The start of North Carolina State’s season has been a wild ride that has seen glimpses of everything from high-octane offensive explosions to nail-biters against lesser talented teams. The good news for fans of the Wolfpack is that help is starting to arrive.

The first to arrive was the 6’8 freshman, Ted Kapita. Kapita was was the #56 player in the country as a senior last year, and signed with the Wolfpack over the summer. Kapita is expected to be a contributor this season, however questions about eligibility caused him to miss the first game of the season while awaiting a decision from the NCAA.

In his first game of the season, Kapita scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds in 24 minutes of play. Unfortunately, Kapita would have to wait nearly two weeks to play again because he wasn’t allowed to travel with the team to the Virgin Islands for the Paradise Jam because his paperwork wasn’t updated for him to travel outside of the United States. The Wolfpack have played three games since returning from the Virgin Islands, and Kapita has been inconsistent in his performances. In his first game back with the team, he only played eight minutes while committing three fouls and not scoring a single point. Over his last two games he has scored 19 points while playing 22.5 minutes a night.

Also back after missing sometime due to a concussion is sophomore wing, Maverick Rowan. The 6’7 Rowan had 17 points and nine rebounds in the team’s season opener, but missed the next seven games thanks to his injury. Rowan is a high volume three-point shooter that shot 34% on over seven three-pointers attempted a games as a freshman last season. Rowan returned to action over the weekend against Tennessee State, and scored two points and grabbed two rebounds in 12 minutes of action. Rowan’s ability to stroke it from deep will go a long way towards spacing the court so defenses can’t pack the paint. As a team, the Wolfpack only shoot 35% from deep with only Terry Henderson, Torin Dorn, and Dennis Smith Jr. making at least 10 threes on the season.

Finally, the Wolfpack are eagerly awaiting the debut of Omer Yurtseven, who was suspended the first nine games of the season by the NCAA for playing professionally in Europe. Yurtseven will make his debut on December 15th, against Appalachian State. The 7′ center is widely regarded as a five-star talent and a possible one-and-done type player. He is an extremely smart player who has shown flashes of being the total package in a big man. Yurtseven is an excellent rebounder on both ends of the court and is quick to the ball. He has a polished post game that utilizes moves going over both shoulders. When the ball is not in his hands, Yurtseven moves with a purpose and stays active in the game by setting screens and cutting to the open area. Yurtseven has also flashed the ability to knockdown a jump shot all the way out to three-point range.

Going forward Mark Gottfried should have a full complement of players at his disposal and will be able to mix and match his lineups depending on the opponent. The added depth will also allow the Wolfpack to get some of their starters a breather during games. Henderson, Dorn, and Smith Jr. are playing at least 35 mpg each, but will more than likely see their minutes drop as Rowan reintegrates himself into the lineup. On paper, this is one of the top teams in the ACC when at full strength, and now that everyone is back it is up to the coaching staff to get them to gel together heading into March.