Following a strong offseason, Louisville is a top contender in the ACC and college basketball overall. Duke perceived it as their biggest challenge, with Jon Scheyer’s Blue Devils securing three 5-star recruits and the nation’s best 2025 class.
As Louisville aims for its first ACC title after winning the conference in 2024, the race for third place in the league is wide open. With Duke and Louisville leading, the question remains: can NC State rise to claim the No. 3 spot, or will another team take that position?
The Battle for ACC’s No. 3 Team: NC State’s Opportunity Behind Duke and Louisville
Louisville’s fans received encouraging news Monday, keeping their team’s ACC title ambitions intact. NC State, considered a rising challenger for the conference crown due to a strong 2025 recruiting class, failed to land a game-changing piece—PJ Haggerty, the Memphis transfer and No. 2 player in the portal, opted for Kansas State.
NC State is in position to be the third-best team in the ACC next season behind Duke and Louisville. pic.twitter.com/pMwpazBVI8
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) May 27, 2025
Haggerty, a consensus All-American and the 2024 AAC Player of the Year, averaged 21.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists last season, shooting 47.6% from the field and 36.4% from beyond the arc.
His commitment to NC State could have propelled the Wolfpack into ACC title talks and even the 2026 NCAA Championship picture.
CBS Sports insider Jon Rothstein addressed the ripple effect of Haggerty’s decision.
“One of the reasons why PJ Haggerty was available for Kansas State is because NC State made a decision last week to go in a different direction,” Rothstein said.
He added that the Wolfpack still “are not done in terms of its roster construction,” after already securing a major addition in Darion Williams from Texas Tech.
Williams played a crucial role in the Red Raiders’ Elite Eight run, where they fell to eventual champion Florida. Rothstein laid out the current ACC hierarchy.
“You have to go to Louisville two… I think you can make a case right now that NC State is in a position to challenge to be a top-three team in the ACC in year one under Will Wade.”
He continued, “Right now, there could always be changes… I’ve got Duke one, I’ve got Louisville two… then you go back to the triangle. There’s Carolina and NC State… and then you might put Virginia in the sixth spot.”
Duke, ranked No. 3 nationally by On3, returns key veterans and adds five-star Dame Sarr and four-star Sebastian Wilkins. Louisville features the No. 3 transfer class, led by Adrian Wooley and three guards who shot over 42% from three.
KEEP READING: Why New NC State Forward Darrion Williams Might Be the Most Important Transfer in the ACC
NC State’s upward trajectory is clear, but without Haggerty, they remain outside the preseason Top 25—yet firmly in the hunt for the No. 3 spot.
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