In ACC basketball preseason poll, everyone agrees on Duke. Nobody agrees on what's next - USA Today
Welcome to basketball season! For some fans in the ACC, it can't come soon enough (we're looking at you in Chapel Hill and Louisville).
We polled writers within the USA TODAY Network who cover ACC schools for their preseason predictions, all-conference teams and preseason awards ahead of ACC media days, which run Oct. 6-7 in Charlotte.
Duke was a unanimous pick to win the conference and the Blue Devils swept the preseason awards, too. But this is more than just the Duke Invitational.
How will the Mike Malone experiment in Chapel Hill go? Can Gerry McNamara reignite Syracuse? Will Louisville's transfer business make the Cardinals a contender? And can Jai Lucas and Ryan Odom take the next step with Miami and Virginia, respectively?
The Wisconsin transfer was one of the top players in the portal this offseason after averaging 19.1 points with 5.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game last season, earning all-Big Ten third-team honors.
Also receiving votes: Patrick Ngongba II, Duke; Thijs DeRidder, Virginia; Flory Bidunga, Louisville; Seth Trimble, Louisville.
Blackwell joins a deep Duke backcourt that returns Cayden Boozer and Caleb Foster and brings in true freshman Deron Rippey Jr., and has ability to play both the point and shooting guard.
Also receiving votes: Flory Bidunga, Louisville.
Just 17, Boumtje Boumtje was originally part of Duke's 2027 recruiting class before skipping a year. At 7-2, he's the tallest player on the Blue Devils' roster and the son of former Georgetown standout Ruben Boumtje Boumtje. Despite his age, his teammates don't think JBB will be fazed by college ball. "He's looked like he's belonged out there," Patrick Ngongba II said. "The physicality doesn't seem like it's been impacting him at all."
Also receiving votes: Caleb Gaskins, Miami; Cameron Williams, Duke; Aziz Olajuwon, Stanford; Maximo Adams, North Carolina.
Poll participants: Tom Noie (South Bend Tribune), Jordan Mendoza (USA TODAY), John Leuzzi (USA TODAY Network), Brooks Holton (Louisville Courier Journal), Nick Coppola (Greenville News), Craig Meyer (USA TODAY Network), Liam Rooney (Tallahassee Democrat), Anna Snyder (Fayetteville Observer), Rodd Baxley (Fayetteville Observer).
