Analyst Brandon Walker recently poured water on North Carolina’s reported interest in joining the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Walker gave a surprising take on North Carolina looking into SEC membership while appearing on the Unnecessary Roughness podcast.
“Well, I’m going to say something I never thought I would say,and this is probably the only micro time in history you could possibly say it,” he began.
Walker then delivered his bombshell assessment of Hubert Davis’ squad:
“I don’t think North Carolina’s good enough in basketball to join the SEC right now. This is kind of a basketball league now. It’s a football league, but it’s also a basketball league, and it’s very competitive. I’m not sure that North Carolina’s got the chops to hang in the SEC right now.”
“I don’t think North Carolina is good enough in basketball to join the SEC”
Is Bill Belichick officially turning UNC into a football school? pic.twitter.com/DxXcpJacY7
— Unnecessary Roughness (@UnnecRoughness) July 26, 2025
Walker made this assessment during a tough stretch for North Carolina basketball. Since Hubert Davis took over as head coach, there have been questions about whether North Carolina basketball is living up to its history. The Tar Heels have fought for superiority instead of the traditional supremacy of years past.
Walker’s assessment comes at a time of uncertainty regarding conference realignment. While it is typically driven by football revenue, success for basketball teams has become an increasingly important factor to SEC schools. Not only has the conference invested in basketball facilities, they have also invested in coaching at all schools.
North Carolina Already Has SEC “Handshake Agreement” in Place for Future Move
Walker’s evaluation has added weight in light of the recent news about North Carolina’s conference possibility. Reportedly, North Carolina has a “handshake agreement” with the SEC to eventually join that conference whenever things allow, according to Scott Hamilton of The Post and Courier.
During his time on The Paul Finebaum Show, Hamilton discussed that North Carolina already had informal agreements with SEC leadership. Likewise, Virginia seems to have an informal agreement with the Big Ten regarding their own future conference declaration.
“I think it’s UNC No. 1, then I think it’s Florida State-Clemson, Clemson-Florida State No. 2 after that,” Hamilton explained regarding schools planning ACC departures.
A recent Inside Carolina report also discussed the Tar Heels actively pursing SEC membership as a strategic long-term goal. These occurrences come after the ACC formally settled lawsuits with Florida State and Clemson, which changed the financial structure for the distribution of funds for the league.
The settlement agreement also created a declining exit fee schedule, which may pave the way for future exits. The exit fee for schools willing to leave in 2025-26 will be $165 million, and then $147 million in 2026-2027.
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