GoHeels Exclusive: Huffman Making Strides

by Pat James, GoHeels.com

CHAPEL HILL—This season, specifically the last few weeks, hasn't gone as Brandon Huffman anticipated.

One of three freshman big men on scholarship, Huffman's dunking prowess garnered preseason attention. But in a battle with Garrison Brooks and Sterling Manley for playing time, Huffman has been the odd man out thus far.

Huffman saw nine minutes in three of UNC's first four games. Yet in the four prior to North Carolina's 97-73 win over Tulane on Sunday, he played 10 total. Brooks and Manley averaged 21 and 10.3, respectively, in that span.

Matchups against Michigan and Davidson, which feature bigs who can stretch the floor, factored into Huffman's reduced playing time. But so too did his understanding of Roy Williams' system.

"I really expected I would pick up on things a little quicker," Huffman said. "Some days it's real hard because they throw a lot at us, and everyone is different as far as how they pick things up. As far as my career is concerned, I probably have been that way for a while; I pick things up slower. But when I understand them, I'm all the way there."

Huffman might not be at that point quite yet. Like many freshmen before him, he's still adjusting to the Tar Heels' tempo. But against Tulane, he showed flashes of promise, setting season highs with nine points and six rebounds in 12 minutes.

Much of Huffman's offensive production came in the first half, when he scored seven points on 3-of-3 shooting in only five minutes. He also grabbed two rebounds and blocked a shot during that stretch.

Four of Huffman's first-half points came on two rim-rattling dunks. On the first, he posted up and then drifted toward the basket once his defender went to help double-team Theo Pinson, who fed the ball to Huffman for a two-handed slam.

"(He's) not trying to think too much, just playing and trying to be in the right spots offensively," said Pinson of Huffman. "When we go to the basket, he's getting in a little dunker spot. He's ready, catching the ball and going up. That's what we brought him here to do, and he's doing it."

Sunday marked Huffman's fourth game with two dunks. And with it, he increased his team lead to nine dunks on the season.

Huffman said Williams has reminded him a few times that he can't dunk every time he touches the ball. "Sometimes there are going to be defenders," Williams says, "and you'll have to do something else."

Such exchanges hint at Huffman's feel for the game. He only started playing basketball about six years ago, when he was 13, and he knows there's more to learn.

One teaching moment came with about five minutes left in the second half. When Brooks entered the game for him, Huffman walked straight to the UNC bench without telling his teammate who he was defending. Williams quickly admonished Huffman for the mistake.

"I think I was worried about coming out and I forgot to tell (Brooks)," Huffman said. "But that's always important that we say something so nobody is out there at a loss or anything."

A freshman could easily fold after being lectured by Williams the way Huffman was then. But he craves Williams' instruction, no matter what form it comes in.

"He's always coaching, and that's something I like about him," said Huffman of Williams. "Whenever we make a mistake, he'll be sure to let us know so we can keep improving, even if the game is going on."

And for Huffman, that made Sunday even more valuable.

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Garrison Brooks

Brandon Huffman

Sterling Manley

Theo Pinson

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