Media Day Q&A: Roy Williams

The North Carolina basketball program held its annual preseason team media day in the Smith Center on Tuesday afternoon.

Head coach Roy Williams held a press conference to preview the 2018-19 season, players posed for photos, returning players conducted interviews with members of the press and the team posed for its annual team photo.

Below are highlights of questions and answers about the upcoming season between Williams and the media.

On how Cameron Johnson is maturing into a leader of the team
"I think he has matured and I think he is much more of a leader. I think last year he was very cautious about stepping in front of Joel and Theo. I think he's very comfortable. He lives with Luke and Kenny and I think the three stooges really do a great job."

On bond
"I think it's important, but at the end of the day, you got to take care of your own self. You got to do your job. You can other people emphasize it to you as much as you want, but the bottom line is you've got to do it yourself. All three of those guys really are good leaders, but that doesn't mean they're going to make Seventh do something or Coby do something. They can attestto what's important and use their experience and tell them of experiences they've had, but at the end of the day everybody's got to make their own decisions."

On what the love from his former players does for his program
"Well I think to go back to Coach McGuire bringing Coach Smith in and that's the guy that taught me more off the court than he ever did on the court about dealing with people. I'll never be as good as he was, but I'm still benefitting for his idea of what a basketball program should be. I'm very lucky to be benefitting from that. It's a neat feeling."

On what he wants to see from players competing for point guard
"As I said earlier, I think Seventh has gotten better. I think Coby's coming fast. But again guys, unless you tell me that I'm playing tomorrow for my life I don't think I have to make a decision today. So there's going to be quite a bit of time yet.

On what he expects from the team's identity
"I think the identity comes when you face some adversity. Once you get started, you see how guys pull together, how guys handle less playing time and how somebody else handles more playing time. I think you get all that later on.

On speculations about Nassir Little being a top-five pick
"We have not had that conversation. My job is to win or I'm going to get fired. And my job 1A is to help each player reach their own individual dreams and goals. I don't think we are at that point. Right now we are trying to make sure he makes his running times and remember what position he is playing and whether he has on a white shirt or a blue shirt. I don't think he is thinking anything else other than that."

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Cameron Johnson

Nassir Little

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