North Carolina star point guard and National Player of the Year candidate Marcus Paige has suffered a broken right hand, the school announced on Wednesday evening. According to the release, Paige is expected to miss three to four weeks of play.
Paige, who is left-handed, averaged 14.1 points, 4.5 assists, and 2.9 rebounds last season for the Tar Heels, who come into this season with the No. 1 overall ranking.
While the Heels’ early season schedule is no grinder–though Paige will miss UNC’s trip to Northern Iowa, just 20 miles from his hometown of Marion–their test against Maryland is December 1, just four weeks away, to the day.
Head coach Roy Williams must now make a decision of how to proceed with a backcourt that lacks Paige’s talent, but not so much his experience. Both Joel Berry II and Nate Britt have manned the point at times for UNC, though it remains to be seen which one gets the nod from Williams.
“I hate it for Marcus,” Williams said in the release. “He’s such a wonderful young man – one of the most outstanding people I have been lucky to coach. I know he’ll handle this with the same level of maturity and responsibility that he does everything else.
“Our team will certainly be challenged in his absence. We will need everyone up and down the roster to step up their games and take care of each other and our team until he gets back.”
Perhaps the only benefit of such news for the Tar Heels will be the extra playing time given out to those behind Paige, and the possibility that they use the experience to better prepare themselves for crucial moments later in the season, should they be needed.
