ACC: Five Juniors Who Will Make an Impact in 2014-15

Jan 11, 2014; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Wake Forest Demon Deacons forward Devin Thomas (2) and guard Codi Miller-McIntyre (right) box out Pittsburgh Panthers forward Michael Young (middle) during the second half at the Petersen Events Center. Pittsburgh won 80-65. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

As we continue to prepare for the 2014-15 college basketball season, I took a look at some of the ACC’s best third-year players, who will undoubtedly have a huge impact on how things shake out in the conference this season.

There are three Juniors in the conference who made Blue Ribbon’s Preseason All America First Team, so I figured we could skip Marcus Paige, Montrezl Harrell, and Malcolm Brogdon, as they’re bound to be written about non-stop for the better part of the next seven months.

Instead, I chose to focus on some of this season’s most important role players, as well as some of the ACC’s less heralded teams, showing some love to players who will undoubtedly be shining this season, even if there’s not much light on them:

Rasheed Sulaimon, Guard/Forward, Duke
9.9 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 41-Percent 3FG

Duke wing Rasheed Sulaimon is definitely one of the top players to watch for in the ACC this season, as we’ve seen two completely different versions of him in his two years in Durham. As a freshman, Sulaimon’s strength’s were defense and attacking the basket, last season, he was a three-point specialist who showed the ability to facilitate offense for his teammates. With more talent than he’s ever played with and less depth at his position this upcoming season, Coach K and the Dukies will depend on a little bit of both samples that we’ve seen from Sulaimon, with an emphasis on leadership and stepping up in big moments. Sulaimon ended his Sophomore campaign by scoring 10 or more points in 11 of Duke’s  final 14 games, and has huge potential to breakout this season.

Olivier Hanlan, Guard, Boston College
18.5 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 2.9 APG

Scorer alert: Boston College guard Olivier Hanlan is the ACC’s leading returning scorer (18.5) from last season, as he impressively scored in double figures in all but two games in 2013-14, and has scored 10 or more points in 58-of-65 career games! A Third-Team All ACC selection as a Sophomore, Hanlan’s a combo guard who was asked to play off the ball more last year, but still managed to improve both his assist percentage and offensive rating. It could be another difficult season for BC in 2014-15 with the departure of Ryan Anderson, but first year coach Jim Christian is fortunate to have Hanlan for at least one more season. Hanlan’s my favorite to challenge Notre Dame’s Jerian Grant for the ACC scoring title.

Codi-Miller McIntyre, Guard/Devin Thomas, Forward, Wake Forest
12.6 PPG, 4.2 APG, 3.0 RPG/ 11.1 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 54-Percent FGM

In what will likely be the most winning Wake Forest does all season, I have TWO Demon Deacons on my list, with Codi-Miller McIntyre and Devin Thomas being two of the most talented Juniors in the conference. A former top-100 recruit, Miller McIntyre took steps forward in every statistical category last season (except for three point shooting, where quite bluntly, he stunk), as he was the first Wake Forest player since Jeff Teague in 2008-09 to lead the team in both scoring and assists. With nearly 40 PPG from last year’s roster now gone, Miller McIntyre will have to be a more efficient scorer if his team has any chance at succeeding in the ACC this year.

Wake Forest fans have to be excited about the potential of Thomas in his third year on campus, as he was the ACC’s fourth leading rebounder last season, and is second among active ACC players with 483 career rebounds. There’s more reason for optimism towards Thomas under the guidance of new Wake Forest coach Danny Manning, a former Naismith Award winner and NBA All Star power forward who has to have a bevy of things that he can teach his star big this season. Thomas still has much progress to make as a defender, and if he was slightly more efficient at the free throw line he could probably lead the Deacons in scoring, but if both he and Miller McIntyre can continue to grow as players, Wake might not be a laughing stock this season.

Aaron Thomas, Guard, Florida State
14.5 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 1.6 SPG

One of the most well-rounded players in the ACC, Florida State’s Aaron Thomas was expected to take a big step forward his Sophomore year, and he did not disappoint as he led the Seminoles in scoring (14.5), minutes played (31.5) and steals (57). Thomas averaged 18.2 PPG after he became a starter in early February, but his biggest strength is his smarts in knowing when to look for his own shot and when to involve others. Thomas will benefit from second-year player Xavier Rathan-Mayes (44th ranked player in HS class of 2013)  finally suiting up this year after being academically ineligble for his freshman season, as the burden of the scoring load should no longer rest solely on his shoulders. Thomas was an All ACC Honorable Mention last season, and I fully expect him to improve on that status this season.

Trevor Cooney, Guard, Syracuse
12.1 PPG, 1.9 SPG, 37-percent 3FG

Shooter! I really want to try and break the stereotypes associated with player’s of Cooney’s ilk by pointing to his 1.9 steals per game (2nd in the ACC), but Cooney led the ACC in three pointers attempted and made, and will more than likely lead the conference in those categories again his Junior year. So what if 7.1 of his 9.8 field goals attempted per game were from behind the arc? Cooney posted the second best offensive rating in the conference, as his scoring, combined with his lower usage and low turnover percentage have him as one of the most efficient players in the ACC despite his knack for letting those three’s fly. Coach Jim Boeheim clearly gives him the green light for whenever he has an open look, and in his second season as an integral part of Syracuse’s rotation, I expect him to be one of the conference’s top scorers.

Click here to see the Five ACC Seniors who I have pegged as impact players for this upcoming season.