Busting Brackets
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ACC Basketball: Each team’s best acquisition out of 2023 transfer portal

By Jerran Anderson

Jan 24, 2023; Tallahassee, Florida, USA; Florida State Seminoles guard Matthew Cleveland (35) reacts in the second half against the Miami Hurricanes at Donald L. Tucker Center. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 24, 2023; Tallahassee, Florida, USA; Florida State Seminoles guard Matthew Cleveland (35) reacts in the second half against the Miami Hurricanes at Donald L. Tucker Center. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports /

Dante Harris – 6’0 Guard – Virginia Cavaliers

Dante Harris makes the move from the Georgetown Hoyas to the ACC top-defensive squad in the Virginia Cavaliers as he looks to turn the odds. Harris built quite the resume in the Big East with the Hoyas as he produced 10.0 ppg, 3.6 apg, 3.5 rpg, and 1.3 spg across 2020-22. His ability to be a presence on both ends of the floor in the backcourt is certainly a need for the Cavaliers heading into a new season.

Harris is a high dose of offense that the Cavaliers could use in 2023-24. While they still managed to finish atop the ACC with a 15-5 record and an ACC regular season title, UVA faltered in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against 13th-seeded Furman 68-67.

UVA ranked 277th in the NCAA in scoring offense (67.8 ppg) this past season despite boasting the sixth-best scoring defense (60.5 ppg). One glaring issue is his 26.8 percent shooting from 3-point range, but they’ve got others to fill that void in Jordan Rohde (St. Thomas) and Jacob Groves (Oklahoma).

His leadership in the backcourt will be looked upon heavily to right the ship offensively, especially with other perimeter shooters out of the portal added to the mix. As a fast-starting scoring guard, Harris’ addition to Virginia’s backcourt could be all it needs to jumpstart another run in the NCAA Tournament. Harris joined the Cavaliers program back in December and hasn’t appeared in a game since then, which has given him extended time under his belt to get experience with his teammates in practice and scrimmages.

With just four players returning from last season’s squad, he’ll be heavily looked upon for experience in the backcourt alongside Reece Beekman, another veteran guard that’s been with the program since 2020.