Armando Bacot Announces He's Forgoing 2022 NBA Draft, Returning to UNC

North Carolina will have leading scorer Armando Bacot back for his senior season in 2022-23.

The Tar Heels star announced Wednesday he will forgo the 2022 NBA draft to return to school:

Bacot has developed into one of the best big men in college basketball over the past three seasons. He set career highs in scoring average (16.3) and rebounding (13.1) in 39 games during the 2021-22 campaign.

The 22-year-old tied David Robinson's NCAA Division I men's record with 31 double-doubles in a season.

The Tar Heels' run to the national title game was fueled in large part by Bacot's dominant presence in the paint. He became the first player to have six double-doubles in an NCAA men's tournament.

Bacot averaged 16.5 rebounds during the tournament, including 6.3 on the offensive glass.

North Carolina overcame a slow start to the season, winning 12 of its final 15 games to earn the No. 8 seed in the East Region. The Tar Heels defeated Marquette, Baylor, UCLA, Saint Peter's and Duke to reach their first national championship game since they won it all in 2016-17.

Kansas stopped North Carolina's run with a 72-69 win, but it was a tremendous first season for head coach Hubert Davis.

Getting Bacot back for one more year will go a long way toward keeping the Tar Heels in the championship conversation in 2022-23.