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

CHAPEL HILL, NC - FEBRUARY 25: Leaky Black #1, Armando Bacot #5, R.J. Davis #4 and Caleb Love #2 of the North Carolina Tar Heels walk away from the camera during a game against the Virginia Cavaliers on February 25, 2023 at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. North Carolina won 71-63. (Photo by Peyton Williams/UNC/Getty Images) /

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ACC Basketball North Carolina State Wolfpack (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

11. NC State

With Jarkel Joiner and Terquavion Smith out of the mix, NC State has quite a bit of outgoing production to replace. The All-ACC duo averaged nearly 35 points per game in Kevin Keatts’ guard-centric offense, leading the Wolfpack to their first NCAA Tournament since 2018.

On the bright side, DJ Burns is expected to use his COVID season and return to Raleigh, although still unofficial. Casey Morsell can do the same. If both return, it would be an enormous boost for the Pack and a relief for Keatts.

Versatile wing Jack Clark is portaling after just one season at NC State. The former La Salle Explorer was valuable for his ability to guard multiple positions, rebound, and exploit the occasional mismatch offensively. He would have been an obvious choice to replace some of the production lost in Joiner and Smith.

LJ Thomas should make a production leap as a sophomore. The 6-foot-2 combo guard showed flashes of high-level shotmaking as a freshman, although his decision-making will need to improve in an increased role.

Expect Keatts to be active in the portal in search of another Jarkel Joiner – or at least a couple of guys he can piece together to replace that production.