Welcome to the ACC Basketball Season Preview!
College basketball preseason trips are already underway. (We hear the Bahamas are lovely this time of year, Louisville. Shame our invite got lost!) That’s our sign that rosters are basically finalized, and it’s finally worth asking the question:
How’s the ACC looking?
If nothing else, larger. Cal, Stanford, and SMU are now officially members, meaning the 18-team “Atlantic Coast” Conference stretches the width of the United States and the length of the East Coast. But the league has plenty to boast about. No conference has sent more teams to the Final Four the past three seasons than the ACC (four), with four different programs – North Carolina, Duke, Miami, and NC State – each making an appearance.
As for the future, the ACC is bringing in nine five-star freshmen, the most of any conference – and more than the Big 12 and Big East combined. The conference has four of the nation’s top 15 recruiting classes, with Duke, Miami, UNC, and Georgia Tech leading the pack.
The transfer portal was less kind to the league, though there are still plenty of contributors coming in. But of The Athletic’s top 100 transfers, none of the top 15 joined the ACC. Only 13 of the top 100 best-available players picked ACC schools, with no league member ranking in the top 20 nationally in the transfer portal hauls.
Still, the league has plenty of experience, with some of its teams built more around experienced stars. A third of the ACC has at least four players with more than 2,000 career Division I minutes, and nine different teams have at least one player with more than 3,000.
Balance that with the addition of three new coaches – Pat Kelsey (Louisville), Andy Enfield (SMU), and Kyle Smith (Stanford) – and there is plenty to look forward to this ACC season. Here’s how we see it all shaking out, with a deeper look at every team’s roster.
Duke
Key Losses: Kyle Filipowski, Jared McCain, Jeremy Roach, Mark Mitchell
Key Returners: Tyrese Proctor, Caleb Foster
Top Additions: Cooper Flagg, Khaman Maluach, Isaiah Evans, Kon Knueppel, Patrick Ngongba II, Darren Harris
Why They’re Here: Duke lost its top four scorers but has a strong recruiting class and key transfers to fill the gaps. Led by Flagg, the No. 1 recruit in the country, Duke is poised for a national championship run.
North Carolina
Key Losses: Armando Bacot, Harrison Ingram, Cormac Ryan
Key Returners: RJ Davis, Elliot Cadeau, Seth Trimble, Jae’Lyn Withers, Jalen Washington
Top Additions: Ian Jackson, Drake Powell, James Brown
Why They’re Here: With a strong backcourt led by Davis, North Carolina has one of the best perimeter groups in the ACC. The addition of Tyson from Belmont adds necessary size in the frontcourt.
Louisville
Key Losses: Skyy Clark, Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, Mike James, Tre White, JJ Traynor, Ty-Laur Johnson, Curtis Williams, Kaleb Glenn
Key Returners: None
Top Addition: Khani Rooths
Top Transfers: Terrence Edwards Jr., Chucky Hepburn, J’Vonne Hadley, Kasean Pryor
Why They’re Here: Louisville underwent a major roster overhaul but has…
