Henri Veesaar makes decision on future at UNC

The North Carolina Tar Heels will have to find a new starting center for the 2026-27 season.

Hours before the deadline on Friday, Henri Veesaar entered the NBA draft and stated he intends to stay in the draft rather than return to North Carolina . The decision is a big blow to North Carolina's rotation. The Tar Heels were hoping to retain Veesaar for another year.

However, with multiple centers dropping out of the draft and Veesaar's stock seemingly on the rise , it was a decision he was comfortable making.

North Carolina made a strong push to keep Veesaar under Michael Malone. They went to California to meet with him and even offered a big name, image and likeness licensing deal per Matt Norlander.

In his lone season at UNC, Veesaar averaged 17 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. He shot 42% from the 3-point line. When Caleb Wilson went down with his injury, Veesaar became UNC's best player and had a few big games for the Tar Heels.

With limited options in the transfer portal, it will be interesting to see how the Tar Heels pivot.

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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC Basketball: Henri Veesaar to enter 2026 NBA draft