By The Tobacco Road Scribe
Chapel Hill, NC – Jarin Stevenson has already learned how quickly a college basketball team can need something different from him. A year after returning home to play for North Carolina, the former Seaforth High School standout is preparing for another adjustment: a new coach, 11 new teammates and a senior season in which his responsibilities could range from guarding multiple positions to helping younger players find their footing.
At Thursday’s preseason press conference, Stevenson described the role Michael Malone outlined when they discussed his return. Malone sees possibilities for him “one through five,” Stevenson said, with a particular emphasis on defensive versatility, three-point shooting and creating opportunities for teammates. Stevenson called the idea a “Swiss Army knife” role. Just as significant, he said, is the less visible work of helping a new group trust and communicate with one another.
That is a broad job description for a player who said he is naturally shy and reserved. It is also a fitting one for a 6-foot-10 forward who spent last season moving around the frontcourt and at times playing small forward. The question as practices move toward October exhibitions is how much of that versatility will become a consistent part of Malone’s first North Carolina team.
UNC’s announced roster has five returning players and 11 newcomers. Stevenson is one of three returning seniors, along with Jaydon Young and Evan Smith. Last season’s team finished 24-9, tied for fourth in the Atlantic Coast Conference and entered the NCAA tournament as a No. 6 seed. This season, continuity will have to be built within a new coaching staff and a lineup that has yet to play a game together.
A role without a fixed position
Stevenson’s description of Malone’s pitch was striking for its range. He said his coach sees him defending across the lineup, making three-pointers, spacing the court and creating chances for the offense. “He sees a lot of things for me,” Stevenson said. That does not mean UNC has settled on using him as a point guard or center for long stretches. It means Stevenson expects his size and experience to give the coaching staff several ways to assemble its lineups and respond to matchups.
The distinction matters. A player can be capable of switching onto a smaller guard for a possession without being assigned to run the offense as a guard. He can help protect the rim in a smaller lineup without taking every minute at center. Stevenson’s account was a statement of intent and flexibility, not a promise of identical minutes at all five spots. His most concrete task may be defending the right opponent in the right possession while still giving UNC enough shooting and movement at the other end.
At 6 feet 10 inches and 220 pounds on UNC’s current roster, Stevenson has the height to help on the interior and the mobility to be considered for assignments away from the basket. His three-point shooting has also been part of his college résumé. Across 107 career games, UNC lists 89 made threes, 661 points and 52 starts, including 25 starts for Carolina last season and 27 over two seasons at Alabama. Those figures explain why Malone might see more than a conventional frontcourt reserve in him; they do not, by themselves, settle what his most effective position will be on this roster.
Stevenson said the offensive part of the assignment includes knocking down threes and creating chances for others. Both depend on the players around him. A defender who must respect his shot has a harder time crowding a driving lane. A forward who can move the ball promptly can turn a closeout into a better shot for a teammate. If the Tar Heels play faster, as Stevenson expects, they will need those decisions to come quickly. The court may look spacious on a practice diagram, but the value of spacing is measured when opponents must decide whom to leave and whom to follow.
There is also a balance between versatility and clarity. Stevenson has handled several roles before, and he did not suggest that a single position label was necessary for him to contribute. For Malone, the practical question will be which combinations allow Stevenson to defend aggressively without asking him to carry too many unrelated offensive responsibilities. For Stevenson, it will be finding a steady approach even as the lineup around him changes.
Confidence forged after an injury
Stevenson pointed to a stretch last winter as evidence that he could take on more. Freshman forward Caleb Wilson fractured his left hand in the first half of UNC’s Feb. 10 game at Miami, according to the university’s injury announcement. The absence changed the demands on the remaining frontcourt players. Stevenson said his increased time on the court, especially against different defensive assignments, strengthened his confidence.
“It really boosted my confidence,” he said of that period. He learned, he added, that he could guard different positions and “create havoc on the court.” He also recognized the scale of the responsibility left by Wilson’s injury. His response was to try to help UNC win in whatever way the game required.
