ACC Basketball: Way-too-early power rankings for 2022-23 season

Mar 27, 2022; Philadelphia, PA, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels pose for a photo after the Tar Heels defeated the St. Peters Peacocks in the finals of the East regional of the men's college basketball NCAA Tournament at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

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ACC Basketball Jon Scheyer Duke Blue Devils Jeremy Roach (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /

2. Duke Blue Devils

There’s a different head coach for the program now that Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski is gone but new head coach Jon Scheyer has kept the machine going… at least on the recruiting trail so far. Once again, the team has the No. 1 incoming recruiting class, led by three of the top four overall class of 2022 prospects in Dereck Lively, Kyle Filipowski, and Dariq Whitehead.

Add another five-star freshman forward in Mark Mitchell and two four-star guards (Jaden Schutt and Tyrese Proctor) and the Blue Devils have potential to replace stars such as Paolo Banchero, Mark Williams, AJ Griffin, and Wendell Moore from last season. The one returning starter in point guard Jeremy Roach, who averaged just under double figures in the first two seasons but broke out in the final 10 games of the 2021-22 campaign.

The Blue Devils also brought in three D-I transfers, most notably, former Illinois guard Jacob Grandison. He averaged 10 ppg and shot over 40% from deep and gives Duke both a veteran and capable sharpshooter. Whether he starts or not will depend on the potential lineups but he’ll have a role next season.

Duke may have the most talent from 1-10 in the country but as always, how good the freshmen are out the gate will determine their ceiling. And if Lively and Filipowski do indeed play on the court together, how that experiment works out. If it does, they very well could be the team to beat in the ACC.