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ACC Basketball: Ranking all 18 programs after additions of Stanford, Cal, and SMU

By Tristan Freeman

Feb 5, 2023; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Stanford Cardinal head coach Jerod Haase during the second half against the Colorado Buffaloes at the CU Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 5, 2023; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Stanford Cardinal head coach Jerod Haase during the second half against the Colorado Buffaloes at the CU Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports /
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NCAA Basketball
ACC Basketball (L-R) Jordan Miller #11, Nijel Pack #24, Isaiah Wong #2 and Norchad Omier #15 of the Miami Hurricanes (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

4. Miami Hurricanes

For a program with 60 years at the D-I level, the Hurricanes didn’t have much accomplished until the past decade, when former George Mason HC Jim Laranaga took over. Since then, he’s taken Miami to the top tier of the ACC Basketball standings, with a number of NCAA Tournament appearances. And he broke through the glass ceiling for the program, taking them to their first-ever trip to the Final Four.

Miami is perfectly set up for this modern era of the NIL and transfer portal. Many talented players would want to play there, and they’ve already benefitted, as Norchad Omier and Nijel Pack were perfect additions to last year’s squad. They already recruit well locally in the state of Florida and beyond as well.

The big question with the Hurricanes is how long they will have Laranaga. He turns 74 years old in October and outside of winning it all, has essentially accomplished everything that he could want to. And based on the past history, not everyone can simply come in and win at Miami.

Until then, this is an elite ACC Basketball program with all of the upside imaginable. And if Florida State were to ever leave and Miami stayed, that would simply make things easier for them on the recruiting front.