UNC Basketball: Biggest Things to Look Forward to in 2015-16

North Carolina won't play again for more than six months, but it's never too early to start thinking ahead during college basketball's long offseason. It's what the time off is meant for—to plan and project.

Coming off a 26-12 campaign that included a fifth-place finish in the ACC and a loss to Wisconsin in the Sweet 16, hopes are high that the 2015-16 season will see the Tar Heels make a serious push toward their first Final Four since 2009.

Various websites have UNC rated quite highly in their early rankings for next season, with rankings as high as first (CollegeBasketballTalk and SB Nation) and second (CBS) in the nation.

Some of those polls have since been updated to reflect NBA departures and incoming signees, while others have stood pat.

Besides a strong ranking, there are plenty of other things for UNC to look forward to in the 2015-16 season. Follow through as we list a few.

Plenty of Familiarity

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UNC's lofty preseason rankings were based heavily on the strength of the players coming back for 2015-16, which looked to include everyone of significance until junior J.P. Tokoto surprisingly chose to enter the NBA draft.

Tokoto had some strong words for coach Roy Williams' system when he declared. "I know I can be so much more, but I'm not sure that I’m pushed to be that much more," he told Yahoo Sports Adrian Wojnarowski.

Andrew Carter of The Charlotte Observer noted that Tokoto might have been the source of the chemistry issues that Marcus Paige alluded to late in the season.

"I'm not going to say Tokoto was a malcontent," Carter wrote. "That'd be too strong. But it's fair to question whether he ever really accepted his role on this team, and whether he caused the Tar Heels some chemistry issues."

Even with Tokoto gone, though, this upcoming UNC team is going to be loaded.

Outgoing seniors Desmond Hubert, Sasha Seymore and Jackson Simmons only scored 35 total points, and combined with Tokoto's loss of production, there's still over 88 percent of last season's scoring and 83 percent of the rebounding coming back.

UNC has only one player currently in its 2015 class, that being 3-star forward Luke Maye. Meanwhile, 5-star win targets Jaylen Brown and Brandon Ingram look to be headed elsewhere.

That means UNC's roster will be almost the same as it was when it walked off the court in Los Angeles in March, and with everyone already knowing each other, there will be little time needed to get acquainted.

Pain-Free Marcus Paige

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Though he rarely led on about it, guard Marcus Paige played much of last season in pain. A bout with plantar fasciitis plagued him at various times, but he also apparently had an ankle injury that was so bad it required surgery earlier this month.

Paige had arthroscopic surgery to remove bone spurs from his right ankle on April 20.

He is expected to be back with plenty of time to resume workouts for next season, and with that ailment cleared up, he can focus on having a monster final year with the Tar Heels.

Last season was a disappointment for Paige, a 6'1" guard who entered his junior campaign as a preseason All-American and an ACC Player of the Year favorite but ended up seeing his scoring and shooting numbers drop.

Paige finished the year averaging 14.1 points and 4.5 assists per game, and with 1,416 career points, he ranks 32nd in school history.

A Stronger Justin Jackson

Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press

UNC's 2014 recruits were a mixed bag, with only one of the three freshmen signed for this past season making a major contribution.

That was Justin Jackson, who started all but one game and finished fourth on the team in scoring at 10.7 points per game.

The 6'8" forward, who came in rated as the No. 9 player in the country by 247Sports, struggled for much of his first year to find a consistent jump shot. He made 47.7 percent of his field goals, but most of his makes came on drives to the basket, as he was just 30.4 percent from three-point range.

Jackson also lacked the strength and size to bang around inside, averaging fewer than four rebounds per game.

With a full offseason to spend in the weight room and become thicker and tougher, look for Jackson to be a far more physical presence in his sophomore season.

A Full-Strength Theo Pinson

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Forward/guard Theo Pinson came to UNC with a reputation of being a defensive nuisance, but also one who could provide some batches of quick offense off the bench thanks to his athleticism. That didn't get much of an opportunity to present itself in his freshman year, however, as a broken foot limited him to 24 games.

For the year, the 6'6" Pinson averaged 2.8 points, 3.0 rebounds and 0.6 steals in 12.5 minutes per game. He missed 14 of the final 19 games, including 10 straight from Jan. 24 to Feb. 28.

Pinson should be at 100 percent for next season, and with Tokoto gone, that will free up minutes for him to get more into the mix.

Some (Sort Of) New Uniforms

While North Carolina's roster won't look much different next season, its uniforms will. Well, sort of.

In actuality, the changes to the outfits will be more noticeable in other sports than in basketball because the main change was the addition of an argyle pattern that UNC's hoops uniforms have had since 1991.

This will now show up on the football collars and in other areas in other sports but remain in their normal place along the sides of the basketball tops and shorts.

UNC's basketball uniforms feature minor changes to fonts and piping in an effort to have a more streamlined look for every sport at the school.

Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.