ESPN Men's Basketball Recruiting

Here's a look at the other half of how the ACC is recruiting the Class of 2008:

Miami, three commits
Last year is one Frank Haith and his staff would like to forget. Miami finished 12-20 and 4-12 in the ACC and had numerous injuries and several distractions (suspensions). Luckily, many of those players have recovered from those injuries and are ready to provide talent and experience that will hopefully give Haith a more consistent performance this season.

Experience will come from Jack McClinton, a big-time scorer. He led the ACC in 3-point and free throw shooting. In addition to McClinton, Haith will get significant contributions from post players Dwayne Collins, Brian Asbury and Anthony King. King was leading the ACC in rebounding (9.3 rpg) before his season-ending wrist injury.

Miami is very unsettled at the point guard position. Haith brought in a very talented scoring point guard in Edwin Rios (Miami) and junior college transfer Lance Hurdle. The Hurricanes desperately need Rios or Hurdle to step up big and provide leadership at the point position.

Miami currently has commitments from 6-6 small forward DeQuan Jones (Marietta, Ga.), 6-8 power forward Reggie Johnson (Winston-Salem, N.C.) and is wavering on a commitment from 6-5 forward Quincy Roberts (Harrisburg, Pa.).

Jones has NBA talentl, a prototype wing player who is long, athletic and one of the best finishers in high school basketball. Jones has a great first step, gets to the rim and punishes defenders with highlight dunks. Look for this kid to make an immediate impact with his athleticism and scoring.

North Carolina, two commits
The Tar Heels are No. 1 in the coaches' preseason poll. This is because of their talented sophmore backcourt of Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington and preseason All-American forward Tyler Hansbrough.

The downside is UNC may lose Hansbrough, Lawson and Ellington to the NBA at the end of the year, which makes this a big year in recruiting for Carolina.

North Carolina has two commitments from 6-1 point guard Larry Drew (Woodland Hillls, Calif./Taft ) and 6-8 forward Ed Davis (Richmond, Va./Benedictine), who is ranked No. 21 in the ESPN Top 150. Drew is a talented, heady point guard who can run and lead a team. Davis, a left-handed skilled frontcourt player, will provide immediate help for the Tar Heels. He is long, can face up and score and is a very good rebounder.

Carolina lost out on the services of two talented big men earlier in the year, No. 3- ranked Samardo Samuels and No. 5-ranked Delvon Roe, and is waiting patiently on 6-11 forward Tyler Zeller (Washington, Ind.), a skilled big man who can run the floor and can score efficiently in the post. Zeller is also considering in-state schools Indiana, Notre Dame and Purdue. If the Tar Heels can get Zeller to commit, they will have assembled a very nice '08 class, but if they do not, they will be scrambling to find a talented big who can help them on the frontline.

They will need all of their recruits to step in next year and help if Lawson, Ellington and Hansbrough move on to the NBA.

North Carolina State, two commits
No one was sure what was going to happen when N.C. State was in a long, drawn-out coaching search a year and a half ago. In fact, when they hired Sidney Lowe, no one was sure how an NBA lifer would handle the pressures of college recruiting. Lowe answered those doubters immediately last year when he landed McDonald's All-American J.J. Hickson and talented forward Tracy Smith.

Lowe led the Wolfpack to a 20-16 record last season culminating in a run to the ACC Tournament championship game. He found out a lot about his team, getting tremendous contributions from redshirt freshman Brandon Costner and 6-8 senior Gavin Grant. But the Wolfpack's Achilles' heel may be the point guard position. They do not have a true point and will attempt to get one of three players -- Farnold Degand (transfer from Iowa St), Marques Johnson (transfer from Tennessee) and freshman recruit Javier Gonzalez -- to play the position.

6-2 guard Julius Mays (Marion, Ind.) and 6-5 forward C.J. Williams (Fayetteville, N.C.) are the commits. Mays is an athletic, strong, explosive guard. He can create his own shot, slash to the bucket and finish. Mays will be counted on to give immediate help at point guard. Willams, the No.124-ranked player, is an explosive, athletic leaper. In addition, he can defend, is hard nosed and will bring immediate toughness to the lineup.

