ACC Basketball: 5 storylines to watch as 2023-24 league play gets going

ACC basketball has already gotten its conference schedule underway and it's shown that this season is going to be as competitive as ever with top teams already taking losses. Take a look at five early storylines to watch heading into 2024.

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Who's the early favorite to win the ACC?

The early list of favorites could always change but based on the way teams are playing, here's a look at the three favorites to take home the regular-season crown at the very least in the ACC.

Clemson Tigers

The Clemson Tigers have a two-headed monster for opponents to deal with in the combination of Joe Girard III and PJ Hall this season. The duo is averaging impressive numbers as a 1-2 punch in the Tigers rotation and it's shown in their current record of 11-1. They've got a 79-70 victory over the Pittsburgh Panthers under their belt already heading into 2024. They'll open things up in January with Miami on the road on Wednesday then they'll host the Tar Heels at home on Saturday. It will be an early test for Clemson to see if they're a serious ACC basketball title contender.

Miami Hurricanes

They've already gotten past the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, 62-49, to kick off conference action back in December. At 10-2 on the season, there aren't many chinks in the armor for the Hurricanes to worry about just yet. They'll host Clemson on Wednesday before traveling to a hostile Wake Forest environment on Saturday to kick off the month of January. Norchad Omier, Wooga Poplar and Matthew Cleveland are playing well together while Nijel Pack remains on the sideline with an injury. At full strength, they're a scary group to deal with.

UNC Tar Heels

The Tar Heels are starting to find their identity with RJ Davis leading the way in the backcourt. They've gone 9-3 while facing some early adversity from the likes of Villanova, UConn and Kentucky on the non-conference schedule but they bounced back with a victory over Oklahoma. With Pittsburgh and then Clemson on the road to kick off the month of January, we'll find out a lot about this group right away when it comes to facing adversity. Davis is averaging 21.6 points per game and dishing out 3.6 assists per contest while Stanford transfer Harrison Ingram continues to find his role on the wing.

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