CHAPEL HILL - With the departure of Armando Bacot after five seasons in Chapel Hill, North Carolina lacked a clear picture in its future frontcourt.

Jalen Washington was productive in a limited role as a sophomore, and the Tar Heels were bringing in a top-100 freshman in James Brown. Yet, nothing was certain or set in stone.

After securing a commitment from then-Vanderbilt big man, Ven-Allen Lubin, Hubert Davis and the UNC basketball staff once again turned to the transfer portal, this time in the eleventh hour, to secure depth this offseason.

Thus, enter Tyzchaun Claude, who was unsure of his basketball future before receiving a waiver for the 2024-2025 season in early August.

Claude comes to Chapel Hill following two seasons at Morehead State and a year at both Western Carolina and Georgia Tech. The Goldsboro, NC, native is a veteran in the college basketball world, with 102 games played and 51 starts.

Claude averaged 9.3 points over his first four seasons, including a career-high 15.4 points per game with the Catamounts. The 6-foot-8 forward is a career 53.9 percent shooter on 6.5 shots per game.

Experience at both the mid-major and Power Four level has given Claude perspective on the court, helping him understand his new role with the Tar Heels.

“We have guys that can score the ball [and] I feel like I’m not necessarily needed to do that,” said Claude. “If I do do that then that’s a plus, but I feel like my job is to be the tough guy on the team.”

A big question mark for UNC entering the season has been its ability to rebound the basketball, particularly on the offensive end. Adding Claude, who pulled down 6.3 rebounds per game across four seasons and led the Southern Conference during the 2022-2023 campaign with 8.6 per contest, is a potential solution.

He paced the ACC in offensive rebounding last season per KenPom, pulling down a board on 16 percent of Georgia Tech’s misses in conference play, and ranked No. 10 in college basketball with a 15.7 rebounding percentage.

In just 10 minutes of action in the Tar Heels’ Blue-White Scrimmage, Claude pulled down six rebounds, including a game-high four on the offensive end. He was not avaialble to play in the exhibition win at Memphis.

“Coach (Davis) says whatever is in your bag, is in your bag. If you can do it and you practice it, he’ll let you do it,” said Claude. “Just don’t forget what you’re good at and what you can bring the most to the team, which for me, would be rebounding and toughness.”

While Claude acknowledges how his piece fits into the Tar Heels’ puzzle, being at a school with the stature and history such as UNC, which he claims is the biggest brand in basketball, is hard to comprehend.

Morehead State has made its mark in the NCAA Tournament and produced Kenneth Faried. Western Carolina can lay claim to Kevin Martin, and Georgia Tech has reached multiple Final Four and rostered greats such as Mark Price, Stephon Marbury, and Chris Bosh.

But, for Claude, one facet of the North Carolina program reminded him of its true status in the college basketball pecking order.

“This is the first time I’ve been on a team where most of the people on the staff know what it takes to win a national championship,” said Claude. “That’s different. You don’t get that everywhere.”

Claude grew up in “Tar Heel Land”, his own term for Eastern North Carolina, watching Marcus Paige don the argyle and Carolina blue, and has heard the stories of Sean May’s performance in the 2005 National Championship.

Now, he finds himself gracing the same court, adjusting to UNC’s frenetic pace, the speed of light compared to his other stops. Last season, Georgia Tech ranked 159th in possessions per game, while Western Carolina sat at 162nd during the 2022-2023 season.

Prior to his first portal trip, Claude was part of Morehead State rosters that ranked 174th (2019-2020) and 304th (2021-2022) in possessions per game.

“You gotta be in shape [to play here], that’s the main thing,” said Claude. “It’s fun. [Hubert] gives a lot of opportunity for everybody to be successful because with that fast pace there’s more possessions. I think it’s a good style of basketball.”

If Claude’s commitment to UNC’s philosophy is on par with his ability to make an impression on the glass, he can help alleviate concerns involving the Tar Heel front court.