Will Dontrez Styles be the next basketball prodigy from Kinston, N.C. to grace the court in Chapel Hill? Earlier this week, North Carolina extended an offer to Styles — a 6-foot-6 small forward in the 2021 class. Styles, a 4-star prospect, hails from talent-rich Kinston, which also produced former UNC stars Jerry Stackhouse and Reggie Bullock.
Blessed to receive an offer from the University of North Carolina 🐏 pic.twitter.com/1FAKEkLIFh
— Dontrez Styles (@D_styles4) March 23, 2020
More recently, Kinston product Brandon Ingram, a blue-chip recruit in the 2015 class, committed to Duke over UNC — among others. Now in his fourth NBA season, Ingram made his first All-Star appearance this year; a restricted free agent at the end of the season, Ingram and Zion Williamson, another former Duke wunderkind, have the makings of a star-studded duo in New Orleans for years to come. The Pelicans are +94 in 341 minutes with Zion and Ingram on the floor together this season.
Kinston was also home to other former Tobacco Road stars like Charles Shackleford (NC State) and Craig Dawson (Wake Forest).
Styles ranks as the No. 57 overall player in the 2021 class, per 247 Sports. He’s also considered the top prospect in the state of North Carolina for that class, too. Several other ACC programs have already offered Styles, including NC State, Clemson and Pittsburgh. Maryland is also in the mix.