With the 2024-2025 college basketball season on the horizon, the Atlantic Coast Conference is shaping up to be a projected battle between preseason-ranked No. 7 Duke in the AP Poll and No. 9 North Carolina.
Last year, UNC basketball finished 29-8 overall and 17-3 amongst conference teams. They lost only to Georgia Tech 74-73, Clemson 80-76, and Syracuse 86-79. They swept Duke in two games last season.
They won the regular season ACC title but would go on to lose the ACC Tournament championship to North Carolina State.
Heading into this season, the landscape of the two teams is completely different. North Carolina lost rebounding sensation Armando Bacot along with Harrison Ingram and Cormac Ryan all to the NBA.
However, they also added Ven-Allen Lubin from Vanderbilt and Cade Tyson from Belmont in the transfer portal along with freshmen Ian Jackson and Drake Powell, two of the top freshmen in the class.
Duke added projected starter Maliq Brown from Syracuse and Mason Gillis from Purdue along with the top overall freshman in the class Cooper Flagg, a projected All-American first-team member, and big-man Khaman Maluach.
Jaime Shaw and On3 rank these two teams in the first tier entitled “The Race for First” while saying this about the top-ranked Tar Heels team.
This UNC team will be able to score the basketball. They have a handful of guys able to self-create and get into the teeth of the defense ready to make something happen. Cadeau steadying his play will be a big step for this team to take. UNC’s most talented players are in the backcourt, and perimeter-based so for success this year it will be important for Hubert Davis to find a rotation that works up front while getting his best players on the floor.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.