3/12/2020 basketball Edit

Bacot, Brooks Suggest They Will Return Next Season

With a disappointing season now over, UNC's starting big men indicated Wednesday night they will likely return. (Jenna Miller, THI)

Andrew Jones • TarHeelIllustrated

Publisher

Andrew Jones has covered sports for 26 years, including all major college & professional sports for daily newspapers & national sites. He's done radio and TV & is entering his seventh year at THI.

GREENSBORO, NC – Armando Bacot went into his freshman season at North Carolina with big plans and the potential to develop into a possible one-and-done player.

His season didn’t quite go as planned with the Tar Heels finishing 14-19 and hid play wildly inconsistent. Injuries were part of the problem but Bacot also just didn’t play well on a regular basis even when healthy.

Bacot (9.6 points, 8.3 rebounds this season) has a probable NBA future, but when will that time come? Does he have a decision to make now?

“I don’t really know,” he said, following UNC’s loss to Syracuse at the ACC Tournament on Wednesday night. “I should be back.”

The 6-foot-10 forward fielded several other questions about what he learned this season, hopes to improve on for next year and about how the Tar Heels may look. From the pep in his voice, it sounds like Bacot is planning on being around for his sophomore season.

“Next year, my purpose every day is going to be to go out there and kick (expletive),” he said. “I just can’t wait for next year. I can guarantee you right now, it won’t be the same feeling next year.”

Bacot averaged 9.6 points and 8.3 rebounds as a freshman. (Jenna Miller, THI)

Garrison Brooks may have some options as well. After averaging 16.8 points and 8.5 rebounds as a junior and being named second-team All-ACC, the 6-foot-9 Brooks is likely to test the NBA waters at the very least to get feedback from the league about what needs improving.

Based on what he said following Wednesday’s loss, Brooks sounds is already looking ahead to next season.

“This spring and summer are going to be the biggest offseason of my life for how I prepare,” he said.

Brooks became the Tar Heels’ leader as the season went on, but a bout of honesty Wednesday night suggested he’s going to dive deeper into that role going into next year.

“I think sometimes in our season everyone didn't come as hard as they should have, come as hard to work as we should have,” he said. “As a leader, I think that I have to do a better job motivating everyone to come to work every day and come with our hardhat and lunch pail to show that every day is meaningful and every day means something to us.”

Brooks says he wants to be a better leader next season. (Jenna MIller, THI)

The Tar Heels lose senior Brandon Robinson as well as graduate transfers Christian Keeling and Justin Pierce. Also, freshman point guard Cole Anthony is expected to leave for the NBA, but Andrew Platek, Leaky Black, Jeremiah Francis, Anthony Harris, Sterling Manley, K.J. Smith and Brandon Huffman all have eligibility remaining and could return, though there could also be some movement with one or more players.

Carolina also welcomes the No. 3 recruiting class in the nation in which four of the five prospects are McDonald’s All-Americas. So, the potential for a quick rebound back to normal is there for the Tar Heels.

“Next year, we’ve got a lot of great players coming in,” Bacot said. “We’ve got four McDonald’s All-Americas and we’ve got Puff (Johnson), too, and maybe even some more people.

“Next year, we’re going to be deep, we’ll just be ready and next year I will step up more as a leader… It will be good.”