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ACC Basketball: The 2017-18 POY race will define the season

By John Woodcock

Apr 3, 2017; Phoenix, AZ, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Joel Berry II (2) cuts down the net after defeating the Gonzaga Bulldogs in the championship game of the 2017 NCAA Men's Final Four at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 3, 2017; Phoenix, AZ, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Joel Berry II (2) cuts down the net after defeating the Gonzaga Bulldogs in the championship game of the 2017 NCAA Men's Final Four at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Atlantic Coast Conference has two cornerstones on which the 2018 season will be built, Joel Berry and Grayson Allen.

The Atlantic Coast Conference just went through one of its better years on the court. It witnessed the conference produce a level of basketball that almost put eleven teams in the NCAA Tournament. There were analysts including ESPN’s Jay Bilas that thought Syracuse should have been in the field instead of some other teams.

The high tide of that achievement was cut a little short when most of the ACC teams in the tournament were cut down in the first few rounds. It was left to the North Carolina Tar Heels to save the conference’s bacon in the strangest ways possible. They did manage to grant the conference another NCAA Tournament victory when it was all over.

As good as last season was for the ACC, this upcoming basketball season has the potential to be even better. Teams are reloading. NC State has a new chance to live up to its potential. Duke is bringing in fresh faces. While everyone believes the Tar Heels will taking a step backward of some size, it is too early to say if it is large or small.

Even so, the real story of the conference this year will be the ACC Player of the Year race. We just got out of a very contentious player of the year race that saw Justin Jackson win, John Collins finish second, and Luke Kennard get named on every ballot but not finish in the top two. This year’s race has the potential to be better.

There may be outside candidates, like Bryant Crawford at Wake Forest or one of the noteworthy freshmen entering the league, but this race centers around two figures. Joel Berry II at North Carolina and Grayson Allen at Duke have the recipe for a great Player of the Year race.

Both players are coming back for senior seasons. Both were denied by injuries from testing their draft stock this year. Both have won national titles. Both need big seasons to impress NBA onlookers. Both need to be leaders for their respective teams.

For Allen, this season will be a test of character. He has seen his career go from being the title run hero to the guy who trips people. He will be handed a Duke team with a lot talent, but not much experience. He will be expected to go win with it. Not only does Duke have to win, but Allen has to be the guy that takes them there. That may mean more playmaking for others to go with his dependable three ball.

For Berry, this season will be a test of potential. Last year, Berry went up like a rocket at the beginning of the season before settling down in the middle of year. He dug deep to get through the tournament season and managed to pull a Final Four MOP performance without much jump in his jumpshot. Now he gets the keys to an offense that does not have Justin Jackson waiting in the wings to bail them out. A lot of that scoring pressure will fall on Berry.

With both of them needing to carry their teams, big years would have been essential. Throwing in the need to impress NBA scouts only pushes it that much further. In a league obsessed with height and wingspans, both Berry and Allen are small for their respective positions. Production is the only counter they can offer.

If they both succeed, then the ACC will be in for a run as they will bring Duke and North Carolina with them. While the ACC has acquired former Big East schools in recent years, the brand of the conference is the Duke-North Carolina rivalry in basketball. Two or three good games between the two is just more power for the conference. Berry and Allen will need to showcase themselves against the best competition — and that means each other. An inconsistent Duke team played its best ball against the Heels last year, to show the importance the teams put on that rivalry.

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Berry and Allen will then get to close out their regular season careers against each other in Cameron. By then one or the other may be the favorite for the Player of the Year award, but the other will not be that far behind and that last game may mean everything for the voters. Even if neither becomes national champion for a second time, their duel should leave a lasting mark on the year.