The numbers give that recollection context. UNC’s player biography credits Stevenson with career highs of 8.1 points and 4.4 rebounds a game in 2025-26. Over his final 10 games, he averaged 10.7 points and 6.4 rebounds while making 37 of 72 field-goal attempts, or 51.4%. He scored in double figures against Miami, Pitt and N.C. State, the first three-game double-figure streak of his college career, and led UNC in scoring in all three. He finished the season with 42 points and 31 rebounds across the last four games.
Those are meaningful signs of a player who became more involved. They require care in interpretation. A run of games during an injury reshuffle is a different setting from a full season in a newly assembled rotation. Increased minutes and touches can raise counting statistics. Defenses may also adjust after seeing a player in a larger role. Stevenson’s task now is to preserve the confidence he gained while adapting to a system that Malone and his staff are still teaching.
His best moments were not confined to the stretch after Wilson’s injury. Stevenson scored all 17 of his points after halftime in UNC’s 85-80 win at Virginia in January, helping drive a comeback on the road. UNC lists 19 points against Pitt as his season high and 10 rebounds against Clemson in March as his career best. At different points, Carolina needed scoring, rebounding and defense from the same forward.
That does not make him a finished product. It does make the request to become a defensive stopper and a reliable offensive connector more plausible than a preseason slogan alone would suggest. Stevenson has seen what happens when a team loses a major frontcourt piece and everyone else must absorb a portion of the work. This year, he is trying to be ready for that work from the opening weeks.
Leading without changing who he is
The new assignment extends beyond possessions and box scores. Stevenson said he has been helping freshmen and other newcomers adjust to college life, practices and the expectations of playing for North Carolina. With so many arrivals, teammates cannot assume they understand one another’s habits. A pass that comes automatically between longtime partners may take weeks to develop between players who met this summer. Defensive help requires an even faster agreement: both players must know where the other will be before the ball arrives.
Stevenson’s challenge is personal as well as tactical. Asked what has been difficult about becoming a leader, he said his personality can hold him back. “I’m a shy, kind of reserved type of guy usually,” he explained. He has been working to communicate more, teach by example and step outside that shell. He also described leadership as a two-way exchange: he can show a younger teammate something and learn from that teammate in return.
That answer offers a more precise picture than the usual demand that a senior simply become louder. Stevenson said leadership does not always require talking constantly. Demonstrating a detail in a drill, explaining a defensive rotation or helping a newcomer understand how to practice can be part of it. Still, a team with 11 new players needs some direction that can be heard in real time. Stevenson acknowledged that speaking up is an area in which he is actively trying to grow.
An account of UNC’s first official practice this week described communication as a point of emphasis for Malone and identified Stevenson, the most experienced returning player, as quiet by nature. Stevenson’s remarks two days later put his own words to that observation. He is not presenting himself as a naturally vocal captain. He is describing the deliberate work of becoming more audible and useful to a roster that needs shared habits.
There is no guarantee that one player can supply all of a team’s leadership. Young and Smith also return as seniors; other transfers have played at the college level elsewhere. Stevenson’s particular responsibility comes from knowing what it felt like to be at UNC last season and how its daily demands differ from the expectations a newcomer carries in. When he talks about helping others learn the “Carolina way,” he is describing the transfer of everyday standards as much as any set play.
Practices provide opportunities to do that teaching before it becomes urgent in a close game. Stevenson said he wants younger frontcourt players to get useful repetitions and to go over situations with them. In the ACC, where he expects to face experienced opponents, a missed rotation or uncertain assignment can decide a possession. Repeating the right response in September and October is a way to make it more instinctive in conference play.
Malone’s practices and a faster game
Malone brings an unusually prominent professional background to his first college season at UNC. The university introduced him in April after a long NBA coaching career that included guiding Denver to the 2023 championship. A résumé, however, tells little about what an individual player experiences in a new practice. Stevenson focused on the way the staff divides its work.
