2022 Preseason Conference Preview: Atlantic Coast Conference

[Ezaco]

ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE

 

Two and a half blue-blood programs aren't enough to push forward a conference that, despite having some interesting teams and stellar players, is quite lackluster and unexciting.

 

BOSTON COLLEGE EAGLES

Boston College falls into the 'despite' category of the above. This is a very interesting, and in some ways exciting, team. Albert West has grown from a two star prospect to contender for the title of best player in the country - elite ball handling skills backed up by a sweet midrange game, wrapped up by a very nice game along the rest of the court. His teammate Edwin Mintz is an unparalleled defender and rebounder, despite some shaking scoring ability, and Kevin Downs is not just an elite defender and rebounder but also an excellent shooter (a 7'1" stretch center who can shoot from 3!). As a team the Eagles are pretty good defensively; there's some bad defenders on this team but they're covered up by really good ones. Rebounding the Eagles also look very dangerous. And from a scoring standpoint there's not a lot to not like as well - extremely dangerous underneath and able to kick it out to the midrange and 3 point line reliably. The Eagles are good team, and they're going to do well in a weak ACC.

 

Season Prediction: NCAA Tournament - Round of 32

 

:clemson: CLEMSON TIGERS

Clemson is a fair team, a decent team. They don't have any splashy, standout talent, but they do have good set of abilities across the board. Defensively they may be slightly above average, with a rebounding team that is right above average as well. Shooting-wise the Tigers are also dominant down low in the paint and their extended range shooting is nothing to sneeze at either. But as decent as the Tigers are they pretty stop at being... decent. There's no standout or breakout stars here, no one that's going to put them over the top.

 

Season prediction: NCAA Tournament - Round of 32

 

:duke: DUKE BLUE DEVILS

Ah... Death, taxes, and Duke being good at basketbal. Wait. What? Duke isn't good? The world is over. This is possible... stay tuned on that, but Duke really isn't formidable. It's not a team you're scared of. That's even with John Rooks being on the roster as a contender of Conference Player of the Year, and Erik Forth having really grown into a formidable player down low. Defensively the Blue Devils are a good team, but they're fairly below average when it comes to crashing the boards. Paint scoring is an excelling point for Duke, and mid-range shooting is just as good if not better. Three point shooting is going to be a real struggle for this team, maybe moreso than others so.... actually, I think I just talked myself into it. I take it back. Duke is a good team. At the very least they're a team you're going to have to respect when you play them.

 

Season prediction: NCAA Tournament - Round of 64

 

:floridastate: FLORIDA STATE SEMINOLES

Now Florida State is a team worth paying attention to. Defensively they're pretty good, I'd even say very good aside from some glaring holes by one or two specific players. Rebounding the boards they're also very good. Scoring underneath the basket? I have not seen a better team yet. They're dangerous, extremely dangerous, and that doesn't get much worse when they step out to shoot at range. Bethanne Florio is an elite shooter, Roy Mcclure can sink the ball from anywhere, and defensively they have elite aces in David Wang and Paul Decarvalho. The Seminoles are scary man...

 

Season prediction: NCAA Tournament - Elite 8

 

:georgiatech: GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS

Man... Georgia Tech is good too! A bit above average defense - dragged down by a few guys who simply aren't very good - but their rebounding leaves a lot to be desired. You don't have to worry about rebounding too much, though, if you can sink your shots, with the Yellow Jackets can do in abundance. An awesome under the basket scoring team who can also step out and swish it from midrange with ease, and while their 3 point shooting leaves some to be desired, they're definitely not bad there either. Richard Almeida steps into his senior season with a lot of promise and a lot of NBA attention, and he'll be back up by Ronald Morgans and Aaron Felix who are head-turning scorers (if defensive liabilities. It's going to be a good season in Atlanta.

 

Season prediction: NCAA Tournament -Round of 32

 

:louisville: LOUISVILLE CARDINALS

I am not going to talk myself into this one - Louisville (the half blueblood, by the way) is not a good team. Defensively they're dreadful - below average at best. Rebounding-wise the Cardinals are actually a pretty good team. Underneath they're also very dangerous, with no one you wouldn't trust with the ball. Stepping outside, though, they fall to a simply average team. Ping Kim is a great shooter who can score from almost anywhere when he's on... but you're relying on him to be 'on' all the time, because outside of him there's very few shooters you can rely on to dominate. An offense that is going to rely on itself to be hot, mixed with a poor defense, is not a good mix.

 

Season prediction: Bubble Team

 

:umiami: MIAMI HURRICANES

As the ACC continues to look stronger than I initially thought, the Hurricanes are going to be one of the ones hurt by it. As a whole they're an average team, but in this league they are going to struggle. Defensively the 'Canes are not great, and their effort on the boards is decidedly average. Underneath the basket they're an average scoring team as well, and while they're better from the mid-range, the 3 point line isn't their best friend. So while this year will be a struggle for them, the good news is Miami has a bright future in the four star sophomore Richard Beck who's developing very nicely and will be a key corner piece to build around in the next season or two.

