ACC Basketball: Way-too-early power rankings for 2023-24 season

4. North Carolina

To say that North Carolina’s 2022-23 season was a disappointment would be an understatement. Their failures were well documented, as was the team’s apparent lack of chemistry.

The Tar Heels have had six players enter the transfer portal so far, including Caleb Love and Puff Johnson. Leaky Black and Pete Nance are out of eligibility. That’s four of Carolina’s top six players gone from a team that missed the NCAA Tournament. So what gives?

A change of pace is needed in Chapel Hill. You never want to see talented players leave, but Hubert Davis having several open scholarships to go portaling with gives Carolina the potential for positive roster turnover. It’s UNC, after all. The bright lights, lucrative NIL, and potential for playing time should be enough to lure high-quality transfers.

On top of that, Armando Bacot and RJ Davis are both returning. That gives the Heels an All-ACC level point guard/center duo.

This team needs wings and forwards. They need shooting to surround Bacot and a defender to replace some of what they lost with Leaky Black’s departure.

There has also been speculation that Elliott Cadeau could reclassify and join the Heels for the 2023-24 season. Cadeau is a top-10 recruit from the 2024 class who is committed to UNC. He’s an old-school point guard (in the best way) who would give RJ Davis the ability to play more as an off-ball shooter. Again, this is largely speculative and Cadeau has yet to make a decision. If he does choose to reclassify, it would be fantastic news for UNC’s 2023-24 outlook.