After just one season in Chapel Hill, Harrison Ingram has declared for the 2024 NBA Draft, a decision that became more likely the longer he waited to announce whether or not to return for the 2024-25 season. Ingram arrived as a transfer from Stanford and was an integral part of UNC’s season, which ended in the Sweet 16 but was highlighted by a regular season sweep of Duke, along with an ACC regular season title. Ingram averaged 12.2 points, and 8.8 rebounds for the Tar Heels, and was the leading rebounder in the ACC during conference play, on his way to earning All-ACC third-team honors.
This year’s NBA Draft features to be among the weakest in recent memory, and with that, Ingram has steadily climbed mock drafts, since the college basketball season ended almost two weeks ago. With him being mocked as an early second-round pick at worst, with the potential to work his way into the back end of the first round, it’s hard to be upset with Ingram’s decision, to not return for 2024-25, considering he doesn’t know if R.J. Davis will be back either.
If you look at how Hubert Davis has navigated the transfer portal this week, you could tell that he and his staff were preparing for this decision. The previous week, Davis was busy getting involved with multiple big men, to find a suitable replacement for Armando Bacot, after he exhausted his college eligibility. This week, he turned his attention to the wing position, targeting Stanford transfer Andrej Stojakovic, and Kentucky transfer, Adou Thiero. Of course, there is no guarantee that either of those players will end up in Chapel Hill, let alone replace the production that will be left behind. Ingram’s ability to be a connector on both ends of the floor will be hard for Hubert Davis to replace, and he was at the forefront at the culture change that took place, after the disastrous 2022-23 season.
Ingram will forever be remembered for his big performances at NC State, and at home against Duke, proving he was capable of playing at a high level when the brights were the lightest. Just like Brady Manek, and Cormacy Ryan, Harrison Ingram was only on campus for one season, but will forever be a part of the Carolina Basketball family.
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