Late Night with Roy reactions: new roles for Black, Robinson; Tar Heels impressed with all four freshmen

There's light at the end of the tunnel.  

With 40 days until tip-off, Late Night with Roy served up its usual mix of entertainment and hoops with the event signaling the start of basketball practice for North Carolina.

Actually, though, the Tar Heels held their first official practice on Thursday and things were a bit different than senior Brandon Robinson has experienced during his time in Chapel Hill.

With four freshmen and two graduate transfers, the Tar Heels are still getting to know one another.

"It was hectic," he said. "We’ve got a lot of new guys, so it’s kind of slow right now from what I’m used to … we have a lot of guys returning, but half our team is new so there’s a lot of teaching, a lot of slowing down."

That unfamiliarity also has a benefit, as the clean slate allows the newcomers to quickly find their niche within the roster.

Justin Pierce, who came to Carolina after spending his first three seasons at William & Mary, is pleased with the transition.

"It’s been really nice," he said. "I think having Christian (Keeling) as well is nice, and four other freshmen, so we have almost half a new team. The guys have welcomed me with open arms."

Analyzing the freshmen

Much of the focus going into the season is on McDonald's All-Americans Cole Anthony and Armando Bacot, but the Tar Heels aren't forgetting they've got two other talented freshmen guards in Anthony Harris and Jeremiah Francis.

Unprompted, Leaky Black, Pierce and Robinson all praised the duo.

"They work," Black said. "They love to work, especially Ant and Jeremiah. Those guys don’t get too much media as Cole and Armando obviously, but them guys love to work. I work out with them almost every day, and I love working out with them. They’re very mature."

Both Francis and Harris sat out the scrimmage portion of LNWR as a precaution after suffering serious knee injuries in high school. Both practiced on Thursday.

"I know Anthony and Jeremiah haven’t been 100 percent on the court with us right now, but we see those two working like crazy off the court," Pierce said.

Anthony and Bacot have wowed their new teammates, too.

"Cole … love playing with him; he’s a great talent," Robinson said. "Armando is very talented too, and I think he’s been very helpful to our team because he pushes the other bigs and helps them get better, so him and Garrison (Brooks) go at it every day in practice … I see them getting better each and every day, so I love that."

Pierce pointed out an area that Anthony might surprise.

"It’s really fun to play with an electric point guard like that," he said. "I think people don’t give him enough credit for how great of a passer he is. He can obviously light it up, he’s super-athletic but he’ll find guys and I think he’ll have a phenomenal year for us."

New roles

After performing well in his role last season, Robinson is likely to see significantly more than the 11.8 minutes he averaged last season.

Regardless of where his playing time ends up, he trusts Roy Williams to put him in the best position to help the team.

"I expect my role to change a lot, but I leave that up to coach," Robinson said. "I’m just trying to get better and not focused on that; just keep playing ball…"

Meanwhile, Black is finally at 100 percent after spraining his left ankle in January  at Georgia Tech.

Black said Friday night's scrimmage was the first time he's been at full-speed since suffering the injury, which nagged him even after he returned late last season. 

He believes his time away from the game helped improve his work ethic, which means at least two visits to the gym every day.

"Being away from the game like that, it really, it’s kind of shocking to be like, ‘Dang, the ball might stop one day, it’s going to stop one day,'" he said. "So while it’s here, you've got to take advantage of it so I’m just trying to stay in the gym as much as possible."

Dapper Roy

Williams broke out a pink blazer to go with his white slacks and Carolina Blue Jordan 1's.

Cole Anthony captured the look on his Instagram account.

The coach's getup prompted the quote of the night from World Cup champion and former Tar Heel Ashlyn Harris who said, "I don’t bat for your team but you still make me sweat."

Williams only turned it up from there, breaking out a dance.