Armando Bacot believes Roy Williams 'changed my life' in freshman year exit meeting

Armando Bacot‘s five-year journey at North Carolina allowed him to experience two eras in UNC basketball history with the beginning of Hubert Davis’ tenure and the end of the Roy Williams’.

Bacot, who was recruited by Williams out of high school, revealed on a recent episode of ‘Run Your Race’ with Theo Pinson and AJ Richardson that the most important conversation he ever had with Williams came during a one-on-one meeting after Bacot’s freshman season.

“He changed my life in that exit meeting,” Bacot said. “It was me, him and Coach [Hubert] Davis and he straight up said he was like, ‘We got Day’Ron Sharpe coming in, we’ve got Walker Kessler. If you add in Garrison [Brooks] coming off that year, I was the odd man out. COVID happened, too, so it gave me a lot of time. And I can remember, just going into my mom, like, ‘What do I do? I’m probably not going to play next year.’ I didn’t know.

“[During] COVID I locked in with [NBA skills coach] Matt Irving, the guy I train with now. We were in the gym every single day during COVID. I was lifting, working on finishing, working on everything, and then I can remember just coming back in the summer after COVID and I’m like, ‘Lowkey, I’m the best player out here.’ But I had to see it to believe because I didn’t play live or anything during COVID.”

Bacot averaged 9.6 points and 8.2 rebounds per game as a true freshman, but despite UNC’s added frontcourt depth, he inflated his scoring totals to a 12.3-point average as a sophomore. However, he did record a career-low average of 7.8 boards per game thanks to Sharpe and Kessler’s presence. For the next three seasons, he never averaged anything less than a double-double.

He finished his five-year career averaging 13.9 points and 10.1 rebounds. As a super senior, he helped lead the Tar Heels to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament but ultimately came up short during the second weekend.

During his final game in Carolina blue, Bacot made history during UNC’s Sweet 16 loss to Alabama. With a 19-point, 12-rebound effort, Bacot recorded his 87th career double-double during his five-year career. That moved him into a tie for first place in ACC history with former Wake Forest legend Tim Duncan, and good for second all-time in NCAA history.

He’ll now have to put his record-setting collegiate career behind him as he tries to make the Utah Jazz’s roster after going undrafted during the 2024 NBA Draft. Bacot’s NBA career begins at the Salt Lake City Summer League on Monday, July 8 when the Jazz suits up against the Memphis Grizzlies at 9 p.m. ET.