Dereck Lively has been in touch with North Carolina assistant coach Hubert Davis for many months. The next step in his Tar Heel recruitment was a call from head coach Roy Williams. That happened last Friday, and included a scholarship offer.
“He kind of was just talking and trying to start building a relationship between us and North Carolina,” said Lively, a junior big man at West Chester (Pa.) Westtown School. “It was good to finally speak to him and try to break that border so we can start to build that relationship.
“It was good to finally speak with Roy Williams over the phone but I am hoping that seeing them in person is coming soon as possible. It felt good to get an offer from North Carolina and it’s good motivation to keep me moving forward throughout the process.”
Lively, who is a self-reported 7-foot-1 and 220 pounds, has been a longtime follower of the college basketball bluebloods and hoped he would have the opportunity to consider the Tar Heels.
“They have always been a team that I have watched throughout the years and I have just known North Carolina will be one of the top schools throughout college basketball so it’s just been a thought in the back of my head of how it is one of the best programs so it’s definitely a consideration,” he said.
Lively has also received offers from Florida, Florida State, Georgetown, LSU, Maryland, Memphis, Miami, Ohio State, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Providence, SMU, Temple, UCLA, Washington, Western Kentucky and Xavier. He is receiving additional interest from programs including Auburn, Duke, Kentucky, Villanova, and Virginia.
"Recently I have been in contact with North Carolina, Duke, Virginia, Michigan, Florida State, Ohio State, Washington, Memphis and many others like Villanova, Kentucky, USC and Auburn. I have been in contact with many schools," he added.
"I will be looking for a college that uses their big and doesn't have their big just sitting in the paint, grabbing rebounds and kicking out. I will be looking for a school that utilizes their big and can use him to spread the floor, a lot of pick-and-pop, a lot of tap and dive, it's open on the court and not just have the rule that they're only allowed to sit in the paint."
He noted no set timeline for narrowing down his list or making a decision.
Lively is ranked the No. 46 overall prospect and the No. 8 center in the class by the 247Sports staff.
"I'm a great rim protector, I'm a great big for running the floor, I can set a screen, I can pick-and-pop, I can shoot the three, I'm good at foul shots, I have a great motor, I can always bring energy to the game and I just try to impact all aspect of the game," Lively said. “I'm just trying to expand my game throughout the three-point line and trying to be able to put the ball on the floor and trying to expand my game from a big man just sitting in the paint."
Evaluation: Dereck Lively is a very talented big man with high upside. He possesses terrific size for the position to go along with a long set of arms. Lively is a mobile big man with plenty of bounce, making him a highly effective rim runner in the open court. He possesses great hands and touch and coupled with his mobility and elevation, he is a terrific lob threat and rebounder in the paint. His offensive skillset is coming along and in the half court he is at his best as a pick and roll big man who can catch passes and finish above the rim but is also a capable post scorer. Defensively, he has high upside as a rim protector and post defender, especially as his frame continues filling out. Ultimately, Lively possesses terrific tools and has high upside with the best basketball ahead of him as he continues to mature physically and expand his game.
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February 16, 2021 at 11:18PM
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Dereck Lively Hoping for Opportunity to Visit with UNC - 247Sports
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