UNC Basketball: Two Tar Heels named to preseason watch list

Two more UNC Basketball players were named to a watch list on Friday just a few weeks before the start of the 2020-21 season

With just three weeks until the start of what will be a very interesting 2020-21 college basketball season, the award watch lists are starting to roll out. After UNC Basketball forward Garrison Brooks earned a spot on the Malone Award Watch List on Thursday, two of his fellow teammates in the front court picked up some recognition on Friday.

Both sophomore Armando Bacot and freshman Walker Kessler earned recognition by being named to the 2021 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award. The duo were two of 20 players to make the preseason watch list which is awarded to the top center in all of college basketball.

The list of 20 was released on Friday as the position award lists have wrapped up. In all, the Tar Heels had three players named to lists, all in their front court.

Bacot is entering his second season with the Tar Heels after a freshman year that saw him improve as it went on. He finished this first season in Chapel Hill averaging 9.6 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game while shooting 46 percent from the field.

Playing alongside Brooks, Bacot helped give UNC a dominant rebounding duo in the paint and that should continue into this season.

One player that should have a huge impact right away is the freshman Kessler. The Georgia native stands at 7-foot-1 but is very versatile for his size. The five-star recruit can not only be a legit rebounder but he’s got the ability to score from almost anywhere on the court. UNC’s bigs should be a huge factor next season.

The award watch list currently sits at 20 and will be cut down to 10 in February before four finalists later in the year.

For more on the UNC Basketball program, please check back with Keeping it Heel.