University of North Carolina Athletics
Season In Review: James Michael McAdoo
April 16, 2014 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
The latest in a series looking back at the performances of individual Tar Heels during the 2013-14 season takes a look at junior James Michael McAdoo, who has announced his intentions to enter the NBA Draft.
Season stats: 14.2 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 45.8 FG%, 53.7 FT%
Season in a sentence: James Michael McAdoo turned in a stellar junior season, earning second-team All-ACC honors and finishing as Carolina's leading rebounder and second-leading scorer.
Season highlights: After a solid season opener against Oakland (21 points, nine rebounds), McAdoo had a slightly uneven beginning to his junior campaign. He struggled to find his spot in the offense and went through a stretch of 23-for-68 from the field in a six-game stretch that lasted through the win at Michigan State.
He showed a spark against Kentucky, making 19 trips to the free throw line (converting 12) and handing out four assists (his first time ever leading Carolina in assists) to go with a pair of steals. Wildcats coach John Calipari, who knows a little something about talent, said after the game, "McAdoo killed us."
That activity level would be a trademark over most of the next two months, and McAdoo attempted a whopping 48 free throws in a three-game stretch in December (he made 30). He would eventually go on to take 257 free throws for the entire season, which were the most in the ACC and the most for a Carolina player since Tyler Hansbrough shot 296 in 34 games in 2009.
McAdoo showed good defensive versatility this year and won the individual defensive award from the Carolina coaches seven times, the third-most on the team. He also dramatically cut down on his turnovers, which had been an area of offseason emphasis. After committing 2.7 per game as a sophomore, he turned it over just 1.4 times per game this season.
This isn't quantifiable in the stats, but McAdoo's even-keeled approach helped keep Carolina on the rails during a season that could have teetered on a couple of occasions. It was impossible to tell from his demeanor whether he was struggling or excelling, which was exactly what the Tar Heels needed from one of their few veteran leaders.
Against the ACC: McAdoo quietly was very effective against league teams. Against conference opponents, he was third in field goal percentage, fourth in offensive rebounding and eighth in rebounding. He also earned ACC Player of the Week for the first time in his career after shooting 11-for-18 from the field for 24 points to go with 12 rebounds against Pittsburgh on Feb. 15.
McAdoo's energy was key in helping the Tar Heels recover from an 0-3 and 1-4 start in the conference. Beginning with a 9-for-13 effort against Clemson (when he also won the team's defensive award), he put together a string of six straight terrific games, culminating with that Player of the Week effort against Pitt. That stretch also included a 16-point, 13-rebound double-double in the home win over NC State, which was one of his seven double-doubles this year and one of his four double-doubles in the ACC regular season.
The junior was also key in the road win over the Wolfpack, as he forced a turnover late in overtime, then scored to tie the game at 83 and set up Marcus Paige's eventual game-winner.
Postseason: McAdoo contributed his first-ever NCAA tournament double-double (16 points, 10 rebounds) in the NCAA tournament win over Providence. He also nailed the game-winning free throws with under four seconds to play; those free throws were created by his relentless offensive rebounding efforts in chasing a Brice Johnson miss, and then following his own miss after a missed free throw.
After a quiet first half against Iowa State, he had 13 second-half points against the Cyclones. He scored four key points late, including a jumper with under a minute to go that gave Carolina a three-point lead, and two game-tying free throws with 15 seconds remaining.
Season stats: 69: McAdoo became just the 69th Tar Heel to reach 1,000 career points on Jan. 20 at Virginia, and he finished his Tar Heel career with 1,232 points.
7.1: According to Ken Pomeroy's stats, McAdoo was among the top 35 players in the nation in fouls drawn per 40 minutes, as his aggressive style created 7.1 fouls per 40.
