Wayne Ellington News

North Carolina coach Roy Williams needed to replace four starters from last season's national championship team - something that has been obvious so far.

The North Carolina Tar Heels and Deon Thompson will be playing at Madison Square Garden Thursday night.

North Carolina is undefeated through three games, but the defending national champions know they must improve on their last contest when they face a ranked opponent for the first time this season.

Once a rookie is drafted, he must participate in preseason workouts and is generally expected to fade into obscurity on the bench during the regular season.

Roy Williams had promised there would be times when his North Carolina team looked ready to make a serious run at defending the national championship.

Marcus Ginyard went from being the do-everything leader on a Final Four team at North Carolina to sitting out with an injury the next season while his teammates won a national championship without him.

Four-time All-America Tyler Hansbrough is gone, as are Ty Lawson, last season's ACC Player of the Year, and Wayne Ellington, the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player last spring.

The defending national champion North Carolina Tar Heels open the 2009-10 campaign against the Florida International Golden Panthers and new head coach Isiah Thomas in a Coaches vs.

The first coming of Larry Drew II hardly stirred any Roman Colosseum dust. He was a bit player on the largest stage, a point-guard understudy to the maddeningly unique Ty Lawson.

The jerseys of Donald Williams and Wayne Ellington will be added to the rafters.

Each week I'll talk about the sport I love, college basketball: &#8226 What does it say when North Carolina loses key players like Tyler Hansbrough, Wayne Ellington, Ty Lawson and Danny Green and still gets picked co-favorite in the ACC by the media.

MARCH 16: Trevor Booker #35 of the Clemson Tigers reacts in the first half against the North Carolina Tar Heels during the final of the 2008 Men's ACC Basketball Tournament at Bobcats Arena on March 16, 2008 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

For the past four years, Roy Williams had the security of knowing Tyler Hansbrough would be there to take a big shot or grab the rebound that would start North Carolina's transition attack.

" The last time Marcus Ginyard suited up in a North Carolina uniform, the senior wing was a hobbled and heavy shell of himself against Boston College last January.

Speculation about North Carolina reserves Ed Davis and Larry Drew II began as soon as the Tar Heels cut down the nets as champions of the NCAA tournament at Ford Field in Detroit.

Dreams usually end in fairly tales when the clock strikes midnight. In college basketball, they begin.

Roy Williams can't escape Dean Smith's presence. The legend's name is on the building.

As a reminder, incoming freshmen have been excluded from this series. - Top NBA Draft Prospects in the Big Ten, Part One , Part Two , Part Three - Top NBA Draft Prospects in the Big 12, Part One , Part Two , Part Three - Top NBA Draft Prospects in the Pac-10 Part One , Part Two - Top NBA Draft Prospects in the SEC Part One , Part Two , Part Three , ...

North Carolina lost a lot of talent from the team that won last season's national championship, from a four-year star who was the program's all-time leading scorer and rebounder to a couple of underclassmen-turned-NBA rookies.

One Fantastic Ride, the behind-the-scenes portrait of the unforgettable journey to the 2009 basketball national championship has finally become available for Tar Heel fans.