The preseason hype for UNC basketball center [autotag]Armando Bacot[/autotag] continues to pick up and everyone is saying the same thing — he’s good enough to be the National Player of the Year.
Bacot was named the Preseason ACC Player of the Year and All-ACC First Team following the ACC’s Media Days.
The 6-foot-10 forward has also been a consistent selection as a First-Team All-American selection heading into the season.
On Friday, he was the choice of Rivals National Recruiting Director Rob Cassidy to be the National Player of the Year.
“The easy pick is Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe, but easy is never fun. Let’s instead go in a different direction and discuss the possibility of Armando Bacot. Nobody finished the season hotter than Bacot, who averaged 16 points and 13 rebounds per game on his way to leading North Carolina to the national title game. The Naismith Award oftentimes goes to the best player on the best team, and Bacot seems likely to fill that bill as the top-ranked Tar Heels figure to be a juggernaut this year. The UNC senior should be overflowing with confidence based on how last season ended, so I expect a dominant start out of the Virginia native.”
Bacot returns this season after having a record-setting campaign as a junior. He averaged 16.3 points and 13.1 rebounds per game last season and became the first player in NCAA Tournament history with six double-doubles in one NCAA Tournament as he averaged 15.3 points and 16.5 rebounds en route to a National Championship runner-up appearance.
He also set the ACC record for double-doubles in a single season (31) and tied the NCAA record that David Robinson set in 1985-86.
On Friday, Bacot was also named favorite to win ACC Player of the Year by ESPN.
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