Busting Brackets
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ACC Basketball: Updated preseason rankings for 2018-19

By Brian Rauf

DURHAM, NC - FEBRUARY 24: Head coach Mike Krzyzewski of the Duke Blue Devils during their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on February 24, 2018 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
DURHAM, NC - FEBRUARY 24: Head coach Mike Krzyzewski of the Duke Blue Devils during their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on February 24, 2018 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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LOUISVILLE, KY – MARCH 28: Chris Mack holds a Louisville Slugger bat. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KY – MARCH 28: Chris Mack holds a Louisville Slugger bat. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

The 2018-19 season will mark a fresh start for a Louisville program that is coming off of two major scandals, one involving strippers (that cost the school the 2013 title) and the other involving the FBI – neither of which you want to have around your program.

Former Xavier head coach Chris Mack is now taking over the reins following what was essentially a lost year for the Cardinals due to the (still ongoing) FBI investigation, and while many think it will be a rebuilding process in Louisville, I think the Cardinals will be a formidable team rather quickly.

Talent was never the issue and Louisville still has a good deal of it. V.J. King is a former five-star recruit who will need to become a go-to guy right away, while Samford grad transfer Christen Cunningham – that program’s all-time assist leader – is expected to take over at point guard. UConn transfer Steven Enoch and talented seven-footer Malik Williams are expected to start down low.

The Cardinals need to see that talent develop and reach its full potential, something that never really happened during the later years of former head coach Rick Pitino’s tenure and certainly wasn’t going to happen under Dave Padgett. Mack has a track record for getting the most out of his players and, if he can do that at Louisville, this may be too low for this team.