Wake Forest

Dino Gaudio’s second year as head coach saw many ups and downs. Wake beat UNC on January 11th and on the 20th of January were undefeated and ranked #1 in the country. They then went out and lost their first game as #1, at home, to Virginia Tech. They went on to lose five of their next nine ACC games. They never left the top 15 but did have a very disappointing end of the year, losing in the first round of the ACC tournament to Maryland and then losing in the first round of the NCAA’s to Cleveland St.! They finished 24-7 but their last two games were bitter pills to swallow. That, combined with the loss of two NBA first round picks- James Johnson and Jeff Teague- leave some question marks going into this year.
Gaudio will build around soph Al-Farouq Aminu. Last year he deferred to the upperclassmen but knows he must step up and be a star this year. He is multi-talented but needs to develop more range on his jump shot to be the total package. Senior Ish Smith is one of the fastest players in the league and, with Teague’s departure, will have the ball in his hands a majority of the time. The front line could be a strength for the Deacs. Chas McFarland has grown steadily as a player but needs to keep his emotions and fouling in check and stay on the floor longer. David Weaver has never been a scorer but has done a serviceable job on the defensive end of the floor. Sophomores Tony Woods and Ty Walker showed flashes last year and need to step up. Woods is probably farther along at this point with Walker needing to add strength. All four are 6’11” or taller and comprise a massive front line. Wake desperately needs to find perimeter offense. L.D. Williams returns as a premier defender but is not a shooter. They were hoping Gary Clark could be that guy, but he has yet to show confidence in his shot.

The newcomers will be expected to contribute. 6’7” Ari Walker could be the perimeter threat they are seeking. Gaudio already has developed confidence in his stroke in the preseason. C.J. Harris will be an understudy at point and also could provide another option as a perimeter shooter. The third recruit is Konner Tucker, a Juco wing who shot 42% from 3 at Lon Morris College last year. Gaudio’s focus on this class was clearly to shore up the perimeter and they all need to step up.

A 24 win season, a #1 ranking and a trip to the NCAAs are worthy of praise but you get the feeling there is some unease around the Deacon fan base. The big key for this team will be finding balance in the offense, especially on the perimeter. This team is freakishly big but teams will clog the lane if the shooters don’t show up. Also, Aminu must be a star. With Johnson and Teague gone, he must emerge as the go to guy. If all these things come together, this team should challenge again in the post season.

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