Roy Williams lands his next 'stud' point guard

Mark Armstrong Image
Friday, August 11, 2017
(photo credit: 247Sports)
Jeremiah Francis
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CHAPEL HILL, North Carolina (WTVD) -- Generally speaking - Roy Williams' UNC teams go as their point guard goes.

Oftentimes, that means going all the way. Raymond Felton in 2005, Ty Lawson in 2009, Joel Berry in 2017 and yeah, let's include Kendall Marshall circa 2012 here too.

The next man in line appears to be Ohio star Jeremiah Francis. The top player in the Buckeye State in the class of 2019 announced his commitment to Carolina via Twitter on Friday:

I spoke with Francis' high school coach, Erick Krueger about Francis. The first word out of his mouth? "Stud."

Krueger was effusive, detailing Francis' speed with the ball in his hands, his "relentless" ability to get into the lane and either score or distribute the ball.

"A true leader," Krueger said, high praise for a kid who just finished his sophomore season. Carolina coaches frequently likened Francis to Ty Lawson during his recruitment, and you know they likely don't throw that comparison around lightly. At 6'3 and nearly 200 pounds, if he's anything like the 5'11 Lawson, Heels fans are in for a treat.

Francis averaged just under 16 points per game last year playing alongside current Tar Heel big man Sterling Manley. His dad, Jerry, scored almost 1,500 points in four years at Ohio State in the 80s and later became a longtime D1 assistant coach.

Here's a look at Francis in action: