NC State’s Zymicah Wilkins drops new photos on Instagram, showcasing a leaner and stronger physique

We’ve talked a ton about the new additions to NC State’s basketball roster, but there hasn’t been a ton of attention on redshirt freshman forward Zymicah Wilkins.

Wilkins was the prize piece of Kevin Keatts 2025 recruiting class before he was fired. He stuck around when Wade was hired, redshirted, started changing is body composition in the gym, and then decided to stick around again when Gainey was hired. As a recruit, he was listed as a center due to his 6’9, 260lb frame, but I don’t think that’s the case anymore.

Check out the images Wikins just posted on Instagram.

 

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A post shared by Zymicah Wilkins (@rockstarmikey_)

He looks more lean, more cut (probably down 25lbs?), and he’s not practicing post moves. He’s working on his perimeter game.

Think about it this way, prior to the work he’s been putting in to reconstruct his body, Wilkins was still a sought-after player. Coming out of HS he was a 4-star who was offered by Michigan, Clemson, Illinois, Georgia, LSU, and many more.

If you want some context Wilkins was the 3rd-ranked player in NC and the 78th best player in the nation coming out of Christ School. Meanwhile, Pack fans were really excited about last year’s top recruit (who has since left via the portal), Cole Cloer. Cloer was the 93rd-best player in the 2026 class. And this year’s PG commit, Kingston Whitty, is ranked 208th on 247’s national rankings.

What I’m saying here is that, if we had landed Zymicah Wilkins this year, he’d be the crown jewel of this class. And we’d be talking about him in a different light. And those rankings were before he spent an entire year in a college program, competing against upper-class talent like Darrion Williams last year, and another off-season of changing his body.

Wilkins is being overlooked for sure, but where does he fit, and what does the staff have planned for him?

I don’t think anyone knows exactly with Gainey being in his first year, but we do know that Will Wade’s staff told us they were planning on retaining Wilkins this coming season (and that was the day after they lost to Texas in the NCAA Tournament). So the staff that watched him every day all season long wanted him back and planned to use them in their rotation the coming year.

All of these are hints that tell us that we’re probably discounting Zymicah Wilkins value a little bit as we talk about what we think this year’s roster might look like.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see him become a rotation piece at the 4 behind Eemeli Yalaho, but that might give you some overlap as they seem to profile similarly. Neither are rim protectors, and both are 6’8/6’9 range. Is Wilkins going to be showcasing a more perimeter-oriented game, or will he do what he did in HS and play more on the blocks?

We’re interested to see what Mikey can bring to the table and are expecting Wolfpack Nation to be pleasantly surprised at his new look game.