ACC basketball: Five questions for the 2017-18 season

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 11: The Duke Blue Devils celebrate their 75-69 win over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the championship game of the 2017 Men's ACC Basketball Tournament at the Barclays Center on March 11, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)Restrictions /

Here are five questions for the ACC heading into the 2017-18 college basketball season.

The Atlantic Coast Conference was the main topic of conversation at the start of the season and at the end when North Carolina hoisted the national championship trophy.

While the league may not be as strong, there’s still some great basketball to be played. Here are five questions about how this league will look.

1. How does Louisville look after all the drama in the off-season?

The Cardinals came in as one of the favorites in the league until head coach Rick Pitino was fired after yet another scandal broke out. Five-star freshman Brian Bowen has not been allowed to partake in team activities as a result.

Former Louisville basketball player Scott Padgett is now the head coach and still has a talented roster led by V.J. King and Deng Adel. Can the team come together and still have a productive year?

2. Can Georgia Tech survive without two of their best players?

The news just days before the season begins with the suspensions of Josh Okogie and Tadric Jackson are devastating to Josh Pastner and the Yellow Jackets. They can miss a few games to an entire season depending on the investigation. If they’re out for a long period of time, their season will be over before it began.

3. Will Pittsburgh win a game?

This was the same question asked about Georgia Tech, considering the strength of the ACC last season. While the league is not as strong, the Panthers will still be an underdog in each conference game. Last month I did a preview of Pittsburgh’s upcoming season. Look at the roster and tell me who they’re going to beat?

4. How many bids will the league get this time around?

Nine bids for a conference is outstanding, but a tiny bit deflating based on the historical nature people had the ACC in last season. That kind of talk won’t be happening this time around, with several teams in a rebuilding phase that won’t be ready to contend until next season. The bids could be as high as nine again or potentially as low as just five.

5. Which will be harder for Duke: winning the ACC regular season or the NCAA Tournament?

The Blue Devils come in ranked as the top team in the country for the second year in a row. Last season their ACC plans were derailed with their top freshmen each harboring injuries. This time everyone comes in with good health and is the favorite to win the ACC.

Next: ACC rankings for 2017-18

In the ACC, it is still hard to win games on any given night. Even harder for Duke because they are being led by freshmen again. It might very well be easier to win in March. Although, teams like Arizona, Kansas, and Kentucky are better than anything the ACC has. The NCAA Tournament altogether is a crapshoot, so there’s just as good a chance they win neither as they are to win them both.