2024-2025 College Basketball Preview: NC State Wolfpack

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The college basketball season is less than two weeks away, and here at FTN Fantasy we have you covered for what promises to be another thrilling year of upsets and incredible finishes. We will be previewing each team from all of the major conferences along with some mid-majors as well. We will recap betting trends from last season, list projected starters, preview the season and talk about any key players for that program.

The ACC is home to some of the most storied programs in the history of college basketball. Lately, the Final Four champion has come out of the Big East or the Big 12, but the ACC has a great chance to reclaim the title of the best conference in CBB. There has been an influx of talent via the transfer portal, good old fashioned recruiting and the additions of SMU, Stanford and Cal. 

Let’s take a look at the NC State Wolfpack.

2024-25 College Basketball Season Preview: NC State Wolfpack

Conference: ACC
Head Coach: Kevin Keatts (8th season)
2023-2024 Record: 26-15
ATS: 20-20-1
O/U: 23-17-1
Projected Starters: G Michael O’Connell, G Marcus Hill, G Jayden Taylor, F Dontez Styles, C Brandon Huntley-Hatfield

There are two ways you can respond to being on the hot seat. One is to have a lame-duck season and accept your fate, and one is to go full Kevin Keatts. Despite most of the fanbase and the CBB world at large wanting him gone, Keatts motivated his group to make an improbable run through the ACC Tournament, and winning the auto-bid gave him a two-year extension that was built into his contract as a bonus. But it didn’t end there, and they made an even more unlikely run to the Final Four. It was a feel-good story, and I wouldn’t blame you for thinking they’ll now fade into the background for the next few years, but that won’t necessarily be the case.

Replacing the heart and soul of the team in DJ Burns won’t be easy from an emotional standpoint, and they’ll also be without leaders DJ Horne and Mo Diarra, as both have moved onto the pro ranks. On top of that, Casey Morsell is finally out of eligibility, which makes some of our DFS community members extremely sad, but I have different feelings about that one. Anyway, they’ve done a nice job in the portal and signed a very talented freshmen class as well.

Marcus Hill (20.5 PPG at Bowling Green), Brandon Huntley-Hatfield (12.9 PPG at Louisville), Dontrez Styles (12.8 PPG at Georgetown) and Mike James (12.6 PPG at Louisville) are all expected to be part of the rotation as transfers. Freshmen Paul McNeil and Trey Parker both have a ton of upside but may take time to factor into the equation. There is also a degree of continuity here with Jayden Taylor, Ben Middlebrooks, Dennis Parker, Breon Pass and Michael O’Connell back.

Key Player: Marcus Hill

The Bowling Green transfer is going to be a very important part of the Wolfpack, and any chance they have at making another appearance in the tournament this year will likely be in his hands. This kid can flat out score and has done so at every single level. As a sophomore, he led the NJCAA (Juco) in scoring and shot nearly 50% from the field. Last season, he was the only player in all of Division I to score 20 points in nine straight games. By the end of the year he finished with 19 20-point games and three 30-point games. Alpha scorers have been a calling card of Keatts’ teams for years. This could be Markel Johnson 2.0.