Summer Hoops Preview '14
The Picks
Part I: Duke, UNC, N.C. State
Part II: Wake, BC, FSU, Notre Dame
Part III: Clemson, Maryland, Miami, Pitt

Syracuse

Coach: Jim Boeheim (38th season, 920-313 at Syracuse and overall)

2012-13 record: 30-10 (11-7 Big East, fifth)

Postseason: NCAA tournament, 4-1 (beat Montana, Cal, Indiana, Marquette; lost to Michigan)

Projected starting lineup: PG Tyler Ennis, F Michael Gbinije, F C.J. Fair, F Rakeem Christmas, F Jerami Grant

Plus

• Jim Boeheim keeps getting better with age. Few coaches understand how to recruit for their needs better than Boeheim, who has a specific idea of how he wants the game to be played and then he goes out and plugs the corresponding pieces into his 2-3 zone.

Summer Hoops Preview '14
The Picks: The Picks
Part I: Duke, UNC, N.C. State
Part II:
Wake, BC, FSU, Notre Dame
Part IV: Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech

Clemson

Coach: Brad Brownell (fourth season, 51-45 at Clemson; 218-130 overall)

2012-13 record: 13-18 (5-13 ACC, 11th)

Postseason: none

Projected starting lineup: G Jordan Roper, G Rod Hall, F K.J. McDaniels, F Jaron Blossomgame, F Ibrahim Djambo

Plus

• Brad Brownell can really coach. K.J. McDaniels is really athletic.

Summer Hoops Preview '14
The Picks: The Picks
Part I: Duke, UNC, N.C. State
Part II: Wake, BC, FSU, Notre Dame
Part III: Clemson, Maryland, Miami, Pitt
Part IV: Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech

Wake Forest

Coach: Jeff Bzdelik (fourth season, 34-60 at Wake Forest, 145-165 overall)

2012-13 record: 13-18 (6-12 ACC, ninth)

Postseason: none

Projected starting lineup: G Codi Miller-McIntyre, G Coron Williams, F Travis McKie, F Devin Thomas, F Tyler Cavanaugh

Plus

• Wake did not finish last in the ACC last season. That counts as progress under Jeff Bzdelik, who finished last in 2011 (1-15) and tied for last in 2012 (4-12). Keep in mind, Bzdelik inherited a program that made back-to-back NCAA tournament trips in 2009 and '10 and was ranked No. 1 in the country at one point in Jan. '09, so progress is relative.

Coach: Mark Gottfried (third season, 48-24 at N.C. State; 327-178 overall)

2012-13 record: 24-11 (11-7 ACC, fifth)

Postseason: NCAA tournament, 0-1 (lost to Temple)

Projected starting lineup: PG Cat Barber, G Desmond Lee, G Ralston Turner, F T.J. Warren, F Kyle Washington

Plus

• A fresh start. Mark Gottfried gets to start over in Year 3 at N.C. State and he does so with two NCAA tournament appearances under his belt and a trip to the Sweet 16.

Gottfried said after the NCAA tournament loss to Temple he could never get all the players to buy in last season. With a new season, new roster, he gets to push the reset button and try again with a group of players he recruited.

Coach: Roy Williams (11th season, 282-79 at UNC; 700-180 overall)

2012-13 record: 25-11 (12-6 ACC, third)

Postseason: NCAA tournament, 1-1 (beat Villanova, lost to Kansas)

Projected starting lineup: PG Marcus Paige, G P.J. Hairston, G Leslie McDonald, F James Michael McAdoo, F Isaiah Hicks

Plus

• P.J. Hairston and James Michael McAdoo both decided to return for the 2013-14 season. By the end of the 2012-13 season, Hairston developed into the best player on the team, averaging 18.2 points over the final 13 games.

To give you an idea of the strides Hairston, a scoring guard, made from his freshman to sophomore seasons, he made 13 3-pointers (in 27 attempts) in three ACC tournament games in 2013. As a freshman, Hairston made eight 3-pointers during the *entire* conference season.

Coach: Mike Krzyzewski (34th season, 884-238 at Duke; 957-297 overall)

2012-13 record: 30-6 (14-4 ACC, second)

Postseason: NCAA tournament, 3-1 (beat Albany, Creighton, Michigan State; lost to Louisville)

Projected starting lineup: G Quinn Cook, G Rasheed Sulaimon, F Jabari Parker, F Rodney Hood, F Amile Jefferson

Plus

• Remember when Duke lost to Lehigh in the NCAA tournament in 2012 and Lehigh, from the Patriot League, had arguably a more athletic lineup than Duke, an ACC program with its choice of McDonald's All-Americans?

Summer Hoops Preview '14
Today: The Picks; Duke, UNC, N.C. State
Monday: Wake Forest, Notre Dame, Boston College, Florida State
Tuesday: Clemson, Maryland, Miami, Pittsburgh
Wednesday: Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech

If Duke's history is the precedent, the rest of the newly expanded ACC is in trouble.

The Blue Devils have a chance to be historically good in 2013-14. Mike Krzyzewski has taken Duke to the NCAA tournament 29 times in his 33 seasons. He has lost in the round of eight only twice: last season to Louisville (the eventual champion) and in 1998 to Kentucky (the eventual champion).

Torry Holt and Tommy Burleson headline the second class of the N.C. State Athletic Hall of Fame, which was announced on Monday.

Holt, one of the best football players in ACC history, and Burleson, who helped the Wolfpack win the 1974 national title in basketball, are two of the 10 new members of the hall, which was created by the school last year.

Mason Plumlee is one of several local players who will participate in the NBA Combine. Credit: CHUCK LIDDY

All three Duke players eligible for this year's draft—seniors Mason Plumlee , Seth Curry and Ryan Kelly —have received invitations to the NBA Combine, the league announced Thursday night. Curry and Kelly, both recovering from offseason surgeries, will not participate in workouts.

Here is a list of all the ACC alumni headed to the May 15-19 workout in Chicago:

ESPN announced the match-ups for the 15th annual ACC-Big 10 challenge. They are as follows:

Tuesday, December 3rd