Past Tar Heel Greats Helping Henri Veesaar Excel In Present

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. —Henri Veesaar pledged his commitment to UNC in April from the transfer portal, aiming to cement himself as the next great Tar Heel big man.

“I knew they have had a whole bunch of players that have gotten to the NBA and they have just had a great culture of winning and that was a big part,” Veesaar said on Monday night during his appearance on Hubert Davis’ radio show. 

What surprised Veesaar upon his arrival in Chapel Hill, however, was the family-oriented structure of the North Carolina program.

“Over the summer, Tyler Zeller was always with us, giving us all the knowledge that we could have had, and just using that for somebody who’s in college, it’s so useful,” Veesaar said. 

Time spent with former players like Zeller, along with current Tar Heel assistant coach Sean May, has helped Veesaar thrive in a much larger role in Chapel Hill than the one he experienced in his first two seasons at Arizona.

The seven-footer has recorded the first five double-doubles of his college career through his first 10 games as a Tar Heel, averaging 16 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. Last season at Arizona, Veesaar averaged 9.4 points and five rebounds, making just five starts in 37 appearances.

“He has the pro knowledge of how he had to do stuff in the NBA, his footwork and just the little details that he’s learned over the years and how to do them differently,” Veesaar said of Zeller. “Just being able to pick their minds of how to do that stuff helps us improve a lot.”

Last season, UNC finished with an average rebounding margin of plus-2.9, good for 98th nationally. This season, Veesaar has helped the Tar Heels out-rebound opponents by an average of 9.1 boards per game, a jump of 65 spots from a year ago.

“Last year, I was just trying to box out my guy and not let my big guy get the rebound,” Veesaar said. “I was kind of happy with that and that being my role, but this year, big (Sean) May made a big emphasis on making the contact first and going to get the rebound.”

May, the 2005 Final Four Most Outstanding Player, averaged a double-double in his three seasons at UNC and has overseen the program’s big men since joining Hubert Davis’ staff in 2021.

“Last year I did a poor job of letting people go under screens,” Veesaar said. “They never said it was my fault…big May says it’s my fault every time they go under. Being able to set the screen flat and kind of positioning my back to the baseline rather than the sideline has helped me a lot.” 

The resurrection of the North Carolina frontcourt this season — led by Veesaar and projected-lottery pick Caleb Wilson — have the Tar Heels off to their best ten-game start since the 2017-18 season. While frontcourt depth remains a concern, the imminent return of Seth Trimble affords UNC the flexibility of playing smaller lineups, leaning on Veesaar as the anchor in the middle.