UNC Basketball: Tar Heels transfer target withdraws from NBA Draft

A top transfer target for the UNC basketball program has officially elected to stay in college by removing his name from this year’s NBA Draft.

After going through the NBA Draft process, Baylor standout Matthew Mayer has decided to return to the college ranks for one more season.

Basketball insider Adam Zagoria was the first to report this news, as Mayer told him that “I’ve decided that I’m coming back to college but don’t know where.”

Mayer’s decision has come well before the June 1 deadline for players to withdraw their name from NBA Draft considerations. Players that remove their name from the draft prior to the deadline, as Mayer has done, maintain their college eligibility moving forward.

For the UNC basketball program, the chase is officially on. Once Mayer entered the transfer portal, Hubert Davis and the Tar Heels were one of the handful of teams that reached out to him, but obviously had to wait it out until Mayer decided what his future plans were.

Now that we know he’ll be returning to the college ranks for another season, the final piece to the puzzle will be where the talented big man will end up playing. The Tar Heels are certainly hopeful that Mayer elects to call Chapel Hill his future home.

There’s a lot to like about the 6-foot-9 forward, as he provides a steady defensive presence while also being able to shoot the basketball at a very high level. With the open scholarship available, the Tar Heels could use a player like Mayer, who would be brought in to play a similar role that we saw Brady Manek fill on last year’s squad.

Now, Mayer isn’t Manek, and Manek isn’t Mayer. Although they are different players, Mayer has the potential to thrive in Davis’ system, given his unique skillset. The UNC basketball program isn’t looking for a player to be a Brady Manek clone: whoever fills the final scholarship void will be asked to simply come in and be themselves.

Buckle up, the chase for Matthew Mayer is officially on. We’re sure that Armando Bacot is already working his magic in trying to bring Mayer to Chapel Hill.

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