RJ Davis hypes up ex-UNC pro after career-high night in NBA G-League: “Got ya bounce back”

UNC star RJ Davis praised his former Tar Heels teammate Armando Bacot after he had a career-high night in the NBA G-League. Bacot showed out for the Memphis Hustle, dropping 25 points in a win over the Mexico City Capitanes on Wednesday.

Bacot, who spent five seasons at North Carolina looking to impress NBA scouts and earn a roster spot, shot 9-of-14 from the field, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range, and added four rebounds and a steal in the victory.

Davis, a year junior to Bacot at the Tar Heels and his teammate for four seasons, celebrated Bacot's big game on Instagram.

GTV Hoops shared a clip of Bacot's highlights from the game.

"You got ya bounce back," Davis wrote in the comments.

Davis commented on Instagram (@gtvhoops/IG)

Furthermore, the New York native added the highlight clip to his own Instagram story with a one-word caption.

"Omg," Davis added.

Davis' Instagram story (Credits: @ariidavis_ Instagram)

Bacot entered the 2024 NBA draft after a stellar collegiate career in Chapel Hill. He averaged 14.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game last season, leading UNC to the ACC regular season title and a berth in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen.

Bacot went undrafted but joined the Utah Jazz Summer League team. However, he later joined the Memphis Grizzlies’ G-League affiliate.

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Former college basketball player explains RJ Davis' shooting struggle in Armando Bacot's absence

RJ Davis, the reigning ACC Player of the Year, is off to a slow start this season without his former frontcourt mate Armando Bacot by his side.

After nine games, Davis is averaging 18.1 points on just 35.1% shooting from the field, including 24.6% from 3-point range, a significant dip from his 21.2 ppg on 42.8% shooting and 39.8% 3-point clip a year ago.

Former NC State guard Casey Morsell analyzed RJ Davis' early season shooting struggles on "The Drive with Tim Donnelly podcast."

"I think right now it's just a shooting slump," Morsell said (6:50). "With him being the ACC player of the year, he's facing coverage where he has less time than last year to even get his shot off."

"You lose such dominant frontcourt presence. I remember when we played UNC, we were just so focused on [Armando] and trying to really eliminate his second-chance opportunities. ... So when we scouted him, RJ was more secondary in terms of trying to slow him down. But now that Mondo's gone, it's like, okay, let's all key in on RJ, and it's tough."

RJ Davis and North Carolina are 5-4 overall and 1-0 in ACC play. They beat Georgia Tech last week and take on La Salle on Saturday.