4-star guard Derek Dixon eyes UNC as top contender after canceling Arizona visit 

North Carolina has become the top favorite to acquire Derek Dixon after the Gonzaga High School (D.C.) guard canceled his official visit to Arizona this weekend.

247Sports confirmed the reports on Thursday with the development happening just days after the four-star high school prospect made a trip to Chapel Hill and wore the Tar Heel threads in a photoshoot along with his family and coach Hubert Davis.

Derek Dixon poses with his family and UNC coach Hubert Davis (Image Source: @thederekdixon/Instagram)

The 6-foot-3 combo guard's visit took place at the same time that Harvard-Westlake School (California) four-star prep forward Nikolas Khamenia dropped by the six-time champions' campus.

Dixon, who is down four spots to No. 51 in the latest 247Sports' 2025 Composite Player Rankings, previously visited SEC school Vanderbilt at the end of August. Last July, he reportedly trimmed down his choices to six – UNC, Vanderbilt, Arizona, Virginia, Syracuse and Pittsburgh.

North Carolina will hope to secure Dixon and Khamenia to lure more 2025 prospects to sign with the program and an excellent showing in the 2024-25 college season would certainly boost its prospect-hunting chances.

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Derek Dixon makes Nike EYBL Spring All-Circuit first-team

Derek Dixon has proven to be a force to reckon with as far as 2025 prospects are concerned. Nike EYBL's The Circuit included the Team Takeover DC standout in its first-team list last July.

The talented guard posted impressive numbers in 14 games during his stint, tallying 15.4 points, 2.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. Dixon was on fire on 3-point distance as well, making 42.7% of his shots from deep. More importantly, he helped his team win 13 of 14 games during the season.

Cam Boozer of Nightrydas won the Most Valuable Player by averaging 24.7 ppg and 13.1 rpg on 59.4% shooting from the field. Will Riley (Offensive MVP), Kayden Mingo (Defensive MVP), Tyran Stokes (Underclass MVP) and Brandon Lee (Breakout MVP) took the other notable awards.

AJ Dybantsa also made the first team along with Boozer, Mingo, Stokes, Meleek Thomas, Will Riley, Caleb Wilson, Tounde Yessoufou, Caleb Wilson, Jalen Toombs and Darius Acuff.

Dixon also had a stint in the Peach Jam in Augusta, South Carolina, where he averaged 13.9 ppg, 3.4 apg and 2.1 rpg for Team Takeover.

North Carolina will need a combo guard like Dixon to fill up the void that RJ Davis would leave after this season. The Tar Heels remain a powerhouse team in the ACC in the 2024-25 college basketball season. However, they'll be challenged by a talent-laden Duke squad, which will parade five-star prospects Cooper Flagg, Khaman Maluach, Isaiah Evans and Kon Knueppel this year.

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