UNC Basketball: Tar Heels duo among NBA Draft stock risers

According to Yahoo! Sports, the NCAA Tournament has helped improve the NBA draft stock of two current UNC basketball standouts.

As the old saying goes, “Legends are born in March.”

The NCAA tournament is the biggest stage in college basketball. It provides student-athletes from all over the country the opportunity to showcase their talents against some of the sport’s best competition.

Additionally, it provides players the chance to elevate their game in hopes of drawing the attention of NBA executives throughout the league.

Each year, there are a handful of players who improve their draft stock due to strong performances during March Madness. This year is no exception, as there are a few players who should see their stock rise prior to the draft.

Krysten Peek of Yahoo! Sports recently wrote about seven players who she believes have helped their stock over the last few weeks. Two UNC basketball standouts were among the players Peek mentioned, and you probably won’t be too surprised which ones.

Peek tabbed Caleb Love and Armando Bacot as two players who have greatly impacted their NBA draft stock.

Let’s start with Love, who has had a fantastic NCAA tournament so far. Coming into his freshman year, Love was expected to be a “one-and-done” player, but elected to come back for his sophomore season to refine his game.

His recent stretch has shown that he has NBA-level potential, as his stock is increasing because of it. Here’s what Peek said about the sophomore guard:

"“North Carolina is headed to the Final Four for the 21st time in school history and the first under first-year head coach Hubert Davis. Love had one of the most impressive second halves in a win over UCLA to advance to the Elite Eight. He had 27 of his 30 points to close out the game and knocked down six 3-pointers. Love was a little hot and cold during the season, but is starting to show more consistency and more confidence with the ball in his hands as the tournament goes on. The intangibles are all there to be a strong, lead guard at the next level, but he has yet to put everything together for an entire season. This run in the tournament will help his draft stock, and he should start to get some early second-round looks.”"

Bacot has been stellar this season for the UNC basketball program. Although he hasn’t received as much recognition as he should, the junior big man has used the Tar Heels tournament run to help show everyone just how dominant of a player he is.

"“In the win over Saint Peter’s, Bacot set the ACC single-season record for most rebounds (468), passing Tim Duncan’s mark (457) in 1996-97. Bacot also tied the former Wake Forest star and NBA legend for most double-doubles in a season in ACC history. He has been tremendous in the paint this season and right up there with Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe in dominating the glass. He recorded a double-double in every game during the tournament and had his best performance against the Peacocks, grabbing 22 rebounds and netting 20 points. Bacot is making the right reads off the block and can bang down low in the post on defense. The 6-foot-10 forward is a main factor in North Carolina’s run to the Final Four, and he should get some second-round draft looks.”"

It’s great to see that both Love and Bacot are getting recognized for their strong play. Of course, Tar Heels fans don’t want to see either one depart for the NBA, but after a tournament run like this, the future plans could change for a handful of players on the current roster.

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