{"id":300535,"date":"2025-09-24T11:02:28","date_gmt":"2025-09-24T11:02:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/300535\/"},"modified":"2025-09-24T11:02:28","modified_gmt":"2025-09-24T11:02:28","slug":"this-university-means-everything-to-me-uncs-seth-trimble-is-ready-for-his-senior-moment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/300535\/","title":{"rendered":"‘This University Means Everything to Me’: UNC’s Seth Trimble is Ready for His Senior Moment"},"content":{"rendered":"

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https:\/\/chapelboroaudio.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/2025\/09%20-%20September\/24\/Seth%20Trimble_WRAP.mp3<\/a><\/p>\n

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There\u2019s no getting around it: this isn\u2019t your dad\u2019s college basketball. Heck, it might not even be your older brother\u2019s college basketball. Player movement is at an all-time high, and UNC\u2019s roster this coming season paints a stunning picture: 12 of the Tar Heels\u2019 16 players were not on the team last year.<\/p>\n

Of those four returners, only two are scholarship players. And of those two, only one has started a game.<\/p>\n

That one is UNC\u2019s last connection to what appears to be a bygone era of college basketball. Because once Seth Trimble plays out his senior year as a Tar Heel this spring, how many more will follow? Who else will stay four years at one program, often battling roster logjams and frustrating usage along the way?<\/p>\n

Of course, Trimble did enter the transfer portal following his sophomore season. But the Tar Heel legacy kid \u2013 his older brother is former UNC standout J.P. Tokoto \u2013 found he couldn\u2019t bear the thought of not being in Chapel Hill. A year later, the little brother is now the face of the program, a de facto team captain for a Tar Heel team built almost from scratch. However daunting that prospect is, Trimble said it\u2019s nothing new for him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always seen myself as a leader,\u201d Trimble told reporters earlier in September. \u201cIn high school, I was always a guy who pushed my teammates. I was always a guy who got on my teammates when needed, who carried my teammates when needed, who held them up. And that\u2019s who I want to continue to be. It helps people. It allows people to grow when there\u2019s that leadership, and I think I\u2019m capable of doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Seth Trimble is confident his leadership abilities will lead the Tar Heels to a successful 2025-26 season. (Image via Chapel Hill Media Group\/Todd Melet)<\/p>\n

If early reviews from Tar Heel teammates are any indication, Trimble\u2019s leadership abilities haven\u2019t waned since his days as a prep star in the Milwaukee suburbs.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we have a slow day at the gym, he\u2019ll start clapping,\u201d said Arizona transfer Henri Veesaar. \u201cHe\u2019ll talk. He\u2019ll get everybody energized. On the court as well, he\u2019ll keep everybody to a higher standard. It\u2019s like having another coach on the floor.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was Trimble who played a major role in bringing Veesaar, a highly-coveted seven-footer, to Chapel Hill. Trimble recalled hitting it off immediately with Veesaar when the pair grabbed dinner during Veesaar\u2019s visit. He did the same for all the Tar Heel transfers, essentially acting as part host, part tour guide.<\/p>\n

Colorado State transfer Kyan Evans, the point guard who will likely split ball-handling duties with Trimble this season, described him as an \u201cintriguing\u201d player.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want to surround yourself with other good players that you feel you can connect with and get better from,\u201d Evans said. \u201cI came here, saw him and envisioned a backcourt with us being extremely good.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a very high-energy player on defense and offense,\u201d said Veesaar. \u201cAnd he rubs off on everybody where you want to be better. Because if you see him doing it, you can\u2019t let him down.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Teammates have praised Seth Trimble\u2019s high energy on both ends of the court, saying it fires them up during long practices. (Image via Chapel Hill Media Group\/Todd Melet)<\/p>\n

There are, of course, other areas of interest for Trimble outside the basketball court. He provided one of the most unexpected headlines of the offseason this summer when he became a franchisee at the Ben & Jerry\u2019s location on Franklin Street, in the heart of downtown Chapel Hill. Trimble said he has big plans for the business, some of which he couldn\u2019t divulge to the media \u2014 though he did note he foresees a specialty flavor honoring former head coach Roy Williams. Hubert Davis said he supports Trimble\u2019s business ventures, but the head coach added that he and dairy \u201caren\u2019t very good friends.\u201d (Trimble has assured him Ben & Jerry\u2019s does provide dairy-free options)<\/p>\n

On the court, Davis projects unwavering confidence in Trimble\u2019s abilities. Entering his fifth season in charge, Davis appears unbothered by the open secret that the 2025-26 season is a make-or-break one for his career. In Davis\u2019 mind, there is nobody better than Trimble to lead the Tar Heels into that uncertain future.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s an ambassador for this program,\u201d the head coach said. \u201cFor him to be here four years, he\u2019s done a lot. He\u2019s seen a lot. Within his personality, he has done similar things as Armando [Bacot]. One of the things that\u2019s really important to Seth is not only for Carolina to be good, but for Carolina to be good when he leaves.\u201d<\/p>\n

After UNC\u2019s season-ending losses the last two years, Trimble was so distraught he was moved to tears. The Tar Heels\u2019 defeat in the first round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament against Ole Miss hit particularly hard. Not only did the loss come in Trimble\u2019s hometown of Milwaukee, but it also marked the end of his teammate and friend R.J. Davis\u2019 collegiate career.<\/p>\n

His voice quiet and shaky on the NCAA dais, Trimble couldn\u2019t finish his thoughts on his relationship with Davis before choking up. He ended by simply saying, \u201cI\u2019ve learned a lot from R.J.\u201d The words barely registered on the microphone.<\/p>\n

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Seth Trimble wipes his eyes following UNC\u2019s loss to Ole Miss in the first round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament in March. (Image via Chapel Hill Media Group\/Todd Melet)<\/p>\n

Six months later, Trimble walks the halls of the Dean Smith Center as the \u201cnew\u201d R.J., the veteran whose experience \u2013 sometimes tearful, sometimes joyful \u2013 will be key to the Tar Heels\u2019 success. He has the graciousness to joke about UNC\u2019s massive roster overhaul; when he sat down in the Smith Center media room, one reporter remarked how nice it was to see a familiar face.<\/p>\n

Trimble smiled before replying, \u201cAbout the only one, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

He smiled again when speaking on his relationship with UNC. In the tradition of Tar Heel fan favorites like Bacot, Tyler Hansbrough and Marcus Paige, Trimble exhibits a fierce gratitude to the program which, in essence, has seen him grow up. Trimble wasn\u2019t yet 10 years old when Tokoto began his UNC career in 2012, and 13 years later he\u2019ll enter this season as the standard-bearer for his childhood team.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis university means everything to me,\u201d Trimble said. \u201cI grew up a Carolina fan. My family grew up Carolina fans. I\u2019ve had support for all these years. And I\u2019ve been able to grow as a man. Forget basketball. The young man I\u2019ve become here, the lessons I\u2019ve learned, the experiences I\u2019ve been able to have, the connections I\u2019ve built, you can\u2019t get all these things anywhere else.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I\u2019m praying at night, I speak about how thankful I am for this university,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a blessing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Featured image via Associated Press\/Brandon Dill<\/p>\n

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