He said sessions include live play and teaching segments, with different coaches taking responsibility for portions of offensive and defensive instruction. That structure gives the players chances to compete and to pause over details. Stevenson has been on three college coaching staffs, including his two seasons at Alabama, his first year at UNC and now Malone’s staff. His description was measured: he said the practices are well organized and that coaches are teaching both ends of the floor.
Malone’s manner has made an impression, too. Stevenson called him fiery at times and said the coach encourages him to be more aggressive. Stevenson did not claim that his own temperament has changed overnight. He said he is finding ways to draw on competition, frustration when a practice group starts poorly, his family and the meaning of playing for Carolina. Sometimes, he said, getting “a little mad” helps him raise his level.
The staff tracks wins in practice competition, according to Stevenson. He said the record gives him and his teammates a reason to press for each possession. When his group has fallen behind, he has tried to bring more energy and urge it back into the session. He laughed off the idea that he has become especially demonstrative, saying he has not gotten “too, too crazy.” That restraint is consistent with the rest of his account: he is expanding his range of responses, not adopting a different personality for the cameras.
On the court, Stevenson expects UNC to play faster. He also emphasized that Malone is serious about defense. The staff is working on principles, rotations and players’ trust that teammates will be in the right places and communicate. The faster offense could create more chances to run after a stop; the defensive work must create those stops in the first place. Tempo alone says little about whether a team is efficient. A rushed shot or an uncovered opponent can undo whatever advantage speed creates.
For a versatile forward, those priorities are connected. If Stevenson can help switch an action, secure a rebound or force an awkward possession, he may help begin a transition opportunity. If he can then find space for a three or make the next pass, his offense can benefit from the defense he just played. That is one plausible path for the role he outlined. It remains an inference about how the pieces might fit, rather than an established pattern from Malone’s Tar Heels.
What the new teammates bring
Stevenson spoke enthusiastically about the players joining him. He described Sayon Keita as a rim protector who runs the floor, collects offensive rebounds and plays with a relentless motor. Keita, listed by UNC as a 7-foot-1 freshman from Mali who played in FC Barcelona’s youth program, adds a different kind of size to the frontcourt. Alex Samodurov, the 6-foot-11 junior from Greece whom Stevenson referred to by a nickname, drew praise for catch-and-shoot ability, passing and sound decisions. Cameron Fens, a 7-foot graduate transfer from South Dakota, is another newcomer in the group, although Stevenson did not offer a detailed assessment of him in the answer.
These are Stevenson’s preseason observations, not proof of how the new frontcourt will perform in ACC games. They do show some of the choices the staff will face. A lineup with a dedicated rim protector could free Stevenson for assignments farther from the basket. A lineup with multiple shooters might create more room for guards to drive. Pairing different big men changes rebounding coverage, passing angles and the demands placed on Stevenson defensively. The coaching staff will have to test those combinations rather than assume they will work because the skills look complementary on paper.
The backcourt has its own new mixture. Terrence Brown transferred from Utah, Matt Able arrived from N.C. State and Neo Avdalas came from Virginia Tech. Stevenson called them creators and said they have been making shots in practice. He described Brown as a player who gets to the basket, works in the midrange and finishes craftily. He praised Able’s shooting and ability to create, an easier skill to enjoy now that Able is a teammate instead of an opponent making threes against UNC.
Avdalas is listed at 6 feet 9 inches and gives the offense a tall ballhandler. Stevenson said Avdalas can see over the defense, draw defenders and find him for catch-and-shoot opportunities. That is one practical example of how Stevenson’s spacing role could work: as a creator attracts help, the forward must be ready to receive, decide and shoot. If defenders stay home instead, the ballhandler may have room to attack. Either outcome depends on credible shooting, sound decisions and timing developed over many repetitions.
