ACC Basketball: 5 biggest storylines of 2020 offseason

By Brian Rauf | May 2, 2020

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA - FEBRUARY 27: Head coach Tony Bennett of the Virginia Cavaliers and head coach Roy Williams of the North Carolina Tar Heels shake hands before North Carolina's game against the Virginia Cavaliers at John Paul Jones Arena on February 27, 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Photo by Chet Strange/Getty Images) /

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KNOXVILLE, TN – DECEMBER 22: Coach Steve Forbes of the East Tennessee State Buccaneers expresses displeasure against the Tennessee Volunteers in a game at Thompson-Boling Arena on December 22, 2015 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Patrick Murphy-Racey/Getty Images) /

ACC basketball had a down season in 2019-20, but things should return to normal 2020-21. Here are the biggest storylines to watch this offseason.

ACC basketball is traditionally one of the best – if not the best – conference in the country on an annual basis. Last year was an exception as many teams within the ACC unexpectedly struggled.

Duke, Louisville, and North Carolina all began the year ranked in the top 10 and neither of them finished there. In fact, none of the three finished in the top two in the conference as both the Blue Devils and Cardinals fell victim to a number of upsets and UNC…well, yeah.

Florida State’s success and Virginia’s late-season surge ensured the conference was going to earn four NCAA Tournament bids if it had been held, but that was all the ACC was going to get.

Watching if the conference as a whole is able to recover – or not recover – from such a down year will remain an overarching storyline all season long, as will the annual tradition (for now) of seeing how top freshmen perform. Duke and North Carolina reeled in the No. 2 and No. 3 recruiting classes in the country, respectfully, but four others (Virginia, Pitt, NC State, and Virginia Tech) are bringing in top 25 classes as well.

However, those storylines are pretty standard for any conference. What are the most specific and pressing storylines this offseason pertaining to schools in the ACC? Here are the top five, starting with the Tar Heels getting back on track.