Tyler Nickel has been out of high school for less than a year, but his alma mater is already making plans to honor the UNC freshman wing. East Rockingham High School in Elkton, VA, announced they would retire Nickel’s jersey on Thursday.

Nickel, who wears No. 24 with the Tar Heels, wore No. 5 while playing for East Rockingham. Nickel is the highest-scoring player in the history of the Virginia High School League with 2,909 career points. East Rockingham already has an acknowledgement of Nickel’s record on the wall of its gym.

Nickel has already showed his scoring touch in his brief time as a Tar Heel, scoring a career-high 16 points (all in the second half) in Carolina’s win against The Citadel earlier this month. The freshman is currently averaging 8.1 minutes and 3.5 points per game.

According to East Rockingham, Nickel will attend the ceremony on Thursday, which is the day after Carolina’s game against Michigan in the Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte on Wednesday night. The game with the Wolverines is UNC’s last before the Christmas holiday.

 

Featured image via Todd Melet

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