Armando Bacot’s career at North Carolina is officially over after five great years in Chapel Hill. The Virginia native leaves the program with the most rebounds in history and finished second in total points.
He is considered one of the best to act on the program, leaving a legacy. But while he was growing up, Bacot hated North Carolina because he was a Duke fan.
It is well known that Bacot was a Duke fan and the Blue Devils were involved in his recruitment. He committed to North Carolina, though, and the rest is history.
Bacot recently appeared on Theo Pinson’s show “Run your race” podcast where he discussed growing up a Duke fan and “hating Carolina” before committing to the program. And it seemed like he was a die-hard fan who hated his other rival, as fans often do to their rival.
“For me, committing to Carolina was crazy because a lot of people don’t know this, but I grew up a Duke fan,” Bacot told Pinson. “You can go to my Facebook, it’s been on Twitter a little bit, but there are pictures of me, I went to Duke basketball camp, everything. I grew up a Duke fan. I loved Jhalil Okafor and Jabari Parker, those were my two favorite players.”
“So I grew up a Duke fan, hated Carolina. But I had some loyalty to them because Ed Davis went there. Kenny Williams was from Richmond, I was a young bull when he was growing up so I watched him a little bit. But even committing to Carolina was something that came out of nowhere. Even during the process, I visited. I loved Coach Davis, I loved Coach Williams. But I was like, ‘Oh, this is hard for me, even playing with Carolina.”
“I grew up a Duke fan. I loved Jahlil Okafor, Jabari Parker… I hated Carolina.”
– Armando Bacot
UNC wasn’t always Bacot’s first choice pic.twitter.com/LSm95N2OP9
– Liga das Tides (@TidalLeague) July 2, 2024
In the end, Bacot chose the Tar Heels in his recruitment and teamed up with his friend Cole Anthony. Even though he hated Carolina, he put that aside to go to the program and be coached by Roy Williams.
Pinson then told Bacot that he also grew up a Duke fan, but never hated North Carolina. Instead, he respected the program. Bacot didn’t have the same experience, saying he was a huge Duke fan who really hated Carolina.
“See, I was a huge Duke fan, so I hated Carolina,” Bacot said. “They’re going to tear me to pieces for this, but I hated Carolina.”
It worked out for Bacot, leaving a legacy in Chapel Hill and falling in love with the school he would die for. He even came away winning his last game in Durham, just two years after helping ruin Coach K’s last home game.
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