The Sports Bank’s college basketball season previews undergo a face lift this season. Rather than counting down the top 111 teams in 111 days, we will go conference-by-conference. I’ve already counted down the Pac-12, Big 12, SEC, and AAC, and now turn my attention to the already new-look ACC.
Since being named head coach, Brian Gregory has yet to lead the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets to the NCAA Tournament. With four of their top five scorers gone from a year ago, there figures to only be more struggles this season.
GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS
Last Season: T-11th, 6-12 in ACC, 16-17 overall
Predicted ACC Finish: 14th
Projected Depth Chart
C: Charles Mitchell (So)/DeMarco Cox (Sr)/Ben Lammers (Fr)
F: Quinton Stephens (So)/Robert Sampson (Sr)/Abdoulaye Gueye (Fr)
SF: Marcus Georges-Hunt (Jr)
SG: Chris Bolden (Jr)/Tadric Jackson (Fr)
PG: Travis Jorgenson (Fr)/Corey Hayward (So)
Gone: PG-Trae Golden, C-Daniel Miller, PF-Kammeon Holsey, G/F-Jason Morris, SG-Stacey Poole Jr., PF-Robert Carter (transfer-Maryland), PG-Solomon Poole (dismissed)
2014-2015 Outlook:
Without any other real option, Marcus Georges-Hunt is the alpha dog for Georgia Tech this season. The 6-5 wing needs to take his game to the next level for the Yellow Jackets to have any chance of rising in the competitive ACC. Chris Bolden will flank him on the wing. His scoring dipped during his sophomore season and has to be more aggressive this year since freshman Tadric Jackson is the only other option on the wing.
With Trae Golden gone, Travis Jorgenson and Corey Hayward are battling it out at point guard. Jorgenson tore his ACL in Tech’s fourth game last season which sidelined him the remainder of the year. He possesses more scoring ability and is a better pure distributor than Hayward so expect him to take the reins in running the offense.
Tech adds some beef down low with the additions of Maryland transfer Charles Mitchell and DeMarco Cox formerly of Ole Miss. Both guys are undersized for big men at 6-8 but extremely physical and know how to carve out space in the paint. Ben Lammers brings more ideal size at 6-10 but probably won’t make a major impact as a freshman.
Robert Carter chose to leave the program this off-season so minutes are up for grabs at forward. The long, athletic Quinton Stephens and East Carolina transfer Robert Sampson are expected to compete for the starting spot. Both guys can step outside a knock down open jumpers which adds some versatility to the frontcourt.
Besides Mitchell and Cox, the Yellow Jackets added two more transfers. Former Alabama power forward Nick Jacobs and ex-USF point guard Josh Heath must sit out this season but hopefully add a boost of talent for the 2015-16 season. The question is whether Gregory will still be around past this year to coach them…
Key Non-Conference Games:
11/14 vs. Georgia
11/20 vs. Marquette (Old Spice Classic)
11/21 vs. Michigan State/Rider (Old Spice Classic)
11/23 vs. Kansas/Rhode Island/Tennessee/Santa Clara (Old Spice Classic)
12/20 vs. Vanderbilt
12/23 at Dayton
12/30 vs. Charlotte
OTHER ACC PREVIEWS:
AAC PREVIEWS:
#1 UCONN HUSKIES
#7 UCF KNIGHTS
#8 SOUTH FLORIDA BULLS
#9 HOUSTON COUGARS
#10 TULANE GREEN WAVE
#11 EAST CAROLINA PIRATES
SEC PREVIEWS:
#1 KENTUCKY WILDCATS
BIG 12 PREVIEWS:
#1 KANSAS JAYHAWKS
#2 TEXAS LONGHORNS
PAC-12 PREVIEWS:
#1 ARIZONA WILDCATS
#4 UCLA BRUINS
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Milwaukee to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft and the most accurate 2012 NBA Mock Draft on the internet (Yup, repeat champ… #humblebrag), and finished with the second most accurate 2013 NBA Mock Draft (nearly a three-peat.) You can follow him on Twitter at David_Kmiecik.