Virginia, three commits
Dave Leitao improved to a 21-11 overall record and 11-5 in conference play and was named ACC Coach of the Year. He and his staff have been relentless in their pursuit of the top players in the country. With the addition of the John Paul Jones Arena , the NBPA Top 100 Camp right on campus and Leitao being one of the best recruiting head coaches in the country, Virginia is on track to crack the top tier of the ACC.

The Cavaliers had one of the best backcourts in the country last year with Sean Singletary and J.R. Reynolds. Singletary almost left for the NBA, but he has come back to help lead Virgina to an ACC championship. Still, Leitao must find a future replacement for him.

He started doing that last year with the addition of Jeff Jones and Mustapha Farrakhan. Hopefully, Jones and Farrakhan will be able to step in and provide Leitao with some perimeter scoring to take some pressure off Singletary. In addition, Virginia landed 6-8 power forward Mike Scott to give them some additional inside presence and low post scoring.

6-6 forward Sylven Landesberg (Queens, N.Y.), Assane Sene from Senegal and 6-11 center John Brandenburg (St. Louis) are the 2008 commits. Landesberg, ranked No. 63 in the Class of '08, is the most advanced player, a skilled forward with a high basketball IQ. Simply put, a pure scorer. Sene and Bradenburg are different types of players, but they are both raw, developing post players who will help bring Leitao more size and talent in the paint.

VirginiaTech, one commit
Coaching is not a sprint, it is a marathon, and no one knows that better than Seth Greenberg. He has been in this business for a long time and knows exactly how it works. Greenberg did a masterful job last year coaching and recruiting at Virgina Tech. He led his team to a 22-12 record, third in the ACC, and its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 11 years. In addition, Greenberg and his staff brought in seven very talented newcomers, which gave them one of the top recruiting classes in the country.

Greenberg has lost his talented senior backcourt of Zabian Dowdell and Jamon Gordon, which means this will be a bit of a rebuilding year for the Hokies. However, the Class of '07 included talented 6-7 forward Jeff Allen, who will create all types of matchup problems for opponents. A Charles Barkley-type of player, Allen will help immediately on the Hokies frontline. He has all the tools, can score inside and pound the glass. In addition, Terrell Bell , Dorenzo Hudson and Malcolm Delaney will bring a young, but talented influx to the lineup.

Victor Davila, the No. 127-ranked player in the country, is a big, coordinated post player who has very advanced skills. He is a wide body with great hands and can really score in the paint. Davila has the ability to help Greenberg immediately as a freshman.

Wake Forest, two commits
This is a big year for the Wake Forest basketball program. With the sudden passing of Skip Prosser, this program has been through a lot of grief, change and transition. New coach Dino Gaudio has been called upon to lead the program, and there is no one more qualified, loyal and perfect to follow is Prosser's footsteps.

Long before this July, Prosser and his staff had laid the groundwork for the rebirth of this program with their best recruiting effort to date. They have recruited one of the most talented frontcourts in the country and a top-five recruiting class in '08.

They have commitments from two players from Georgia in Al-Farouq Aminu and Tony Woods. Aminu is a very efficient scorer. He is athletic, understands the game and has a big upside. He will provide Gaudio with immediate help, scoring and rebounding. Woods is a big-time center who can score in the paint and will help Wake defensively with his outstanding rebounding and shotblocking.

7-0 center Ty Walker is ranked No. 51 in the ESPN 150, and many people feel that Wake got an in-state steal. Walker has a big-time wingspan, is agile and very athletic. He is still a bit raw but can rebound and block shots.

Since the departure of Chris Paul several years ago to the NBA, Wake Forest has been trying to get back into the upper echelon of the ACC. These three players will give Gaudio the top frontcourt in the ACC and may lead Wake to an ACC championship and a deep NCAA tournament run in the next few years.

John Carroll is a national recruiting director for Scouts Inc.'s basketball recruiting coverage.