Stevenson appeared pleased to discuss his teammates and said the group’s varied abilities make him eager for the season. The excitement is understandable, but chemistry cannot be declared in September. It must survive missed shots, lineup changes and the first difficult road stretches. He said the players mesh well so far. Exhibitions and early games will provide a more public test of that claim.
A homecoming that still matters
For Chatham County readers, Stevenson’s senior season carries another thread. He grew up in the area, starred at Seaforth in Pittsboro and spent two college seasons at Alabama before transferring to UNC. At Seaforth, he played for his father, Jarod Stevenson, the school’s head coach. UNC’s biography lists him as North Carolina’s 2023 Gatorade Player of the Year and says he averaged 21.8 points, 11.7 rebounds and 3.7 blocks as a junior, his final high school season. His mother, Nicole, played for the Tar Heels in the 1990s.
The Alabama years were substantial, not merely a detour before a homecoming. Stevenson played on the Crimson Tide’s first Final Four team as a freshman. In the Elite Eight win over Clemson in 2024, he made five three-pointers and scored 19 points. The following season, he started 22 games and scored a career-high 22 at Texas. Those experiences gave him NCAA tournament and Southeastern Conference exposure before he arrived in Chapel Hill.
Still, he said the last year back near home has meant a great deal personally. He has been able to see family members, including his grandmother, and to return to Seaforth to visit students and teachers. He said living away at Alabama gave him a different perspective on that access. Now he is trying to balance time with relatives against time for himself, a quieter detail of the adjustment that can be missed when a transfer is described solely as a basketball decision.
“It’s been huge,” Stevenson said of being home. For people who watched him at Seaforth, the connection makes UNC’s new season especially tangible. A local player is part of a nationally followed program while still close enough to walk back into his old school. His development under Malone will be measured in ACC possessions, but his comments suggested that the stability of home has also improved his day-to-day life.
His family background gives the story another layer without predetermining its outcome. His father played college basketball at Richmond and professionally abroad; his mother played at UNC under Sylvia Hatchell. Stevenson has his own path: a fast rise through Seaforth, two seasons in Tuscaloosa, a transfer home and now a coaching transition before his senior campaign. He spoke Thursday less about that pedigree than about practical questions of communication, defensive positioning and how to help a new teammate.
The first public tests ahead
UNC will soon move from private practices to games that spectators can evaluate. The three preseason dates announced by the university begin with Southern California at 7 p.m. Oct. 9 in Greensboro. Carolina then plays Indiana on Oct. 18 in Indianapolis and Charlotte on Oct. 27 in Chapel Hill. The regular season opens Nov. 2 at home against Western Carolina.
Those early dates will provide several specific things to watch. Where does Stevenson begin defensive possessions when UNC uses its larger frontcourt players? Does he remain on the floor when Malone wants more shooting? How often does he receive the ball from Avdalas or another creator in position to shoot immediately? Does the team communicate well enough to run after stops without losing rebounding responsibilities? And when a practice or exhibition turns against the Tar Heels, who takes charge of the next few possessions?
No single October game will answer everything. Exhibition opponents, experimental lineups and uneven early execution can distort first impressions. But each outing should make Malone’s broad description of Stevenson’s role more concrete. The question is not whether Stevenson can be called versatile. It is whether his versatility gives UNC reliable solutions when the matchups, pace and stakes change.
For Stevenson, the senior year he described Thursday joins two challenges that are easy to separate but harder to perform together. He wants to be the defender who can handle shifting assignments and the forward who stretches the floor. He also wants to be the experienced teammate who speaks up, teaches and earns trust while remaining himself. His words set a clear standard for what comes next; the season will supply the evidence.
Chatham County readers who followed him at Seaforth can watch the full press conference, check UNC’s schedule for game details and follow how his role develops from the Greensboro exhibition into ACC play. The first test is close. The longer story is whether a familiar local player can turn a wide-ranging preseason assignment into steady leadership for a new Carolina team.