ACC MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:
- Duke
- Louisville
- NC State
- North Carolina
- Virginia
- Miami FL
- SMU
- Notre Dame
- Clemson
- Syracuase
- Virginia Tech
- Wake Forest
- Pittsburgh
- Georgia Tech
- Florida State
- California
- Stanford
- Boston College
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-ACC 1ST TEAM:
-Darrion Williams – SR, F – NC State
-Cameron Boozer – FR, F – Duke
-Markus Burton – JR, G – Notre Dame
-Mikel Brown Jr. – FR, G – Louisville
-Ryan Conwell – SR, G – Louisville
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-ACC 2ND TEAM:
-Malik Reneau – SR, F – Miami FL
-Henri Veesaar – JR, C – North Carolina
-Caleb Wilson – FR, F – North Carolina
-Isaiah Evans – SO, G – Duke
-Seth Trimble – SR, G – North Carolina
COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
-Duke won an incredible 35 games a year ago and advanced to the Final Four. While none of those starters are back for this year’s team, they have completely reloaded on talent and are once again expected to be among the best teams in the country and competing for a national championship. Cameron Boozer is one of the top freshmen in the country, and with Isaiah Evans returning after seeing some quality minute off the bench last year, Duke is not short on talent. It is hard for me to say a whole lot about a team when I have not actually seen most of their current players play, but I will trust the experts on this. They have got a super-talented incoming class.
-Louisville had one of the biggest turnarounds in all of college basketball a year ago. They went from Stallings Award-level to a top-25-caliber program under Coach Pat Kelsey last year. With four starters back, expectations are super-high for the Cardinals this year. They do lose two key players from last year’s rotation, but they went deep into their bench and they have the combination of both talent, experience, and cohesiveness that most teams just do not have. Mikel Brown Jr. and Ryan Conwell make up an extremely talented backcourt, and they have got a solid frontcourt as well. It is hard to not like this Cardinals team. I like their coach, I like their style of play, and I like that how in a very transfer-heavy era they retained a lot of their players.
-The Will Wade era at NC State officially begins this year! And while they were hugely disappointing last year with just 12 overall wins, the expectations are super-high for them this year. Darrion Williams transfers in from Texas Tech, who is probably better than anyone NC State had a year ago. Terrance Arceneaux comes in from Houston, Tre Holloman from Michigan State, and two standout players from a very good McNeese State team (Quadir Copeland and Alyn Breed) are also coming with him. Will Wade can quickly build a roster, and that appears to be what he has done at NC State. Now, let’s see if it can play.
-North Carolina made the NCAA Tournament last year as one of the last teams selected, and sent the bracketology community into a complete frenzy. Just one starter is back, and they will be relying on a lot of young players to step into key roles. I do not know much about their roster, but I know that North Carolina has never had trouble attracting high levels of talent to their school, and I expect that they will reload and be as good as (or even better than) they were a year ago.
-Virginia = OOOF! This is one of the most storied programs in the ACC (at least in the 21st century), and they failed to finish with a winning record last year. With zero starters back, they are in a rebuilding mode. The Hoos do have some incredibly talented transfers in Sam Lewis (Toledo), Jacari White (North Dakota State), and Devin Tillis (UC Irvine). I know the ACC is a higher caliber than the conferences those guys came from, but make no mistake about it. Those are high-caliber players. If this group can mesh, then I think we will see quite a bit of improvement this year.
-Miami FL was my sleeper team last year! And…they basically stayed asleep for the entire season winning just 7 total games. Their trip to the Final Four was just two years ago, but it seems like it was a century ago. Jai Lucas takes over as head coach and he is tasked with rebuilding a roster that, quite frankly, needed rebuilding. Tre Donaldson comes in from Michigan and Malik Reneau from Indiana, so they do have some guys with P4 experience, but other players will need to step up if they are going to compete in the ACC.
-SMU won 24 games a year ago, which was a good season for a program that appears to be up-and-coming with 20+ wins in three of their last four years. Andy Enfield did a really nice job in his first year, and he has got three key starters back this year. BJ Edwards and Boopie Miller form a pretty solid backcourt, and the Mustangs will likely be good enough to make some noise this year.
-Micah Shrewsberry’s first two seasons at Notre Dame have been a disappointment. He is just 28-38 in that time, and one has to wonder if the Irish are becoming impatient. This has the feel of a pivotal year for the program. Markus Burton is one of the best guards in the ACC, and they will be heavily reliant on him, but he cannot do it all by himself. They do have an impressive looking freshmen class…but will it be good enough right away to compete in the ACC?
-Clemson has had two really strong seasons in a row, and finished last year with 27 total wins before going out in the first round. They may have to rebuild this year with just one starter back. Like a lot of programs, they went into the portal and they were able to get several players with solid D-1 experience. They are always tough defensively and seem to be in the habit of exceeding expectations, so do not count out the Tigers!
-For three of the last four years, Syracuse has been…well…not great. And, there does not seem to be a whole lot to be excited about this year. They won just 14 games a year ago. Two key starters are back in JJ Starling and Donnie Freeman, and Naithan George also joined the roster after being a solid player at Georgia Tech a year ago, so we may see some improvement, but chances are they will once again be watching the NCAA Tournament on TV.
-Virginia Tech had an unspectacular year last year, which was probably the worst since Mike Young arrived. They do have three starters back, and that experience could translate into a little more success this year. They also add Jailen Bedford from UNLV and Amani Hansberry from West Virginia, so I think the Hokies will be an improved team this year.
-Wake Forest had a solid year last year, but missed the NCAA Tournament despite a 21-win season. Like a lot of teams, they are having to rebuild this year. Just one starer is back. Also, like a lot of teams, they have turned to the transfer portal. Nate Calmese was a huge get from Washington State and Mekhi Mason was a very solid player at Washington last year, so the Deacs do have some pieces.
-Pittsburgh is looking to rebuild from a rather underwhelming season a year ago. Just one starter is back (Cameron Corhen, who is a solid center), and it is hard to say just how good they will be with so many new players on the roster.
-Georgia Tech finished .500 last year, both overall and in the conference, and is obviously wanting to improve on that this year, but it will not be easy. While they looked better down the stretch last year, just one starter is back, so they are kind of starting over. They do have an impressive-looking group of young players, but they do not have that much experience at the D-1 level.
-Florida State has been somewhat underwhelming in recent years, and is once again expected to finish closer to the bottom than to the top. No starters are back from a year ago, so first-year head coach Luke Loucks has his work cut out for him. They did go into the portal and got a few guys who had been key players at Under the Radar schools, but it remains to be seen if they can collectively compete in the ACC.
-It has been a while since California has had a winning season, and playing in the ACC is not making things any easier. John Camden joins the roster, who was a key player at Delaware a year ago, but some other guys are going to have to step up for the Bears to be successful.
-Kyle Smith had a modestly successful season in his first year as Stanford head coach last year. They went 21-14 overall and managed a winning record in ACC play. They do have some rebuilding to do this year, and they seem to be turning to some lower-division transfers to make that happen. I do not think the Cardinal will finish atop the standings, but I am a little surprised they were picked to finish this low.
-Boston College…let’s see…what is something good to say?? Earl Grant is a good coach, but turning BC into a consistent winner, or for that matter even an occasional winner, just seems like a very tough task. Just one starter returns from last year’s team, and the expectations are not great.
