UNC Basketball: Armando Bacot set to become one of best bigs in school history
UNC basketball center Armando Bacot will try to cap off his prestigious college career with a national championship ring in 2022-23.
The senior big man enters his last season in Chapel Hill.
A five-star recruit out of IMG Academy in the 2019 recruiting class, the center has become one of the best big men in UNC basketball history. That’s saying something, given the school’s rich history of big men.
2021-22 Season in Review
Now looking into this season, you know what you’re getting out of him. He’s steadily improved each season in college, which will continue into the 2022-23 year. Last off-season, he began working on his jump shot. We didn’t see much of it in 2021-22, but it seems he’s continued working on it throughout the off-season.
Tar Heel coaches have made it a focal point for him to improve upon if he wants to play at the next level. Elsewhere, he’s an elite rebounder, top two in the country to be exact. It’s between him and Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe, two guys that may just be battling for the Naismith award this year.
Bacot showed major strides on the defensive end last year as well, averaging 1.7 blocks and 13.1 rebounds per contest. He was really able to put everything together last season, becoming the elite player everyone thought he had the potential to become.
What to Expect in 2022-23
One other area of his game to watch will be his free-throw shooting. Like all other aspects of his game, he’s slowly improved this part of his game over the years. As a freshman, he shot just 64.5% from the line. Last season, that was bumped up to 67.0. In the NCAA tournament though, he was quite shaky in that aspect, shooting just 59.3%.
Like all of the returning guys on this team, Armando Bacot will be coming into the year with a vengeance. It seems to be the main reason he, Caleb Love, Leaky Black, and RJ Davis all opted to return to school. They want to make history and bring the school’s seventh national championship back to Chapel Hill.
Bacot particularly has a sour taste in his mouth from last year’s championship loss. He powered through the game on just one ankle but re-injured it late in the game on a crucial play. To be that close, Bacot and the others will be hungrier than ever to get back.
Bold Prediction
He’s set to break school records in a few different categories, namely the most rebounds in school history. Recently, he was named the ACC Preseason Player of the Year. Bacot was on the Preseason First Team All-ACC in unanimous fashion, as well as the Preseason All-American First Team. The star center will achieve all three of those while coming up just short of the Naismith award.
Bacot became a fan favorite before he even stepped onto North Carolina’s campus a few years ago. Ever since he committed, he’s represented the Tar Heels in a way that’s difficult to explain. It started with his recruitment of incoming freshman Cole Anthony and transfer Christian Keeling, and it’s only continued.
If there’s one guy that epitomizes being a Tar Heel, it would be Armando Bacot. Now, he just needs the championship ring to cap off a legendary career.
Next. Bacot's preseason honors continue. dark
Follow us @KeepingItHeel on Twitter and like our fan page on Facebook for continued coverage of UNC news, updates, and recruiting.