UNC Basketball: Latest on five-star target Armando Bacot

National recruiting analyst has high praise for five-star big man

With the 2018 recruiting cycle all but done for Roy Williams and the North Carolina Tar Heels, the program’s main focus has now shifted to the class of 2019.

One of the Tar Heels’ top prospects in the class is five-star big man Armando Bacot.

Bacot is a 6-foot-10, 240-pound center out of Trinity Episcopal School in Richmond, Virginia that has tremendous size, skill and athleticism. He’s a blue-collar worker in the paint and finishes well around the rim. He’s a great rebounder and good passer for his position.

And he’s been receiving a lot of attention from just about every big name program in the nation.

Perhaps the program most involved in his recruitment to this point is North Carolina. The Tar Heels have been recruiting Bacot for some time now, having offered him a scholarship back in August of 2017. Williams has made multiple trips to see him play over the course of the last six months. The talented big man responded in kind, making unofficial visits to Chapel Hill during the season to watch the Tar Heels play games against NC State and Duke.

Williams has clearly prioritized Bacot, attempting to fill a hole that’s been in the UNC front court since the departure of Kennedy Meeks, Isaiah Hicks and Tony Bradley in 2017. And to this point, his efforts appear to be paying off.

All 12 of the Crystal Ball predictions published by 247Sports belong to the Tar Heels. That includes the site’s Director of Basketball Scouting, Jerry Meyer, who made his prediction in late-March.

Bacot spent the weekend at the U-18 USA Basketball trials in Colorado Springs where he played particularly well, putting all of his abilities on display. Rivals’ recruiting analyst Corey Evans was on hand to watch Bacot and a number of other top prospects, and had high praise for the elite big man.

"“One of the top low-post bigs nationally, Armando Bacot continues to shine in Colorado Springs,” Evans said. “A super skilled and composed big man that can score with his back to the basket, Bacot displayed his entire arsenal Friday night, converting over either shoulder in the post and reaching the foul line a handful of times.In a guard’s game, Bacot is an egoless big man that goes about his time on the floor in a workman-like manner. He rebounded the ball at a high rate, especially on the defensive end, and showed Kevin Love abilities with his quick outlet passing skills. He hasn’t had the most productive of springs thus far but he has put a stop to it in Colorado and has a lot of momentum headed his way in creating a strong argument to make the final cuts.”"

Evans is describing the exact kind of player that Williams likes to have in his front court. It’s that type of post presence that the Tar Heels were missing last season when they got throttled in the NCAA Tournament by a bigger, stronger Texas A&M team.

Getting a commitment from Bacot would be huge for Williams and the Tar Heels, particularly in preparation for the graduation of seniors Luke Maye, Cameron Johnson and Kenny Williams. Not to mention, the likely departure of freshman phenom Nassir Little.

Bacot is the No. 22 overall prospect in the class of 2019 according to the 247Sports Composite. He’s the seventh-ranked center in the class and the No. 1 prospect in the state of Virginia.

Next: Sterling Manley poised for big season? The numbers say so.

Stick with Keeping It Heel for future updates on the Tar Heels’ recruitment of Bacot, and the rest of the class of 2019.