University of North Carolina Athletics
Lucas: The Ring Bearer
October 12, 2011 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Oct. 12, 2011
By Adam Lucas
John Henson is amazed by Justin Watts. Not by the senior's athleticism, although he's sneakily one of the highest jumpers on the roster. Not by his selfless dedication to the team, although Watts played out of position in the post for much of last year because of a lack of big man depth.
No, when Watts is mentioned, Henson immediately mentions the senior's jewelry collection.
"Justin has, like, five rings," Henson says incredulously. "He's got rings from tournaments and championships and all kinds of things. Any time you win a ring, that's something you have to respect."
For the record, Watts has four rings. He has two national championship rings from 2009--one issued by the NCAA and one issued by the school. He has an ACC championship ring from 2009, when the Tar Heels claimed the regular season title. And he added a fourth in 2011, when Carolina won another league regular season championship.
Watts doesn't parade his winnings around the locker room, so he's not quite sure how Henson calculated his tally.
"I keep them at my mother's house," Watts says. "She has them on display. I think I may have worn one of them one time to church, but that was it. I don't want to take the chance of something happening to them, so I keep them up there on the shelf."
The goal for his senior season is to add to that collection. Watts and Tyler Zeller are attempting to become the first Tar Heels ever to play on two national championship teams. The 6-foot-5 Watts isn't entirely certain what his role will be in 2011-12. Carolina has replenished some of the post depth, adding James Michael McAdoo, Desmond Hubert and Jackson Simmons to go with Henson and Zeller.
This season, it might be that more minutes are available on the wing, where Leslie McDonald's offseason knee injury could open some playing time. Because of that uncertainty, Watts didn't spend his offseason preparing for one particular senior role. Instead, he worked on his game as a whole, so he'll be ready to contribute on the perimeter or in the post, whatever the coaching staff asks of him.
As the lone scholarship seniors on a talented team with plenty of expectations, Zeller and Watts will also have a leadership role. Watts is not naturally a vocal person, but learned from watching players like Danny Green and Marcus Ginyard earlier in his career that it's not always the person talking the loudest who provides the leadership.
"You watch and learn when you're a freshman and sophomore," he says. "That teaches you what the freshmen will need to hear, because you remember what you needed to hear when you were a freshman.
"Being a leader doesn't mean yelling at people. It can mean that if we have weights, make sure everyone knows. Freshmen may not know how important it is to be on time and do the little things. If we have weights at 3:00, don't get there at 2:55. Be there at 2:30. They may think small things are a big deal, but it goes a long way towards avoiding distractions."
That's the wisdom of a senior, someone who has what his teammates are trying to get in 2012--a national championship ring. So, what do the owners of that ring know that everyone else will have to learn this season?
"That ring is our main goal," Watts says. "I know the little things you have to do, the little ways that execution is important. There are no plays off. In 2009, it was all about us, and it was us against everyone else. And that's what we'll have to do this year, too."
Adam Lucas is the publisher of Tar Heel Monthly. He is also the author or co-author of six books on Carolina basketball, including the official chronicle of the first 100 years of Tar Heel hoops, A Century of Excellence, which is available now. Get real-time UNC sports updates from the THM staff on Twitter and Facebook.
