How many Duke basketball players are among the top 10 in the ACC this year?
In each of the 40 Duke basketball seasons under Mike Krzyzewski, at least one Blue Devil has landed on the All-ACC First Team or Second Team. Remarkably, the program’s streak in this respect dates all the way back to the 1974-75 season, representing by far the longest such mark in conference history.
During this span, even North Carolina failed to produce any of the league’s 10 best individual campaigns in 1990, 2002, 2003, 2010, and 2015.
Also worth noting, for two years in a row now, the All-ACC First Team has included two Blue Devils (Zion Williamson and RJ Barrett in 2019, Tre Jones and Vernon Carey Jr. in 2020). And at least one Blue Devil has earned First Team honors every year since 2008 and in all but six seasons since Krzyzewski’s arrival in Durham in 1980.
ALSO READ: Ranking all 40 Duke teams under Coach K
Plus, Duke is the only school to have ever seen three of its guys on one All-ACC First Team (2002 via Jason Williams, Mike Dunleavy, and Carlos Boozer).
So do the Blue Devils stand any chance to match that record amount at the end of the 2020-21 regular season? Will there be even one Duke name to make the First Team? Or might the 46-year streak, of at least one Dukie on either the First Team or Second Team, now be in jeopardy?
Well, let’s attempt to find out those answers in advance here by forecasting the top 10 ACC players…
No. 10 in the ACC this season is not a Duke basketball player
Louisville lost roughly two-thirds of its rotation from last season, including the top four scorers. As a result of all the roster turnover, opportunities now abound for a few new stars to step into the spotlight.
One prime candidate is David Johnson, a 6-foot-5, 210-pound potential showstopper who will team with high-scoring Radford transfer Carlik Jones to form an aggressive perimeter duo.
Though Johnson averaged only 6.3 points as a freshman, the hometown kid displayed loads of promise with his versatility, speed, and bounce. And his best night was a nightmare for Duke, tallying 19 points, seven rebounds, four assists, three steals, and two blocks to spur a statement win in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Now, David Johnson just needs to improve on his 5-for-23 clip from downtown last season.
No. 9 in the ACC this season is not a Duke basketball player
After averaging at least 12 points and three assists per game in each of his first three seasons as a Yellow Jacket, Jose Alvarado now has all the makings of a premier creator and scorer in his final year of college.
Yet the most impressive aspect of the 22-year-old’s game is on the other end of the floor, where the 6-foot, 180-pound Alvarado averaged 2.2 steals per game as a junior.
And no ACC backcourt has more continuity than Georgia Tech, returning Alvarado and junior Michael Devoe, who together averaged 30.4 points and 3.4 steals last season. Add in senior forward Moses Wright, who averaged 13.0 points and 7.0 boards for a squad that finished above .500 in conference play.
It appears Jose Alvarado has plenty of familiar weapons by his side, indeed.
No. 8 in the ACC this season is not a Duke basketball player
By pulling his name out off the NBA Draft portal in June, Aamir Simms has given himself a chance to build on what’s already been a solid college career. Judging from past statistical increases, improving in the offseason appears to be what the 6-foot-8, 245-pound chiseled forward does best.
Plus, the experience of Simms is now at a top-shelf level after starting double-digit games in each of his first three seasons.
The senior has bumped up his scoring average by more than four points in each of his seasons returning as a Tiger. Moreover, Simms has developed a reliable outside shot along the way, hitting 40.0 percent of his 3-point attempts last season while averaging more than one make per game, and his rebounding average has gone from 3.2 as a freshman to 7.2 as a junior.
Yup, Aamir Simms looks ready to prosper both inside and outside the paint for Clemson.
No. 7 in the ACC this season is not a Duke basketball player
Sure, Kihei Clark is just a 5-foot-9, 160-pounder, giving up four or more inches to almost every foe he faces.
On the other hand, what the floor leader lacks in stature he more than makes up for with his quick feet, confident rhythm, and obvious commitment to Tony Bennett’s slow-tempo style. Besides, when watching Clark operate, it almost seems as if his height — or lack thereof — enhances his sight when eyeing possible passing lanes and seams to exploit amid a crowd.
