After picking against the Heels the last 2 games and getting burned each time, I started to wonder where I could have gone wrong. It occurred to me that the Heels, while young, have a fantastic team chemistry that is helping them on both sides of the ball. This team chemistry starts with David Noel, who has been a great leader so far this season.
The question I raise is why is Noel a great leader?
Unlike most players in Noel’s current position of leadership, Noel ultimately went from last on the bench to now being in a starring role. It’s critical for a leader such as Noel to be able to identify with what his followers are going through, and perhaps no player in the ACC can do that like Noel.
David Noel came to UNC on a football scholarship, yet loved basketball more, and chose to be a non-scholarship player on the basketball team. Noel paid his dues over the past few years, getting some minutes, but never being featured in an offense, or hardly being asked to shoot. Yet, coming into this season he watched as Felton, McCants, May, Williams, etc all leave, while he remained and now gets his shot to be a featured Tarheel.
Noel can look at a player like Byron Sanders, Wes Miller, or Quentin Thomas and tell them “wait your turn, and make the most of it”, and how can they deny it hasn’t worked for Noel? Noel can also identify with Tyler Hansbrough or Bobby Frasor and say “this is our team, for UNC to succeed, we have to succeed.”
The point is, David Noel can identify with each and every member of the North Carolina Tarheels, because his career as a Tarheel has been one where he has been a garbage minute player, a bench player, a key reserve, and now a starter and key player.
This team has succeeded under Noel’s leadership, but also has some great talent in Tyler Hansbrough and someone who has caught my eye the last few games, Bobby Frasor. Also, don’t forget about the ACC coach of the year this season, Roy Williams, who has already locked up this award in my eyes. While the Heels are a good team this year, they will still be inconsistent, as most young teams are, but fortunate for Roy Williams and the Heels they have a rock in David Noel that they can rely on.
