UNC Basketball: Brice Johnson's Added Bulk Will Give Tar Heels an Extra Weapon

While the official height and weight measurements of North Carolina's basketball players is more of a symbolic event, one meant to signify the season is not far away, there was one figure from the recently released data that stood out more than others:

Brice Johnson's weight, which now comes in at 228 pounds. That's 41 more than he weighed two years ago as a true freshman, and by adding that bulk to his 6'9" frame, the junior forward is poised to have a much...bigger impact on the court for the Tar Heels this year.

While Johnson's weight change isn't the biggest on the team in terms of volume—sophomore Kennedy Meeks is now listed at 270 pounds, down almost 15 percent from the 317 he tipped the scales at when arriving at UNC last summer—it is the one that's expected to having the greatest effect on how Carolina plays.

A strong leaper who led the Heels in blocks as well as shooting percentage last season, Johnson averaged 10.3 points and 6.1 rebounds as the de facto sixth man. He expects to see more playing time in the frontcourt with the departure of James Michael McAdoo, but in order to succeed, he knew adding mass and strength was essential, even with him sliding from the 5 to the 4 alongside Meeks.

"I’m sick of playing people that are 280 and 290 (pounds) all the time," Johnson told Brett Friedlander of the Wilmington Star News. "I could hold my ground sometimes, but eventually when I get tired they’re going to bully me over. I’d rather play the four."

In many ways, the 4 requires more strength than being center because of the athleticism that many power forwards in today's college game possess. But he'll get assistance on the defensive end from the slimmed-down Meeks, who, with less girth, can move better laterally and help on the back end.

Year	Weight (lbs.)
2012-13	187
2013-14	210
2014-15	228

Getting bigger has been something Johnson has worked on since first joining the Tar Heels in 2012. In an October story on ESPN.com, which chronicled how he was on a six-meals-a-day regimen assigned by trainer Jonas Sahratian, Johnson told C.L. Brown that "sometimes I just don't feel like I'm hungry."

Though reluctant to eat so much, the plan helped him put on some weight for the 2013-14 season, and consequently Johnson's minutes and production nearly doubled. Now with even more mass and strength, he'll be more equipped to battle the guys he's matched up with in the post.

Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.