The Atlantic Coast Conference is the mecca of college basketball. We know that. This year’s recruiting haul justifies such a statement.

The league is living up to it’s billing as the conference in college basketball. The ACC has six of the top 14 overall classes on the opening day of the earlier signing period.

Let’s talk about Duke for a moment…The Blue Devils have reeled in the best class of the conference and it is just as good – and potentially better – than the class that just won a national championship last season. Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones and Justice Winslow are all cashing checks from NBA teams this season while Grayson Allen should be a major piece for the Blue Devils this year.

The quartet of Harry Giles, Jayson Tatum, Frank Jackson and Javin DeLaurier could all do the same, too.

But recruiting classes aren’t judged on professional paystubs. National Championships matter at this stage of the game. The Blue Devils have a nice mixture of instant impact talent at the right spots, long term producers and players that will find their way within the current landscape of the existing rosters.

No one should be surprised that we are talking about what Duke has done on the recruiting trail. Again.

Virginia is taking the on-court success to the recruiting trail with the No. 5 overall class. Kyle Guy and Ty Jerome will make for one of the more exciting backcourts in the ACC. Guy, the No. 33 ranked player in the country, is pure entertainment while Jerome, a top 50 Composite player, is custom made for the way Tony Bennett wants to play.

DeAndre Hunter, in our opinion, is one of the real steals nationally. We have the Philadelphia area forward as a top 50 player while the composite ranking has him at No. 107 overall. Jay Huff, a rangy 6-foot-10 forward from North Carolina, is No. 122 on the composite list. He could be terrific long-term guy. We loved what we saw from him last weekend. 

Florida State has one of the real stars of the class with in-state talent Jon Isaac coming to town. The long-armed, continually improving forward is the gem of the three-man class. Trent Forrest, a versatile guard with a Nike Peach Jam championship under his belt, joins an already strong backcourt. CJ Walker gives the Noles more talented depth at the guard position. FSU isn’t done either. Keep an eye on Dewan Huell and/or Udoka Azubuike. Both big men could pop for Leonard Hamilton’s program.

Syracuse has two top 35 level players coming to town in Tyus Battle and Matt Moyer. Both fit the Orange perfectly. North Carolina also has a pair of talented top 60 level players coming to Chapel Hill in center Tony Bradley and wing Brandon Robinson. NSD UPDATE: South Carolina stud Seventh Woods, a Composite Top 50 player, announced on Signing Day that he would be attending North Carolina, not South Carolina like many believed. This is our first NSD surprise of the early period. He moves the Tar Heels up from No. 11 overall to No. 8 overall. 

NC State may only have one player coming into the conference but they have a darn good one in Dennis Smith. The 5-star guard may be the pied piper for more good things to come. We’re looking at you Bam Adebayo. 

Justin Young’s take: If I’m an NBA scout, I’m just renting a condo in the Triangle. The ACC has so many NBA level prospects coming to the league and the potential match-ups are enticing to say the least. There are, at least, three potential one-and-done lottery picks coming into the league on three different teams. An already difficult ACC schedule just beefed up even more. Pop that popcorn, folks.  

Biggest recruiting story: Tyus Battle flipped from Michigan to Syracuse. Because Battle isn’t a regular on the travel circuit, and perhaps the beneficiary from out-of-sight, out-of-mind, the story didn’t really make a big blip in the recruiting conversation. But maybe it should. Rewind for a moment…Syracuse was long thought to be the early favorite for the 6-foot-6 Jersey wing. But Battle officially visited Michigan on May 7th and committed to the Big Blue four days later. Two months later, he de-committed and left for an official visit to Syracuse the next day. Three weeks later he committed to Jim Boeheim and company.  

ACC TEAM RANKINGS

1. Duke (No. 1 overall nationally) 
2. Virginia (No. 5 overall)
3. Florida State (No. 6 overall)
4. North Carolina (No. 7 overall)
5. Syracuse (No. 9 overall)
6. NC State (No. 14 overall)
7. Louisville
8. Notre Dame
9. Wake Forest
10. Georgia Tech
11. Pitt
12. Miami
13. Clemson
14. Boston College
15. Virginia Tech 

ACC CLASS SUPERLATIVES