Duke's three one-and-dones were pretty much expected. Nonetheless, it leaves the Devils with only 7 scholarship players and 0 point guards. Maybe K can pull a rabbit out of a hat. If not, better give the team trainer a raise. They will need everybody to stay healthy.

After Justin Anderson got punked by a phony April Fool tweet saying he had decided to leave early, I had kind of hoped he would decide to stay. Not to be. At least the Hoos have depth.

Real surprise to me was Trevor Lacey bolting from NC State. Make that two triangle teams with a short bench. The Pack is now down to 8 players. At least they have a point guard unless Cat Barber also decides to leave.

Any other likely ACC defections to the NBA that we haven't heard from yet?

Here's a story on ACC departures, written prior to Lacey announcing today.

ACC being hit hard by early NBA departures

I was surprised to see Lacey go. Until I saw this article I wasn't aware that Hanlan from BC and Thomas from FSU left as well.

Finish up recruiting over the next few weeks and we'll be better able to project next season in the ACC.

Make that 7 scholarship players for NC State, as Kyle Washington decided to transfer late yesterday. For the sake of my husband's sanity, I hope Gottfried has been doing some strong quiet recruiting to fill his bench next season.

(04-16-2015 08:34 AM)Lucy Wrote:  Make that 7 scholarship players for NC State, as Kyle Washington decided to transfer late yesterday. For the sake of my husband's sanity, I hope Gottfried has been doing some strong quiet recruiting to fill his bench next season.

Ouch. That really hurts. This was not a good year for the Pack to strike out in recruiting. And with both Carolina and Duke looking to add at least five players in the 2016 class, next year's recruiting battles are going to be fierce in the Triangle.

This isn't a draft loss, but I had overlooked that Adam Smith is leaving Virginia Tech and will be eligible immediately as a graduate transfer. He was the Hokies' leading scorer at 13.4 a game this season.

(04-16-2015 03:29 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  This isn't a draft loss, but I had overlooked that Adam Smith is leaving Virginia Tech and will be eligible immediately as a graduate transfer. He was the Hokies' leading scorer at 13.4 a game this season.

These lists dont include other notable losses like Rakeem Christmas who is graduating and likely a second rounder. I believe there are a few other guys whos eligibility is up.

At Louisville, there were two early draft entries (both expected), and three transfers, including one mid-season. Add in two seniors )one dismissed in feb), and there are only six returning scholarship players, five who were freshmen this past year (one who played only 22 total mins) due injury. Including walk-ons, there is a grand total of 426 points returning: or 11.8 ppg. That's it.

Lacey will be 24 before the season ends next year. It makes a lot of sense that he left when he did when you consider that.

It really looks like going forward a team of 7 or 8 scholarship players is the norm. Player 9 just doesn't get enough playing time to warrant remaining at a school. Washington is a good example. A few years ago a player in his situation would have stuck it out hoping to see more time if he worked hard and paid his dues. Now it makes little sense to stay knowing that their is a team out there in need of a big man in 2016 and plenty of playing time awaits. The same for Lewis last year. Why risk being limited to 10-15 minutes, sometimes none when somewhere else a starting job is just a year away? Maybe coaches will make adjustments to their recruiting and offer a scholarship or two a year to players that know from the start that they are role players in order to fill those 9,10,11 spots. Kind of a middle ground between a walk on and potential starter. Or maybe that is just a pipe dream.