She averaged 4.3 points and 2.4 rebounds per game.

UNC

G Lanie Grant: Grant, a sophomore, was second on the team in scoring at 10.8 points. She led the Tar Heels in minutes played per game (29.1) and 3-point percentage (41.9%).

G Taliyah Henderson: Henderson, a freshman, played in 33 games for the Tar Heels and averaged 3.7 points and 2.0 rebounds per game.

Duke

G Anna Wikstrom: Wikstrom, a freshman from Norway, averaged 1.3 points in 18 games in 2025-26.Â