5-Star Maximo Adams Makes UNC Commitment Decision After Michael Malone Hired to Replace Hubert Davis

Despite the University of North Carolina men's basketball team's coaching change from Hubert Davis to Michael Malone, the Tar Heels are retaining one of their top recruits in the class of 2026.

Small forward Maximo Adams informed ESPN's Paul Biancardi on Saturday that he will honor his commitment and play at UNC next season.

The 247Sports composite rankings rate Adams as a 5-star recruit, the No. 21 overall player nationally and the No. 6 small forward in the 2026 recruiting class.

Coming off back-to-back first-round exits in the NCAA tournament, North Carolina decided to part ways with Davis after five years on the job.

The UNC administration then made the somewhat surprising decision to replace him with a longtime NBA coach in Malone.

While Malone was a collegiate assistant at Oakland, Providence and Manhattan, he had coached at the NBA level since 2001, serving as head coach of the Sacramento Kings from 2013 to 2015 and the Denver Nuggets from 2015 to 2025.

Malone boasts a career NBA head coaching record of 510-394 with six playoff appearances. That includes leading the Nuggets to an NBA championship in 2023.

That résumé was apparently impressive enough to convince Adams to remain onboard, which is massive given that the 6'7" wing is a versatile player who may be tasked with replacing much of the production lost by the departure of Caleb Wilson to the NBA.

While keeping Adams is the first major coup for Malone, there is still one big domino that has yet to fall.

The Tar Heels also have a commitment from 5-star guard Dylan Mingo, who 247Sports ranks as the No. 5 overall recruit in the 2026 class.

In what was a bit of good news on that front, Adam Zagoria of the New York Times reported this week that Mingo has not decommitted from North Carolina.

Had the Tar Heels lost Adams, it may have been a sign of things to come with regard to Mingo, but Adams' decision to stay is perhaps a sign that top-flight recruits still view North Carolina as a good situation.