Outlook: It’s hard to say which team had more of a coaching upgrade this offseason: NC State going from Mark Gottfried to Kevin Keatts, or LSU going from the cadaver known as Johnny Jones to Will Wade? As a Mizzou fan who desperately wanted Keatts to take over in Columbia, I’ll give the slightest edge to NC State – his predecessor was certainly a great recruiter, but the team’s execution, discipline, and shot selection always left a lot to be desired. Last year’s talented roster going 4-14 in the league was a travesty, and although the Wolfpack loses a stud in Dennis Smith Jr. plus other rotation players, there’s enough talent here to show some improvement in the standings.

Perhaps the most important part of Keatts’s offseason was adding more pieces to play his preferred style – a plethora of guards and wings, spacing the floor around a pick-and-roll on offense (37.1% of the time, third-most in the country), and exhibiting constant pressure on the defensive end. To that end, retaining Gottfried’s best recruit (Lavar Batts) and adding another skilled scoring guard (Braxton Beverly) while also adding grad transfers Al Freeman (Baylor) and Sam Hunt (NC A&T) should give the roster a nice infusion of perimeter skill. They’ll join Markell Johnson and Torin Dorn in the rotation, and Dorn in particular is a crucial element for this year’s Wolfpack team.

Keatts loves to play four guards, and that strategy requires at least one big guard who can rebound and neutralize an opposing big. Dorn is a sturdy 6’5, 210 pounds, and he grabbed basically the same share of defensive rebounds as center Omer Yurtseven last season (16.5% vs 16.9%), making the redshirt junior the perfect candidate to fill the CJ Bryce/Chris Flemmings role (at least until Bryce is eligible next year after following his coach to the ACC). With plenty of smaller guards and slashers, the former Charlotte transfer’s development will be paramount to the Wolfpack’s attack.

Another part of what made UNC-Wilmington’s attack so dangerous was the presence of Devontae Cacok, the NCAA leader in field goal percentage and a monster roll man who dunked everything. His athleticism and hands allowed him to take advantage of space in the lane, and Keatts will have several options to fill that spot in Raleigh. Yurtseven is a nice pro prospect and a skilled big man, but he’s more of a traditional back-to-the-basket player and may be a poor scheme fit under the new regime. On the other hand, Abdul-Malik Abu is a devastating vertical athlete, and if he gets comfortable barreling down the lane and finishing lob passes, he could thrive. Ted Kapita will also see some time as the lone big man (or at the four if Keatts decides to play big), and like Abu, he seems to be a more natural fit for Keatts’s system than Yurtseven.

Editor's note: Kapita is no longer on the squad. More minutes with Yurtseven as a conventional 5-man seem likely.

Defensively, Keatts wants to pressure like crazy. He’s made it clear this summer that he wants his players to be in peak physical condition (prompting them to refer to summer workouts as “track practice”), and with that conditioning, the Wolfpack should be ready to execute Keatts’s various pressure schemes. Last year’s NC State squad played a conservative (read: soft) style, never forcing turnovers, and a more engaged defensive attack will be a welcome change of pace, both figuratively and literally.

Bottom Line: Changes abound in Raleigh, but I fully expect Keatts to have an immediate impact on the Wolfpack’s success. Whether that means a bid to the Big Dance is dicey, though it will help that the conference won’t be quite as insanely deep and tough as last year. The roster has skill and athleticism, and if the players buy into the Keatts system from Day 1, NC State’s return to prominence may happen sooner rather than later.

9. Wake Forest

Key Returners: Bryant Crawford, Keyshawn Woods, Brandon Childress, Mitchell Wilbekin

Key Losses: John Collins, Austin Arians, Dinos Mitoglou

Key Newcomers: Chaundee Brown, Melo Eggleston, Terrence Thompson

Line-up: