UNC Basketball: Tar Heels walk-on receives scholarship
North Carolina senior walk-on given a scholarship for the 2016-17 season
Roy Williams and the University of North Carolina have extended a scholarship offer to senior walk-on Kanler Coker.
The 6-foot-4, 200-pound shooting guard began his career at North Carolina on the football team.
He was recruited out of high school as a quarterback in Larry Fedora’s first incoming recruiting class at UNC. He played two seasons with the football team, appearing in three games, until an elbow injury forced him to quit football.
With his football career in the rear view mirror, Coker decided to join the UNC basketball team.
Coker attended Flowery Branch High School where he was a multiple-sport athlete and a standout on the basketball team.
Since joining the UNC basketball team as a walk-on in 2015, Coker has appeared in 13 games. He’s played a total of 16 minutes, scoring two points and grabbing seven rebounds.
Though his contributions on the court have been limited, his coaching staff and teammates consider him a valuable part of the team both in practice and in the locker room.
Coker told Inside Carolina that his dedication and passion for the game and his team is one of the key factors in the coaching staff’s decision to award him a scholarship for his final season.
Walk-on Kanler Coker interviews Spenser Dalton with an apple core during UNC's open locker session @sjdalton24 pic.twitter.com/br7Sn0FAaF
— Ross Martin (@Boss_Martin247) April 3, 2016
Heading into the 2016-17 season, the Tar Heels again found themselves with an open scholarship that they were able to give out to a dedicated walk-on. Former UNC power forward Jackson Simmons was also the recipient of an extra scholarship in recent years.
In his final season at North Carolina, Coker will look to help the Tar Heels in any way that he can. With the majority of their team still intact from a season ago, they’ve have high expectations for themselves.
The Tar Heels begin the season at Tulane on November 11th and hope to finish it in Phoenix at the 2017 Final Four.
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