Around the ACC: Where does Louisville basketball’s backcourt rank?
By Jacob Lane
No. 11 – Clemson
2020 backcourt: Al-Amir Dawes (So.), John Newman III (Jr.), Clyde Trapp (Sr.), Nick Honor (RS So.), Chase Hunter (So.)
Guard play has always been a strength for Clemson with Brad Brownell at the helm, and that won’t change in the 2020 season behind several starters. While the Tigers do lose seniors Tevin Mack and Curran Scott, they get back rising stars Al-Amir Dawes, John Newman III, and Clyde Trapp as well as transfer Nick Honor and rising sophomores Chase Hunter and Khavon Moore.
Clemson was a very inconsistent team in 2019, even with Aamir Sims who was one of the best frontcourt players in the league, and a big part of that was their guards. They got double-digits out of Tevin Mack, who averaged 12.9 points per game, but outside of him, there were no consistent scorers.
All three guards who will return showed flashes of being really good players, but several things will have to improve collectively if they are going to take another step. The obvious weakness for Clemson is their lack of three-point shooting as they only hit 31 percent of their three-point attempts in 2019. All three guards were 30 percent shooters or below, which obviously won’t get it done.
There was improvement later in the season, which shows that they could improve, but until someone steps up and is able to score consistently the Tigers will struggle.
No. 10 – Virginia Tech
2020 backcourt: Naheim Alleyne (So.), Cartier Diarra (RS Sr.), Jalen Cone (So.), Tyrece Radford (Jr.), Hunter Cattoor (So.), Jonathan Kabongo (RS So.)
Virginia Tech could take a big jump in their second season under Mike Young, considering they return nearly their entire team. Unfortunately, they’ll be without their star guard, Landers Nolley II who transferred to Memphis which likely will lead to the program needing another year before being ready to compete in the ACC.
Naheim Alleyne, Jalen Cone, and Tyrece Radford started a lot of games last season and were mostly productive as young players for a team that at one point was in the top five in the ACC. I expect them to improve after another offseason learning Young’s system, and with the addition of Kansas State graduate transfer, Cartier Diarra, and the return of Hunter Cattoor and Jonathan Kabongo, there’s a lot of quality depth.
However, the group is still young and at times wildly inefficient. With a new piece in Diarra coming in and the core group still relatively young, I expect there to be a ton of growing pains again. They’ll probably win a few games they shouldn’t and compete in others until the end, but it’s another rebuilding year for the Hokies.
No. 9 – Syracuse
2020 backcourt: Buddy Boeheim (Jr.), Joe Girard III (So.), Kadary Richmond (Fr.)
One backcourt that won’t have issues scoring, especially from deep, is Syracuse. Not only did Elijah Hughes step up and develop into the ACC’s leading scorer in 2019, but the Orange got a surprising amount of help from sophomore Buddy Boeheim and freshman Joe Girard II.
Everyone knew that the Orange were going to have plenty of scoring in 2019, but I don’t think anyone expected the two young guards to develop into potentially elite scorers in the conference. Boeheim potentially had one of the biggest jumps in the ACC jumping from 6.8 ppg to nearly 16 points per game, becoming a top 12 shooter in the conference. Girard as a freshman showed the potential to be a Gerry McNamara type of player, providing a ton of scoring and playmaking at the one.
This season Syracuse will be without Hughes who has left for the NBA, but will return Boeheim and Girard, and could be the most lethal scoring backcourt combo in the conference. However, where Syracuse will really experience issues will be with depth. Jim Boeheim will have to deal with the loss of two former four-star recruits in Jalen Carey and Bryce Goodine as well as Howard Washington, all of whom transferred after the 2019 season.
That leaves just freshman Kadary Richmond as the only other guard on the roster. He’ll bring good size as well as anew level of athleticism that the roster doesn’t currently have and could also help with some of the defensive issues.
This is a talented group with a ton of scoring prowess, but as things stand at the moment, the lack of depth will cause major issues this upcoming season.