Justin Knox bolsters UNC paint presence

When Travis and David Wear decided to transfer from North Carolina within two months of the Tar Heels losing leading post scorers Deon Thompson and Ed Davis to graduation and the NBA draft, coach Roy Williams found himself desperately in need of frontcourt help for a team suddenly missing 68 percent of its low-post scoring.

Needing a player who could come in and play immediately, Williams’ options were limited by the NCAA’s transfer policy, which usually requires basketball players to sit out a season after transferring between two schools in the same division. Williams was further restrained by a lack of available recruits so late in the season.

But NCAA rules state that a player can receive a transfer waiver allowing him to play immediately if the athlete is transferring to a graduate program not offered by his previous school and the previous school gives its consent.

Enter Justin Knox, a 6-foot-9, 240-pound behemoth looking to leave Alabama after a junior season in which he averaged 6.3 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.

“There weren’t a heck of a lot of choices,” Williams said. “Guys like that don’t walk up and down the street in front of your door all the time.”

Knox had originally planned to transfer to the University of Alabama-Birmingham, but Alabama blocked the move because UAB is also in the University of Alabama System.

Instead, he took classes this past summer in order to enroll in the sports administration graduate program at UNC for the fall semester.

“After I transferred from Alabama, North Carolina wasn’t even a thought to me,” Knox said. “I guess everything happens for a reason. With the Wear twins transferring and that leaving a hole in the frontcourt there became an opportunity for me and I’m very grateful for that.”

Though he never imagined himself being in Chapel Hill, Knox is already fitting in with his new teammates. Though Knox did not accompany the team on its exhibition trip to the Bahamas, he played pickup with the rest of the Tar Heels during the summer.

“He’s funny, his locker’s right next to mine,” forward John Henson said. “He’s kind of quiet, but he’s starting to come out of his shell. He’s a cool dude.”

Knox will be one of just three players capable of lining up at the four and five positions, making him an extremely important cog in the rotation behind Tyler Zeller and Henson.

Neither Henson nor Zeller has ever shouldered the load of being a starter for an entire collegiate season, and each comes with a deficiency Knox is expected to help mitigate.

Though Henson has since put on 20 pounds during the offseason, the wiry sophomore often found himself relegated to playing on the perimeter last season after being forced out of the paint by some of the ACC’s bigger, stronger forwards.

Zeller has played well during his first two years at UNC, but has been beset by injuries and spent chunks of both seasons on the sidelines.

But where Henson lacks power and Zeller a consistent bill of health, Knox is strong and sturdy. The Tuscaloosa, Ala., native’s massive frame is more than big enough to handle the wear and tear of the ACC.

Perhaps more importantly, Knox has played in every one of Alabama’s 64 games the past two seasons.

“Rebounds, post defense, he’s got a nice back to the basket game—and that kind of surprised me,” Henson said. “I think he’s going to be in there just in the thick of things.”

If he isn’t, it’s going to be another long winter in Chapel Hill.