Head coach Hubert Davis and head into the season with plenty of confidence, a mindset that has been evident throughout the preseason and especially at week.
Despite the growing confidence throughout the Smith Center, North Carolina is not viewed as the preseason favorite in the ACC. The Tar Heels were projected to finish third in the league behind Duke and Louisville, according to the conference’s media poll. Duke led the way with 34 first-place votes, while Louisville secured 15. North Carolina earned a single first-place vote but will look to outperform expectations once the season begins.
Last season, UNC was projected to finish second in the ACC behind Duke and earned 11 first-place votes after capturing the 2023-24 regular-season title. However, the Tar Heels failed to meet expectations, finishing with a 23-14 overall record and tying for fourth in the conference at 13-7.
garnered significant attention from ACC media, earning a spot on the preseason All-ACC second team. He also picked up one vote for ACC Preseason Player of the Year and two votes for Rookie of the Year.
Wilson was the crown jewel of UNC’s 2025 recruiting class as the five-star recruit was ranked No. 8 nationally, No. 3 at his position and No. 1 in Georgia. As a senior, Wilson averaged 21.6 points, 11.1 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 3.6 blocks and 2.1 steals per game, leading Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School to its first state championship title.Â
2025 ACC Preseason PollSchool, Points1. Duke (34), 8662. Louisville (15), 8423. North Carolina, 7414. NC State, 7105. Virginia, 6236. SMU, 6167. Clemson, 5108. Miami, 5009. Syracuse, 48910. Notre Dame, 47711. Wake Forest, 41212. Virginia Tech, 35513. Georgia Tech, 31514. Pitt, 30115. Florida State, 22116. California, 15617. Stanford, 13818. Boston College, 107Â First-place votes in parentheses; 49 total voters
2025-26 Preseason All-ACC Team
First TeamName, School, VotesCameron Boozer, Duke, 46Markus Burton, Notre Dame, 46Darrion Williams, NC State, 45Mikel Brown Jr., Louisville, 36Ryan Conwell, Louisville, 36
Second TeamIsaiah Evans, Duke, 24Boopie Miller, SMU, 27J.J. Starling, Syracuse, 27Baye Ndongo, Georgia Tech, 24Caleb Wilson, North Carolina, 24
ACC Preseason Player of the YearDarrion Williams, NC State, 23 votesCameron Boozer, Duke, 19Markus Burton, Notre Dame, 2J.J. Starling, Syracuse, 2Donald Hand Jr., Boston College, 1Baye Ndongo, Georgia Tech, 1Caleb Wilson, North Carolina, 1
ACC Preseason Rookie of the YearCameron Boozer, Duke, 43 votesMikel Brown Jr., Louisville, 3Caleb Wilson, North Carolina, 2Neoklis Avdalas, Virginia Tech, 1