Gary Parrish

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Ty Lawson wore glasses Friday.

That has nothing to do with his injury, of course. But it provided something else to talk about besides his world famous big right toe, and for that, I am thankful. Now to the toe: Lawson basically said the same stuff, that he feels better, that it's coach's decision, that he'll know more after Friday's practice, blah, blah, blah.

My prediction: He'll be able to go Saturday against LSU.

And if that's the case, he'll start.

"If Ty can go, he probably will start," said UNC coach Roy Williams. "He deserves that."

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- I'm back at the Greensboro Coliseum for a day of interviews.

Ty Lawson's toe is expected to hold a press conference around 2:25 ET.

I'll update you, as needed.

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Just minutes after missing North Carolina's first-round win over Radford, Ty Lawson promised he'd be "ready" for Saturday's second-round game with LSU here at the Greensboro Coliseum.

"It's not painful anymore, just stiff," Lawson said when asked about his injured right toe. "I'm ready to play."

Lawson dressed but did not participate in Thursday's 101-58 win over Radford.

He has not played since a March 8 win over Duke.

GREENSBORO, N.C. --  I've received a few emails and texts from readers wanting to know if there's anything new with Ty Lawson and his big right toe. In short, there is not. Officially, North Carolina hasn't ruled out Lawson for today's game against Radford. But there is no indication whatsoever that he will play, and for that reason it'll be a shock if he's on the court.

My guess: He'll play Saturday.

But not today.

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Ty Lawson isn't expected to play in North Carolina's NCAA tournament opener.

"There's a huge, huge probability he will not play," coach Roy Williams said here Wednesday afternoon.

Lawson missed the ACC tournament with what is being described as a jammed or sprained big right toe. He said he went through about half of practice Wednesday morning, but it seems Williams either did not see what he wanted or does not think it's worth rushing Lawson back for Radford, because the odds of the ACC Player of the Year competing Thursday are unofficially slim-to-none.

If Lawson is out, Bobby Frasor will start in his place.

The Tar Heels are 1-1 without Lawson this season, 27-3 with him.

"If I don't play Thursday, I'm sure I'll be ready by Saturday," Lawson said. "When it comes down to it, I'm going to play."

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Roughly 25 hours from the NCAA tournament, and the big story is ... a toe.

Ty Lawson's big right toe, to be exact.

And the good news is that Lawson and his toe are here in Greensboro with me. Talk about right place and right time and all that. So what I'll do is spend the day talking to people about the toe, and I might even try to get a one-on-one with the toe, like a private sitdown where I can really ask the toe some tough questions and try to have a better understanding of its overall health and ability to deal with pain.

I'll let you know how it goes.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- The Senior Day festivities here at the Dean Smith Center just concluded.

Predictably, Tyler Hansbrough received the loudest ovation.

As for Ty Lawson, he jogged onto the floor about 15 minutes before tip-off to a huge round of applause.

If he doesn't play, I'll be shocked.

He's in the layup line right now.

Here's Thursday's Dear Gary ...

Dear Gary: If you had to tag-team wrestle the British Bulldogs in a steel cage match, would you rather have Sherron Collins or Ty Lawson on your team?
 
-- Dane

Collins, I think.

Because though the two are listed similarly in terms of height and weight, my guess is that Collins is a little stronger, and I'm putting a huge emphasis on strength given that this is a wrestling match and all. Plus, things could get out of hand; don't forget, it's a cage match. And if things do get out of hand, I want somebody on my side who is capable of getting out of hand right along with them, and who's better at that than the guy who once allegedly exposed himself to a female in an elevator?

Clearly, Sherron Collins will do anything to win.

Even pull his junk out.

So given a choice, I'm taking Collins, and the plan will be for us to wrestle until Markieff Morris comes from the back with his BB gun and pops one of the British Bulldogs while the referee isn't looking, at which point we make the pin and walk away champions. Should be simple, and I appreciate you giving me an opportunity to address this issue.

Tyler Hansbrough and Danny Green will finish their careers with a 4-0 record at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

They should thank Ty Lawson for making it possible.

In a classic example of what a fast and quick point guard can do to an opponent who isn't quite as fast or quick, Lawson spent the second half of Wednesday night's showdown slicing Duke's man-to-man defense to pieces while leading North Carolina to a 101-87 victory. He scored 21 of his 25 points in the final 17 minutes, and to understand the difference the junior made all you have to do is look at the box score.

It looks like this ...

UNC      44  57  101
Duke    52  35     87

You see that?

When Lawson was ineffective, Duke outscored UNC by eight.

When Lawson was effective, UNC outscored Duke by 22.

Trust me when I tell you that was not a coincidence, which is why it's fair to suggest that though Hansbrough is the star and face of North Carolina, Lawson might actually be the reason the Tar Heels win a national title, assuming they do win a national title. When he plays well, they're virtually unstoppable on offense, proof being how North Carolina became the first school to hang 100 on Duke in more than nine years.

And Duke is not a bad defensive team.

The Blue Devils actually entered with the third-most efficient defense in the nation, meaning they allow fewer points per 100 defensive possessions than everybody except Louisville and Memphis. But it was difficult to see that Wednesday night with Lawson running up and down the court, slicing through the lane, converting layups and leading North Carolina to a blowout win that placed Hansbrough and Green into rare company.

Thank-You cards are in order.

Here's Thursday's Dear Gary ...

Dear Gary: Ty Lawson is the best point guard in the nation. That is all. Carry on.
 
-- Nate

Anybody trying to argue anything against anybody related to UNC right now is probably in a losing battle. So I'll concede the point and just agree that Lawson is the best (pure) point guard in the nation, and that he's been fantastic. Consider: His number of points (from 12.7 per game to 16.1 per game) assists (from 5.2 per game to 6.9 per game) and steals (from 1.6 per game to 3.0 per game) are all up this season, as is his field goal percentage (from 51.5 percent to 55.4 percent) and 3-point percentage (from 36.1 percent to 54.5 percent). Plus, his turnovers are down (from 2.2 per game to 1.1 per game), which means Lawson's assist-to-turnover ratio is 6.1-to-1. That's amazing.

So I'm with you, Nate.

Lawson is the best.

That is all.

Carry on.

PS: If you're wondering why I added the word "pure" in front of point guard, it's because I'm not sure whether we're classifying Stephen Curry as a point guard, and I'm not putting any guard in front of him. Either way, I don't think anybody would call Curry a "pure" point guard, so I guess what I'm saying is that Curry is the best guard in the nation but Lawson is the best "pure" point guard. And now you may carry on.