The focus of the UNC basketball 2026 recruiting class is beginning to take shape and a big part of that is the recruitment of blue-chip point guard Daron Rippey Jr.
Rippey, a composite five-star prospect out of New Jersey, has been turning heads at the Adidas 3SSB Earn Your Stripes Invitational. Rippey got off to a great start when he scored 15 points and added eight assists in a game Thursday. He followed that with 21 points and five assists later that night.In the highlight clips from the tournament, Rippey shows it all – athleticism, basketball IQ, footwork, shooting, court vision, swagger – it’s clear he’s a showman and he loves putting his game on display for onlookers.“It’s a live period so I want to perform in front of the college coaches,” Rippey said to Sean Moran of 247Sports. “I came in here with the same mindset and make sure my teammates look good in front of these college coaches.”On Thursday it was assistant coach Sean May that was keeping both eyes on Rippey and in return Rippey is keeping both eyes on the Tar Heels during his recruitment. He’ll visit Chapel Hill in September and the UNC staff will try to lock him down during that visit. Rippey also has planned officials to Miami, Texas, Syracuse and Alabama,.
UNC is already heavily in the picture for five-star stretch forward Miikka Muurinen, who has family ties to the Tar Heels through his mother, and would easily have a top 10 recruiting class by locking down both players.
These are the sort of recruiting classes that Tar Heel fans expect and by adding two five-star prospects that are ranked among the top 20 national prospects, Hubert Davis will have the centerpieces to what could be a very special class.
