Sept. 8, 2004

by Adam Lucas, Tar Heel Monthly

Raymond Felton glances up at the television, where Argentina is in the process of handing the United States a defeat in the semifinals of the Olympic basketball tournament. The camera pans down the American bench, and Roy Williams's face fills the screen.

Felton is asked if he thinks Williams will return from Athens with some lessons for his team.

The point guard raises an eyebrow. "Nah, by now we know the lesson," he says. "You've got to defend. Got to get great shots and make them."

It's hard to argue with Felton's assessment, one that would likely bring a smile to Williams's travel-weary face. There has never been much doubt about the rising junior's abilities. As a passer, he is among the best to play at Carolina. As a ballhandler, he may be without peer in the conference.

Integrating those abilities into a team concept, however, has sometimes been rocky. Last year's Tar Heels had several players who were legitimate scoring options, including Felton, whose 11.5 points per game average was fourth on the team.

"I'm the type of player that likes to take big shots," Felton says. "I may not take many shots during the course of the game, but if it's a big shot, I want to take it."

The success rate on those shots has sometimes been streaky. If there's a knock on Felton's technical abilities, it's his shooting stroke. He doesn't have the pure form of Rashad McCants, and he made less than half his field goal attempts (42 percent) last season and just 31.2 percent of his three-point attempts.

To remedy that problem, he occasionally worked out three times per day this summer, shooting in the morning, hitting the weight room in the afternoon, and playing pickup or doing more shooting work in the evenings.

"I'm trying to get rid of the critics who say, `Can he really shoot?'" Felton says. "I'm not saying my jump shot was bad last year, but when you're not taking as many shots it's hard to get into a rhythm. I've been working on my shot so that this year when I get those shots, it's guaranteed that I'll knock it down."

He doesn't come out and say it, but there's also the possibility that by the time those late-game shots came last season, Felton was fatigued. He averaged 34.6 minutes per game, easily the most on the team and only a fraction behind Julius Hodge's ACC-leading 34.9 minutes per contest.

But help has arrived. Sophomore transfer Wes Miller is eligible and has the benefit of a full year of practice in the Roy Williams system. Freshman Quentin Thomas arrived at Carolina less heralded than classmate Marvin Williams, but has already generated some buzz among his teammates with his performances in workouts.

"I hate to leave the court," Felton says. "I want to play. But at the same time, I'm not selfish. If they can contribute, it will definitely help me to get a breather."

Despite the possibility of slightly fewer minutes, Felton's overall responsibilities will increase as a junior. It's no coincidence that when he spoke out more and ignited the defense, as he did against Georgia Tech in the Smith Center last season, the Tar Heels had some of their most complete performances.

He's focused on his defense in offseason pickup games that have included Shammond Williams and Ed Cota. "Playing against those guys, you have no choice but to improve," he says. "If you can stay in front of them, you shouldn't have any problem on the college level."

Adam Lucas is the publisher of Tar Heel Monthly and can be reached at alucas@tarheelmonthly.com. To subscribe to Tar Heel Monthly, click here.