North Carolina’s pursuit of Ven-Allen Lubin is quickly taking the next step. The Vanderbilt forward has scheduled an official visit to start on Tuesday in Chapel Hill, sources have confirmed to Inside Carolina.
Lubin, a 6-8, 230-pound sophomore, emerged on the UNC radar last week, holding multiple conversations with the Tar Heel coaches. Bolstering the frontcourt is UNC’s key remaining offseason priority.
On May 1, the final open day of the transfer portal, Lubin opted to depart Vanderbilt. That came six weeks after Commodores head coach — and Tar Heel legend — Jerry Stackhouse was fired following a 9-23 season.
Lubin averaged 12.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks this past season, starting all 26 games in which he appeared.
He saved his best performances for last, with 25 points and 11 rebounds in an upset of Florida to close the regular season, and then 21 points, 10 rebounds, and three steals in an overtime loss to Arkansas in the SEC Tournament.
“Just try to be aggressive, crash the boards as hard as we can, try to track the ball and pursue the ball,” Lubin said after the win over Florida. “They are some big guys so we had to match their physicality and stay aggressive – that was really important for us to do.
“I’m always developing and working on (my perimeter shot) day in and day in and just continue to have the confidence that whenever I have the opportunity to shoot it, let it fly. I’m thankful for putting in the work and the time to knock it down and help my team.”
Lubin shot 33.3 percent for the season on three-point attempts, hitting multiple threes three times during the season, including 2-for-5 in that win over Florida and a 2-for-3 outing at Tennessee a month prior.
“We want to be able to take advantage of when they sag off him,” Stackhouse said during the season. “We run some plays for him because he shoots it at a good clip, but we don’t want to take away his other strengths as well.
He’s a really good post player, throwing it down there to him, and he’s a good passer as well when teams bring the double team. He has a knack for finishing, with really good touch around the basket…”
This is Lubin’s second time in the portal, as he started his college career at Notre Dame (on the same roster as eventual Tar Heel Cormac Ryan), posting 6.2 points and 4.4 rebounds with seven starts in 2022-23.
Lubin was ranked the No. 12 power forward nationally and No. 74 overall prospect by the 247Sports Composite in the 2022 class. He attended Orlando (Fla.) Christian Prep, the same school as former Tar Heel Nas Little.
