Welcome to my team preview series for 2024-25. Each day between now and the start of the college basketball season, I will preview one team or conference, both on Instagram (@collegehoopsoutlet) and through an article here. The preview will go in-depth on the roster build of the team, my expectations for their upcoming season, and the state of the program under their current head coach.
NC State (Projected: 14th in ACC)
NC State has been an average ACC team for much of Kevin Keatts’ seven-year tenure and that doesn’t look to change in 2024-25. The Wolfpack weren’t anything spectacular until the ACC Tournament kicked off and they became the hottest team in the country, reaching the 2024 Final Four. A run like that won’t happen again for awhile, but Keatts knows he needs to at least have this team fighting for a tournament bid once again.
The Wolfpack bring back three players who were quintessential to their miracle March run. Jayden Taylor (11 ppg, 4 rpg) is the leading returning scorer, an all-around guard who can score at all three levels and defend. Michael O’Connell (6 ppg, 3 apg) was the primary point guard throughout the Wolfpacks’ run, hardly ever getting a breather. It’s important to note that in the Final Four loss to Purdue, O’Connell got injured just 12 minutes in. O’Connell is also the one who kickstarted the Wolfpack’s run, banking in a three to send the ACC semifinal against Virginia to overtime.
Ben Middlebrooks (6 ppg, 4 rpg) is the lone returning frontcourt player, a dynamic post player who provided a boost in the rebounding category throughout the run. Middlebrooks’ best game of the season came when he scored 21 points against Texas Tech in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Dennis Parker Jr. (5 ppg) and Breon Pass (1 ppg) complete the list of Wolfpack returners, both not really apart of the 7-man rotation the Wolfpack used in postseason play.
Four of the Wolfpack players key to the postseason run and a couple of others left the program this offseason. Seniors DJ Horne (17 ppg, 4 rpg), DJ Burns Jr. (13 ppg, 4 rpg), and Casey Morsell (11 ppg) all graduated after being leading factors in the run. Junior Mohamed Diarra (6 ppg, 8 rpg) declared for the NBA Draft following his big March. The Wolfpack also lost MJ Rice (4 ppg), Ernest Ross (4 ppg in 2023), and LJ Thomas (3 ppg).
To replace these players, Kevin Keatts went to the transfer portal, picking up three high major players and a talented mid-major guard. The backcourt pickups consist of Marcus Hill (21 ppg, 5 rpg at Bowling Green) and Mike James (13 ppg, 5 rpg at Louisville). Hill scored more than 20 points a game last season without a consistent three-point shot, showing his scoring talent, and he will likely find a role as a secondary ball handler next to Michael O’Connell. I’m projecting James to come off the bench, giving the Wolfpack a spark off the bench as a dynamic scorer.
In the frontcourt, the transfers coming in are Dontrez Styles (13 ppg, 6 rpg at Georgetown) and Brandon Huntley-Hatfield (13 ppg, 8 rpg at Louisville. Styles is more of a wing, but his frame, ability on the glass, and defensive presence lead me to believe he’ll start at the four for an NC State team extremely thin in the frontcourt. Styles also offers a great ability to space the floor (36.8% 3P%), giving the Wolfpack another dimension offensively. At 6-10, Huntley-Hatfield will have to try to fill both holes left by Burns and Diarra, a talented post scorer and elite rebounder.
Three players round out the Wolfpack’s incoming class with the most notable being Paul McNeil (4*, NAT 52). McNeil is a talented wing and could find time in his freshman year in a thin rotation. Guard Trey Parker (3*, NAT 137) is the other freshman recruit, a reverse re-class guy who spent an extra year at Overtime Elite before heading to college this fall. The final addition to the Wolfpack roster is French big man Ismael Diouf, who transfers over to NC State after playing college basketball in Canada for two seasons. Diouf’s translation to college basketball in the US may be a wait-and-see, but he has raw talent that could help him play a role in the frontcourt for NC State.
Kevin Keatts has had a wild ride as the head coach at NC State, and it’s very likely that he wouldn’t still be the coach if the Wolfpack didn’t embark on a miracle journey to reach the NCAA Tournament and eventually the Final Four. He’ll be out to prove to any doubters that the run wasn’t a fluke, but has a thin roster with a ceiling that is probably sneaking into the NCAA Tournament. Keatts’ job should be safe for now after gifting Wolfpack fans a taste of the miracle 1983 run under Jimmy V, but he can’t get too comfortable in an ACC that will be sure to take some names to the coaching carousel this season.
The Wolfpack have plenty of experience in their top seven guys, but lack shooting and proven depth. The frontcourt is also extremely thin, with just three listed forwards on the roster. The X-factors on this NC State team for me are Georgetown transfer Dontrez Styles and freshman Paul McNeil. Both will be asked to play minutes on the wings, and likely even get time at the four-spot. Styles is the most proven shooter on this roster, and may have an even bigger role than people think. McNeil won’t have pressure to perform at a high level right away, but the quicker he gets up to speed, the better this NC State team can be.
The Wolfpack weren’t anything special in the ACC before the unbelievable postseason run and now they lose four players vital to that run. The overall talent level for 2024-25 is probably lower than last year’s team, and it may take time for the returners, transfers, and freshmen to gel together. I’ve got the Wolfpack finishing 14th in the new 18-team ACC, ahead of Stanford, Boston College, Florida State, and Virginia Tech.