UNC forward [autotag]Armando Bacot[/autotag] is coming off of a historical season in both the ACC and across all of college basketball. The Tar Heels’ forward now has a big decision to make regarding his future.
Does he go through the NBA Draft process to get feedback, stay in the draft or come back to college all together?
Bacot is currently slated to be picked end of the second round or undrafted in most mock drafts following the end of the season.
Bacot, who averaged 16.3 points, 13.1 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game this season, would play a huge role in college basketball next season if he were to return and also change the potential expectations for the Tar Heels.
247Sports national writer Eric Bossi looked at some of the top NBA Draft decisions that could shape the 2022-23 college basketball season.
Thanks to the inspired play of Armando Bacot and their guards trading hot and cold games throughout March and early April, North Carolina nearly won the 2022 National Championship. The NBA Draft decision of Caleb Love is certainly going to be an important one, but it says here that a return by Bacot to Chapel Hill could be far more important to the Heels chances in 2022-23.
Should Bacot return we are talking about a player that is likely to be the preseason ACC Player of the Year and a potential All-American. At this point he’s not likely to change much when it comes to how the NBA views him, but he could be a real test study in the value of NIL vs. going ahead and getting on to getting paid professional money. The Heels are legit title contenders with him back, possibly favorites with a return by Love as well.
During UNC’s NCAA Tournament run, Bacot made NCAA history with six straight double-doubles, including a 15-point and 15-rebound performance in the National Championship loss to Kansas.
His double-double in the title game gave him the ACC record for most double-doubles in a season (31) and tied David Robinson for the NCAA single-season record.
The Tar Heels already lose forward Brady Manek and the assumption is forward Dawson Garcia will also not return to the program after leaving mid-season to return home to deal with family illness. That leaves Justin McKoy as the only true front court option for the 2022-23 season.
The key dates for the NBA Draft process are as follows:
April 24 at 11:59 pm ET – Early entry deadline
May 16-22 – NBA Combine
June 1 – NCAA deadline for college players to withdraw and retain eligibility
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