Conference Preview: ACC

As seems to be the case every year, the ACC needs to reload its talent, as 13 of the league's top 16 scorers and eight of its top 11 rebounders have moved on. Even with the tough losses, there have been preseason columns suggesting as many as 11 teams from this conference could make the NCAA Tournament. There's clearly no lack of talent, thus making the cut to be included here no small feat. Duke is the presumptive favorite thanks to a plethora of incoming freshmen, but North Carolina and Virginia are both likely preseason Top 10 teams, and Louisville not far behind . The conference's depth remains unparalleled.

TOP THREE PLAYERS

Grayson Allen (G)
A season ago, Duke welcomed Brandon Ingram to campus, and Allen responded by averaging 21.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 3.5 assists. As such, the return of forward Amile Jefferson, paired with the addition of freshmen forwards Jayson Tatum and Harry Giles, along with rookie guard Frank Jackson, should not cause concern with regards to a regression from Allen. Their presence should only help open up the floor for Allen, and while it's possible he takes a small step back in scoring, he should see an increase in other categories and is the safest choice to be an All-ACC option.

Jaron Blossomgame (F)
Blossomgame was a one-man wrecking crew last year, averaging 18.7 points and 6.7 rebounds while shooting 44.6 percent from 3-point range. He shouldn't be called upon to do as much with a plethora of transfers eligible in 2016-17, led by former Vanderbilt guard Shelton Mitchell and former Texas A&M forward Elijah Thomas, which should leave Blossomgame in a similar instance to Allen above – that with better floor spacing and more one-on-one defense.

Michael Young (F)
Similar to Blossomgame, there's a known commodity factor with Young that will likely keep him down draft lists nationally. He averaged 15.7 points and 6.9 rebounds last year after posting 13.4 points and 7.3 rebounds as a sophomore. Taking those tallies as a floor, Young shouldn't regress with Sheldon Jeter and Cameron Artis remaining in the front court.

TOP FRESHMEN

Dennis Smith (G)
It's easy to get lost in the plethora of frosh Duke has, or to seek out five-star options at second-tier schools like Jonathan Isaac at Florida State. While Smith is receiving plenty of national exposure, the fact that he enrolled in January of 2016 and isn't appearing on 2016 incoming freshmen rankings amongst recruiting sites could possibly allow him to sneak through drafts. Yes, he's coming off of a significant knee injury, but his early enrollment allowed him additional rehab opportunities. Smith was dominant at a summer camp, scoring at will on NBAer Victor Oladipo while earning comparisons to Russell Westbrook and Damian Lillard. Smith has gone from a projected lottery pick to projected Top 2 pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, and should slide right in to the role vacated by Anthony 'Cat' Barber for the 'Pack as both an alpha scorer and equal distributor.

TOP TRANSFERS

Austin Nichols (F)
After leading Memphis in scoring (13.3 points) and finishing second in rebounding (6.1), Nichols shouldn't have any trouble matching those numbers despite the defense-first attack the Cavaliers deploy. Nichols is more naturally talented than Anthony Gill, who he'll replace in the starting lineup, and the Cavailers don't have a natural perimeter player like they did last season in Malcolm Brogdon. That should leave Gill's 13.8 points and 6.1 boards as a floor for Nichols.

Andrew White (G)
White's late declaration to the Orange gives the ACC a graduate transfer in addition to Nichols, who sat out last year. White was sold to upstate New York by former Orange star Michael Gbinije after averaging 16.6 points and 5.9 rebounds last season at Nebraska. He'll give 'Cuse a terrific outside scoring threat after shooting 41.2 percent from 3-point range last season, and while he doesn't posses the point guard potential Gbinije displayed last season, his 6-foot-7, 220 pound frame should provide rebounds, with the 2-3 zone defense providing defensive potential as well.

SLEEPERS

Isaiah Hicks (F)
Hicks averaged 8.9 points and 4.6 boards while shooting 61.4 percent from the floor and 75.6 percent from the foul line in 18.1 minutes. The upside here is that he'll slide into the starting spot vacated by Brice Johnson, who posted 17.0 points and 10.4 boards last season while playing only 28.0 minutes. Hicks certainly has that potential, but must prove he can stay on the floor. Hicks committed 121 fouls in 723 minutes, or one roughly every six minutes, a pace he can't afford to sustain at a heavier workload.

Donovan Mitchell (G)
The Cardinals need to replace their top three scorers from 2015-16, and Mitchell is in a prime spot to step into a lead role after averaging 7.4 points in 19.1 minutes as a freshman. Mitchell added 3.4 rebounds, and although he stands at just 6-foot-3, his 210 pound frame should allow him to be an ample scorer on the inside while also knocking down some outside jumpers. A comparison to Rashaad McCants seems reasonable, maybe with a few less long-range shots. Louisville's Deng Adel makes for a higher upside, lower floor breakout for the Cardinals, but it may qualify as a surprise if Mitchell doesn't lead Louisville in scoring.

Ja'Quan Newton (G)
Newton is a natural assumption to slide in to a leading role after averaging 10.5 points. 2.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists a year ago in 22.7 minutes off of the bench. Miami must replace their top two scorers, both guards in Angel Rodriguez and Sheldon McClellan. Newton and Davon Reed are more than capable of fulfilling respective roles, and that should leave Newton with a slightly lower scoring total than Reed, but a more well rounded line.