Oops, probably should have led with the fact that Clark, who started 20 games as a freshman in 2018-19 and then all 30 outings as a sophomore on his way to averaging 37.1 minutes per game, is still a defending national champion since there was no 2020 NCAA Tournament.
To that same point, it also doesn’t hurt that Clark, who will try to cut down on his 3.5 turnovers per game last season while continuing to turn his 3-point stroke into a feared piece of his arsenal, will benefit from having several seasoned veterans for teammates (including one or two names to come on this ranking).
No. 6 in the ACC this season is the first Duke basketball player
According to the official Duke basketball roster and the player himself, Matthew Hurt beefed up by some 20 pounds over the summer — without adding any jelly rolls, reportedly — and is now a 6-foot-9, 235-pound sophomore.
Even better, Hurt, a former five-star recruit, claims to have put on the weight while working his tail off to boost the magnitude of the explosion he gets from what was a rather scrawny base.
Last season, Hurt showed glimpses of the game that led to his lofty ranking in high school, as he led Duke in 3-point field goals, knocking down 39.3 percent of his attempts from deep. Yet in light of erratic performances throughout ACC play when matched up against the likes of several others here on this list, his wrist-flick standing jumper was often stuck on the bench down the stretch.
Nevertheless, his performances in practices and workouts ever since returning to Durham now have his coaches, teammates, and family members all singing his praises. So we’ll give Matthew Hurt the benefit of the doubt…for now.
No. 5 in the ACC this season is not a Duke basketball player
Up until the noticeable upgrades to his game last season, Jay Huff was simply a role player in Charlottesville, averaging single-digit minutes per game, albeit for two Virginia squads that combined to go 66-6 (33-3 in the ACC) and cut down April nets.
Now, with the graduations of former full-time starters down low in Mamadi Diakite and Braxton Key, the 7-foot-1, 240-pound Huff is all but sure to draw a starting nod in every game this season. Naturally, the towering big man is also likely to see an even larger role for himself around the basket, on both ends of the floor.
As a junior who benefitted from improved footwork, championship experience, and heightened instincts, Huff started 18 times and averaged 8.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks across 25.0 minutes per game. As a senior, the 22-year-old could become a double-double machine.
Jay Huff is also capable of popping out beyond the paint. If he can progress beyond his respectable 19-for-53 clip from 3-point land last season, he could provide semi-frequent floor-spacing 3-pointers to help draw defenses away from the sharpshooting Cavalier who comes next here on this list…
No. 4 in the ACC this season is not a Duke basketball player
Plain and simple, Sam Hauser isn’t quite getting the attention he deserves entering the 2020-21 season. Expect that to change, though, as soon as the Marquette transfer’s senior campaign gets underway in late November.
Yes, Hauser has the tools — notably, his 3-point dagger — to end up as one of the most consequential transfers in the history of the ACC. After all, considering he was able to practice with the Cavaliers last year, he now appears in line to possibly be the leading scorer for a Virginia team that many experts predict to win the conference and contend for a national title.
Why exactly does Hauser warrant a bit more hype? Well, before having to sit out last season on Tony Bennett’s bench, the 6-foot-8, 220-pound stretch-four proved to be a ridiculously efficient scorer in each of his three seasons under Golden Eagles head coach Steve Wojciechowski (a former Duke basketball player and assistant)…
As a freshman, Hauser sank 63 of 139 attempts from 3-point range (45.3 percent). As a sophomore, he led the Big East in 3-point accuracy at an insane 48.7 percent, tallying 95 made 3-pointers, which is more than Matthew Hurt and Tre Jones combined for last season. As a junior, he dipped to 40.2 percent from deep but improved to 92.4 percent from the foul line (73-for-79).
All the while, despite averaging more than 30 minutes per game for his career at Marquette, he never averaged more than 1.4 turnovers per game. All in all, opposing teams will have no choice but to respect Sam Hauser’s trigger and will have little hope if they just hope for the high-IQ 22-year-old to shoot himself in the foot.
