Preseason hype continues to increase for Virginia basketball. Tuesday, the ACC announced that forward Thijs De Ridder has been named Preseason ACC Player of the Year.
Additionally, the Cavaliers were predicted by the media to finish second in the conference for the second season in a row.
De Ridder is one of just two returning members of last season’s All-ACC First Team. He is part of a stellar core of returning Virginia stars that also includes Sam Lewis, Johann Grunloh and Chance Mallory, who was earned Preseason Second Team All-ACC honors. Mallory received the eighth-most all ACC votes, while the First Teamer, De Ridder, captured the most.
The competition for Preseason ACC Player of the Year was not remotely close. De Ridder captured 30 of the 48 votes. The next closest player was Blue Devils guard John Blackwell, with 12. De Ridder is the second Cavalier to ever win Preseason ACC Player of the Year, joining new front office member Malcolm Brogdon (2015-16).
Brogdon shared that honor with Marcus Paige of North Carolina, so De Ridder is Virginia’s first outwright winner in program history. This also marks the first time that Coach Ryan Odom’s team has had a Preseason All-ACC player — and they actually have two.
Mallory, just a sophomore, received the third-most votes of any ACC guard. He has yet to start a game at the collegiate level. However, he displayed tremendous skill last season — and could be even better this year. That sentiment applies to the whole Virginia roster, which is why this team is expected to finish second in the conference.
Virginia was picked to once again finish as the runner-up, but the rest of the conference might look differently compared to last season. Here was the projected order of finish:
- Duke (45), 861
- Virginia (1), 778
- Louisville (1), 758
- Miami (1), 753
- North Carolina, 658
- Â Clemson, 623
- Florida State, 519
- NC State, 502
- Virginia Tech, 489
- SMU, 443
- Â Syracuse, 353
- Pitt, 323
- Stanford, 267
- Wake Forest, 234
- California, 225
- Notre Dame, 153
- Boston College, 150
- Georgia Tech, 119
The clear top contenders (Duke, Virginia, Louisville and Miami) each had multiple players on the Preseason All-ACC teams. In fact, those four teams’ players occupied every spot except for Amani Hansberry of Virginia Tech.
Virginia begins play Nov. 3 against Drexel — the start of an odyssey back to the NCAA Tournament, with several heavyweight battles along the way.
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