AAC Basketball: Updated 2018-19 preseason rankings for the conference

Even though East Carolina lost its top scorer this offseason, there are still two strong returning players on the roster. With both Isaac Fleming and Shawn Williams returning after posting ~12 points per game each a year ago, the Pirates will have a dangerous backcourt. However, the player that jumps out to me most heading into this year is forward Dimitri Spasojevic. As a freshman last season, the 6-foot-8 forward averaged 6.1 points and 4.0 rebounds per game while shooting 56.6% from the field.

With these three players leading the way, East Carolina will have a fair amount of potential to be a dangerous team even though they lack depth on paper. Regardless, though, this team desperately needs to improve in regards to 3-point shooting. As a team, the Pirates shot just 30.5% from distance a year ago, a rate that ranked 337th in the country (out of 351).

In the modern era of college basketball, perimeter shooting is paramount to success. Yet, East Carolina was absolutely abysmal from beyond the arc a year ago. In fact, only one player on the entire team last year shot better than 30% from deep. Thankfully, though, that one player was Williams, who led the team in 3PM (72), 3PA (196), and 3P% (36.7%). East Carolina will once again need Williams to be a solid 3-point shooting option while also seeing some others perform well from deep.