Starting Five: UNC Attacking 2018

North Carolina is going hard after local talent from the class of 2018. Plus the rise of Charles O'Bannon and the standouts from a weekend spent in St. Louis.

Roy Williams and his staff at North Carolina are making it clear that they aren't going to play around with home state talent from the class of 2018. Already the owners of a commitment from Concord (N.C.) High do-it-all guard Rechon Black, who ranks No. 14 nationally in the sophomore class, the Tar Heels have identified two other locals they want.

UNC assistant Steve Robinson was on hand Friday to watch four-star point guard Devon Dotson of Charlotte (N.C.) Providence Day help engineer a win over Concord (N.C.) Cannon School and four-star small forward Jairus Hamilton. This was shortly after Williams had been out to see each play.

Saturday, both Dotson and Hamilton were on hand for North Carolina's win over Boston College. After the game, each received a scholarship offer from Williams. Dotson adds a Heels offer to others from Wake Forest -- head coach Danny Manning watched him and Hamilton as well on Friday -- Tennessee, Georgia and Clemson. Hamilton's offer gets added to others including Wake Forest, Virginia Tech and Tennessee.

There is still plenty of time for others to get involved, but as it stands, Rivals.com believes that the Heels will be very difficult to beat for both Dotson and Hamilton.

It isn't as if 6-foot-6 junior shooting guard Charles O'Bannon Jr. of Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman has a low ranking. Currently sitting at No. 44 nationally, O'Bannon is regarded as one of the top scorers in the class of 2017. But, he's going to be on the rise in the next update and based on his play this winter, he's built a strong case for elevation to five-star status.

He's got great size for his position, he shoots it well from deep, he can create shots off the dribble and he's unfazed when facing strong competition. He's like a robot trained to score the ball.

College programs have certainly taken notice. Certainly UCLA, where his father won a national championship in 1995, has offered and so have others like UNLV, N.C. State, California, Washington, Kansas and USC.

Another who has offered is Texas. Under Shaka Smart, Texas has made O'Bannon a priority and the Longhorns figure to be prominent in his recruitment. Evidence of that is the unofficial visit that O'Bannon took to Austin over the weekend.

The Eastern side of the state of Missouri doesn't produce big-timers every year, but it has been consistent going back to Larry Hughes in the class of 1996. Since Hughes, David Lee, Tyler Hansbrough, Otto Porter, Ben McLemore, Bradley Beal and 2016's Jayson Tatum have been stars who have developed on that side of the state.

After getting a first hand look at him over the weekend, 2019 shooting guard Marcedus Leech looks like he could have a chance to be the next national level prospect from the area.

A 6-foot-5 freshman at Poplar Bluff (Mo.) High (where Hansbrough went), Leech went for 26 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in a win over St. Charles (Mo.) High on Saturday night.

An explosive athlete with tremendous quickness, Leech made one good decision after another with the ball in his hands. He navigated the high ball screen like a veteran, delivering crisp passes to teammates in scoring position. Most of all, he played with a tremendous motor and big-time effort.

Obviously, Leech is still too young to put huge expectations on and he will have to continue to develop. However, he does look to have big-time potential and has a chance to be that next big name from Missouri. Missouri, Vanderbilt, New Mexico State and Jacksonville State have made early offers while Kansas and Arkansas have both reached out.

Just last week, class of 2018 point guard Courtney Ramey was elevated from three- to four-star status. Friday night, the Webster Groves (Mo.) High proved that move to be a wise one with his play in front of Rivals.com during a win over St. Louis (Mo.) University High.

Six-foot-3 with long arms and a terrific first step, Ramey is a high-energy ball-handler who puts pressure on defenders because of his ability to touch the paint off the dribble and create for others as a passer. He's skinny, but Ramey showed no lack of toughness and he also looks like he's put in some heavy lifting on his jump-shooting, burying some confident-looking pull-up three-pointers.

Ramey also looks to have some gamer in him. The crowd for Webster Groves/SLUH was raucous to say the least and he seemed to be feeding off of the energy in the building. He finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds.

Missouri, Kansas State, Iowa, Illinois, Saint Louis, Creighton, Ole Miss, Rhode Island and Jacksonville State have offered while Purdue, Texas, Kansas, Arkansas and Marquette are all evaluating closely.

On Friday and Saturday in St. Louis, Rivals.com had a chance to bounce around several high school games. Leech and Ramey have already been mentioned, but there were some other players that deserve mention.

Iowa-bound four-star senior power forward Tyler Cook continued a strong senior year. During a Saturday win over SLUH in front of a sold out gym, Cook took over for St. Louis (Mo.) Chaminade in the first half while Duke bound five-star wing Jayson Tatum struggled to find his shot and picked up three early fouls. Cook competed on the glass, exploded for dunks in traffic and set a physical tone on the interior. Much of his current ranking of No. 81 in the class of 2016 has been based upon potential and he's realized it. The ability to make jumpers from 12 to 15 feet has been huge for him.

It wasn't a vintage performance for Tatum. He never got his jump shot rolling and the three first half fouls really limited him. But, it was good to see him trust his teammates to make plays rather than try to force the issue. Sometimes star players have trouble accepting that it isn't going to be all about them in "off" games, but Tatum was a willing passer and did a great job moving the ball.

Led by Kansas State-bound four-star wing Xavier Sneed, Florissant (Mo.) Hazelwood Central fell to St. Louis (Mo.) Miller Career Academy in the title game of the Ameritime Classic on Friday night. Sneed looks to have grown to a legitimate 6-foot-6 and has started to fill out nicely. The explosive athlete who ranks No. 92 in the class of 2016 also looked to be an improved jump shooter. Unfortunately, most of his production came after his team was down double digits in the fourth quarter.

Another freshman of note from the trip was 5-foot-8 point guard Cameron Teson of St. Charles (Mo.) High. His older brother Casey is a freshman at Eastern Illinois and Cameron looks like a D1 player as well. He can shoot with some range but most impressive was his skill with the ball in his hand.

Class of 2017 Brandon McKissic holds an offer from Missouri State and interest from Saint Louis and much of the Missouri Valley. The SLUH guard should add many more this spring when he hits the Nike EYBL with the St. Louis Eagles. A sturdy 6-foot-1, McKissic plays off the ball for SLUH but looks like a legit point guard prospect. He can make shots, has a good handle and the three-star plays with poise.

Finally, a blowout win meant 2018 shooting guard Torrence Watson of Creve Coure (Mo.) Whitfield didn't have to do much. At around 6-foot-4, he's a wiry athlete who has a good first step and appears to be a good passer.