Kinston’s Dontrez Styles verbally commits to UNC basketball
The Kinston-Chapel Hill pipeline is alive and well.
North Carolina picked up a verbal commitment from familiar territory on Saturday when Kinston High School forward Dontrez Styles verbally committed to Roy Williams and the Tar Heels. Styles, a class of 2021 player, made the announcement on his IG Live Saturday afternoon.
Styles said his biggest motivation for choosing UNC was going to a school that was close to home.
“I wanted my family to come see me play,” Styles said, adding that UNC felt like the right fit.
He’s the first class of 2021 commitment for Williams. Styles (6-6, 205) is the No. 1 player in the state in the ‘21 class according to 247Sports. The four-star prospect is the No. 12 power forward in the country and the No. 57 ranked player overall.
Styles’ commitment reopens a relationship between Kinston players and UNC dating back to Jerry Stackhouse in the early 90s. Williams returned to Kinston to recruit Reggie Bullock in 2010. Williams missed out on Kinston’s Brandon Ingram in 2015, but came up big with Styles after making an official offer recently.
Styles also held offers from N.C. State, Maryland, Clemson, Texas A&M, Pittsburgh and a host of others. Last season he averaged 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Vikings, leading Kinston to a 26-4 overall record.
Of all the class of 2021 UNC targets, Styles is the only one from the state of North Carolina. The only other 2021 power forward with an offer is five-star Paolo Banchero (Seattle, WA) who took an official visit to Chapel Hill in September.
This story was originally published April 18, 2020 at 5:04 PM with the headline "Kinston’s Dontrez Styles verbally commits to UNC basketball."
