Lucas: Love Has History With Tar Heels

By Adam Lucas

When Carolina defeated Illinois in St. Louis in the 2005 national championship game, they did so in front of a mostly hostile crowd less than three hours from the Illini's campus.

But someone else in attendance that Monday night at the then-Edward Jones Dome came away impressed. At least, he thinks he was.

"I was at that game," freshman point guard Caleb Love says. "My dad took me."

Love, a St. Louis native who was just three and a half years old, doesn't remember any details of the game, when Raymond Felton put on display the quintessential way to play point guard for Roy Williams. Fortunately, Love's father, Dennis, gave the youngster plenty of background on the Tar Heels.

"He told me the greatest player to ever play the game played there," Love says. "He said, 'If you want to get to that point, you're going to have to put in the work. You'll have to lock in.'"

The game was an important moment in program history for more than just the opportunity to cut down the nets. In addition to Love, two other future Carolina national champions—Bobby Frasor and Tyler Hansbrough—were in the crowd of 47,262.

Frasor and Hansbrough eventually won their own Tar Heel national titles in 2009. Love wants to make the group a trio. Hansbrough, the last Tar Heel from the state of Missouri, practiced with Carolina this week. Love, who also played pre-quarantine pickup against the Poplar Bluff native, is proud of his St. Louis roots.

"St. Louis is tough, grimy basketball," he says. "If you come into the gym with a nice ball, it's not going to work because they're going to beat you up. Me being from St. Louis helped me get that competitive nature that my mom and dad preached. Having that dog in me, I think I've always had that."

You might remember that fellow freshman RJ Davis also talked about a dog mentality, making the duo a formidable—and very competitive—backcourt pairing. Davis spent the summer watching film of Marcus Paige and Joel Berry to learn how similar guards could operate together for Carolina, and Love also identifies those two players as influential.

"I liked Joel Berry's mindset and how he approached the game, and his moxie," Love says. "Another point guard that I liked was Marcus Paige. I liked his game a lot. He came with it every game. His competitive nature was there."

Love perhaps is not the most loquacious of this year's Carolina freshmen. Day'Ron Sharpe might be more likely to provide a running commentary on the court. But there's very little doubt that Love is willing to speak up when pushed, and like Berry, he's flashed an ability to raise his game when challenged.

Growing up in St. Louis, Love wasn't sure if he was a shooting guard or a point guard. The ability to impact the game with more than just points eventually made lead guard his natural position.

"I knew if I was a point guard I could do a whole lot to impact the game," he says. "I could impact the game in so many ways, on the offensive end or defensive end or being that leader for my team. I took the approach that I would be a leader for my team."

He also did his research on what it takes to be a leader in Williams' program. Before ever arriving in Chapel Hill this summer, he talked with Coby White—a frequent practice participant in the opening weeks of practice—to get advice about being a Tar Heel.

"Coby said it will be tough," Love says. "But I'm going to be the leader of this team, and he said the team will go as I go. Coby said in the weight room with Jonas (Sahratian), do whatever he tells me to do and try to do it to my best. He told me not to slack off or take days off in the weight room, because that will hurt you."

Love is well aware he's following some decorated Carolina point guards, including Paige, Berry and Cole Anthony. That's part of what enabled the Tar Heels to win a heated recruiting battle that included overcoming some of Love's grassroots basketball ties to Duke (although he pointedly clarifies the Blue Devils were never his "dream school," as has been erroneously reported).

In the end, the way Love wants to play and the way Williams wants his point guards to play were a perfect match.

"I like how Coach Williams lets his point guards freelance," Love says. "He lets you be as long as you're doing the right things and you're playing hard on defense."

Oh—and pushing the ball up the court relentlessly. Love smiles when asked the toughest adjustment to college basketball. Don't expect to see him leisurely bring the ball up court at any point during the 2020-21 season.

"The toughest part is running up and down the court so fast," he says. "In high school, I could walk the ball up. (Williams) hates when I walk the ball up. He yelled at me, stopped everything and said don't ever do that again. So I'm going to try not to do that again."

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