 

Season prediction: Misses NCAA Tournament

 

NC STATE WOLFPACK

The Wolfpack features two guys who could be dark horse candidates for Conference Player of the Year - Aurelio Merino and Brian Kane. Both of these guys are awesome offensive talents who back it up with good defensive effort as well. Once you get past those two, however, it becomes a struggle. Defensively, as a team, they would be pretty good if not for some glaring holes that could expose them, and the rebounding effort is simply average. Don't expect NC State to turn the ball over much as this team is really good with handling the ball and smart with it, and scoring underneath the basket is a great spot for them. But stepping to range is a struggle - especially the 3 point line.

 

Season Prediction: Misses NCAA Tournament

 

:northcarolina: NORTH CAROLINA TARHEELS

North Carolina is going to want to be good. And they're going to make a real effort of it. This is a team who's deadly from under the basket, smart with the ball, and a pretty good 2 point shooting team. On the other hand, they're absolutely dreadful from three point land, and a simply average defensive team with a lackluster rebounding effort. Michael Simpson could spend his senior year competing with his teammate Thomas Wisenhunt for Conference Player of the Year.. or the Tarheels could be wallowing the entire season in mediocrity. For the amount of exceptionally special player they have, I simply don't trust the rest of the supporting cast for North Carolina to push them forward.

 

Season Prediction: Bubble Team

 

:notredame: NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH

Now the Irish are a team we won't quibble about too much. It's an average defensive team, who's even more average at rebounding. While they can score pretty decently underneath, I wouldn't trust them from the midrange and they shouldn't even bother attempting three pointers. On top of that it's a team who's a bit shaky handling the ball and prone to mistakes. In terms of standout stars there's no one to really hang your hat on. Robert Moynihan has excelled in his development, but he's pretty obviously hitting a ceiling in his senior year, and Larry Erickson could develop into a really outside player, but these are all limp excuses and mostly about the future.

 

Season Prediction: Misses NCAA Tournament

 

:pittsburg: PITTSBURGH PANTHERS

Pitt simply isn't impressive either. Their defense is putrid, and the rebounding is only slightly better. When it comes to scoring they're completely average from every range - which could actually help them to not rely on anything specifically, but they won't be consistent anywhere. Brock Burks is a 5 star center out of DC who could be special... but he's wallowing in his development with shaky decision making and a bad midrange game. And as disappointing as he is, the rest of the roster isn't impressive by any means.

 

Season Prediction: Misses NCAA Tournament

 

:syracuse: SYRACUSE ORANGE

This bottom half of the ACC is really dragging down the rest, and the Orange continues that trend. Now for the most part I do like Syracuse - they're a very good midrange shooting team, a pretty good 3 point team, and deadly underneath. Rebounding and defense are above average, and when you exclude certain players they become very good. But.... this team makes a lot of mistakes with the ball. It could be enough to really hurt their chances in the long run, especially with no standout stars to rely on.

 

Season Prediction: Bubble Team

 

:virginia: VIRGINIA CAVALIERS

The Cavaliers are going to have a rough time. Despite having some very good defenders, the team as a whole has a lot of gaps that will be exploited, and their rebounding effort is pretty average. Scoring-wise Virginia is fairly good, with a good and consistent paint scoring ability and the ability to step out and reliably sink it from long range as well. But this team also suffers from some pretty questionable decision making. Nelson Arias could be an elite player in the NBA if he can get a handle on those ball handling skills, and Derrick Morehead steps onto campus this season as a real possibility to immediately turn heads and make an impact as a five star freshman, but his defense needs a lot of work.

 

Season Prediction: NCAA Tournament - Round of 64

:virginiatech: VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES

The in-state rival, however, isn't - and won't - be very good at all. It's a bad defensive team who doesn't provide very much effort on the boards, and makes a lot of mistakes. Paint scoring may be decent, but midrange is fairly average and beyond the arc they might as well forget. Now if you ignore that long range game then David Vanauken is a very dangerous player for the Hokies... but he doesn't have hardly any help, especially with just how bad that defense is.

 

Season Prediction: Misses NCAA Tournament

 

:wakeforest: WAKE FOREST DEMON DEACONS

The Deacons are an oddball case. It's a very good midrange shooting team who's also pretty good beyond the arc, but underneath their fairly average. You won't see a lot of mistakes from this team, but they aren't going to put very much effort into rebounding, and that's all capped off by a below average defense. It's not a bad defense, just... not great. Viktor Raulerson is an exception 5'10" guard who, for his size, is an impressive rebounder. Ricky Cottrell and Louis Awad are exceptional scorers, but they also fall prey to terrible rebounding effort. So if Wake Forest can push the ball and fill up the basket they're going to be fine, because I don't expect them to get many defensive stops... and the ones they do are more likely to result in a second chance effort for the other team.

 

Season Prediction: Bubble Team

[Ezaco]

Pick to win conference: Florida State