No. 3 in the ACC this season is a second Duke basketball player
It’s true that Jalen Johnson, who as a five-star prep ranked as high as No. 3 overall on the 247Sports 2020 Composite but finished at No. 13, has the necessary frame, athleticism, and alpha mentality to potentially end up a spot or two higher than No. 3 among his conference peers this season.
In other words, the 6-foot-9, 220-pound Johnson will undoubtedly begin the year in the running for ACC Player of the Year.
Even so, it’s also true that Johnson enters what will likely be a one-and-done layover in Durham with a sufficient number of vivid question marks to potentially drop him from the All-ACC conversation altogether…
Will Johnson’s somewhat shaky 3-point shot take away from the rest of his repertoire and add unnecessary pressure on his fellow Blue Devils to hit shots? Will the pressure from being a perceived centerpiece to a young Duke basketball team force the forward to try to do too much at times and then to ultimately crumble in losing times?
We’ll just have to wait and see how those answers, and others, play themselves out for Jalen Johnson. But the more times one replays his high school mixtapes — paying special attention to his beyond-his-years passing game and his knack for collecting rebounds — the easier it becomes to believe his overall commanding presence will pose some major problems for ACC opponents.
No. 2 in the ACC this season is not a Duke basketball player
Early on in the battle for Scottie Barnes, the Duke basketball coaches were serious players. Unfortunately, now that the 6-foot-9, 225-pound gem is at Florida State, they’ll need to figure out a way to contain him. And assuming the ACC schedule rotation remains intact for this season, the Blue Devils will have to face the possible 2021 lottery pick down in Tallahassee.
Finishing at No. 7 on the 247Sports 2020 Composite, Barnes boasts the highest prep ranking of any player from any class in the ACC this season. As a senior, he averaged 11.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 4.6 assists for a historically loaded Montverde Academy (Fla.) squad that finished No. 1 in the country (with a 25-0 record and an average margin of victory of 39 points per game).
Earlier this month, Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports named the versatile playmaker a Preseason Third Team All-American. Barnes is the only current ACC rookie on any of Rothstein’s three teams.
Also, factor in that the Seminoles, who finished first in the 2019-20 ACC standings, lost three top producers from last season but do return some experienced pieces to complement their most heralded newcomer. Furthermore, there’s chatter suggesting Barnes will see considerable time at the point — and maybe at every other position as well.
So barring a propensity for early foul trouble, the assertive, energetic, explosive athlete shouldn’t have any problem getting more than 30 minutes per game. Therefore, it wouldn’t be a shock if Scottie Barnes averages 15 or more points to go along with at least five rebounds and five assists per game.
No. 1 in the ACC this season is not a Duke basketball player
At the moment, Garrison Brooks seems to be the most popular preseason pick among media members to capture the ACC Player of the Year crown. As painful as it is for this Duke basketball fan to admit a North Carolina name should be No. 1 on any list, there is indeed evidence to support the notion that the 6-foot-10, 240-pound senior is in store for unmatched stats this season.
First, Brooks is the only current player who was an All-ACC Second Team performer in 2019-20 (no First Team selections are back). As a freshman two years prior, he drew starts in roughly half of North Carolina’s games, before becoming a full-time starter as a sophomore and junior.
As a junior last season, though anchoring the paint for a UNC team that wound up last in the ACC and with an abysmal 14-19 overall record, Brooks led the ACC in made field goals while finishing second in field goal percentage, total rebounds, and free throw attempts. At 16.8 points and 8.5 boards per game, he was fairly close to averaging a double-double (a real possibility this season).
Now, determined to flip the switch in Chapel Hill to the win position, Brooks is in a position to be a leader and mentor for a deep collection of talented post presences. That collection includes three centers who were five-stars in high school: sophomore Armando Bacot, freshman Day’Ron Sharpe, and freshman Walker Kessler.
Other than an injury or another losing season for the Tar Heels — fingers crossed on the latter — perhaps the best chance for someone other than Garrison Brooks to win ACC Player of the Year would be for the presences of Bacot, Sharpe, and Kessler to ding the 21-year-old’s total production.
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