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NC State Basketball

Release: Dennis Smith Jr is Freshman of the Year

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6 years ago

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NC State men’s basketball freshman guard Dennis Smith, Jr., was named the ACC Freshman of the Year Sunday as the league announced the 2016-17 season award winners.

Smith was also selected to the All-ACC second team and All-ACC freshman team in voting by the 53-member panel (15 head coaches and 38 selected media).

Smith joins former Pack great Hawkeye Whitney as the only NC State players to be named ACC Freshman of the Year. Whitney shared co-Rookie of the Year honors with Duke’s Mike Gminski in 1977.

After being overwhelmingly chosen as the ACC preseason Freshman of the Year by the league’s media members last October, Smith met expectations by ranking fifth among ACC scorers with 18.5 points per game and leading the league in assists with 6.3 per contests. Smith has also registered 60 steals in 31 games (1.94 per contest), second among ACC players in that category. The Fayetteville, N.C., native became the only player in conference history to register two triple-doubles in the same season and he has scored at least 30 points in an ACC-best four games.

Smith’s scoring average of 18.5 points is the highest for a freshman in NC State history and he needs two more steals to surpass Chris Corchiani for the most steals by a freshman in NC State history. The three-time ACC Freshman of the Week has 196 assists on the year and needs four more to become the second freshman in Pack history to record 200 assists in their freshman season (Corchiani – 235 in 1987-88).

Smith’s inclusion on the All-ACC second team marks the fourth straight season and fifth time in last six seasons NC State has had either a first or second team selection on the All-ACC team. Smith is the first Pack player to make the league’s All-Freshman team since TJ Warren in 2013.

Smith is one of 12 players named to the midseason watch list for the Wayman Tisdale Award (national freshman of the year) and one of 10 players named as a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award (best point guard in the country).

Smith and his teammates are back in action Tuesday in the ACC first round at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. NC State is the 13th-seed in this year’s tournament and will play 12th-seed Clemson at noon with the game being televised on ESPN2 and the ACC Network.

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wolfpack74
wolfpack74
6 years ago

Come back for year two and be loved as Warren has been. Leave early, then Dennis, who?

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Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago

Good for Dennis. For me this 2016-2017 season will always be remembered for what could have been. Lost opportunities.

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NC State Basketball

D.J. Burns is OFFICIALLY BACK!

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1 month ago

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April 27, 2023

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Well, it’s OFFICIAL. D.J Burns will be returning to NC State for his final year of collegiate eligibility!

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by DJ Burns / BIG 30♨️ (@dj.b30)

This confirms everything I’d been hearing about the return of Burns. Burns was the key to the Wolfpack offense running effectively this past year. He averaged 12.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in 2022-23, but he elevated his game in ACC play, averaging 16.1 points and 5.6 rebounds in conference games.

Burns is celebrating his return to run with the Wolfpack by dropping his own Big 30 merch. Go over and snag something.

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NC State Basketball

Isaiah Miranda is an Early Entry Candidate for the 2023 NBA Draft

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1 month ago

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April 26, 2023

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The NBA released the names of the 242 players that have filed as early entry candidates for NBA Draft 2023 last night, and NC State’s Isaiah Miranda’s name was on the list.

Miranda (7’1″/225) joined the Wolfpack back in December, deciding to forgo the remainder of his prep season. Miranda didn’t see the court for NC State, resulting in a redshirt season.

ON3 ranked Miranda as the #16 overall player in the 2023 recruiting class.

It makes perfect sense for a player like Miranda, with his height and athleticism, to go through the draft process to be evaluated on what he needs to continue to work on. As an early entrant, Miranda has the ability to pull his name out of the draft and remain a collegiate athlete.

I don’t expect Miranda to keep his name in the hat when the time comes. From what I hear his game has tons of potential, but he still needs to fine tune his craft. Also, Miranda shared this on social media, implying he will be back in the Red and White next year.

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NC State Basketball

Missouri Transfer Mohamed Diarra Commits to NC State

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1 month ago

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April 24, 2023

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NC State picked up their 5th transfer today. Mohamed Diarra (6’10″/215) committed to run with the Wolfpack today while in Raleigh on an Official Visit.

Diarra originally spent his first two seasons at Garden City Community College, averaging 17.8 points and 12.6 rebounds per game in his second season. He landed at Missouri last year, after being rated as the #1 JUCO prospect in the 2022 class according to JucoRecruiting.com.

In his only season at Missouri, Diarra averaged 11.7 minutes per game in 25 games played (6 starts), averaging 3.3 points and 3.2 rebounds. Because of the extra year due to Covid, Diarra has 2 years of eligibility remaining.

With news breaking today that Dusan Mahorcic entered the Transfer Portal, the Wolfpack found his replacement. NC State’s frontcourt in 2023-24 currently will be made up of D.J. Burns, Ben Middlebrooks, Mohamed Diarra and Ernest Ross.

Check out these highlights of Diarra.

There is a lot to like in Diarra’s game. He is athletic, can hit a jump shot, put the ball on the floor, can play defense on the perimeter, block shots, and is an aggressive rebounder.

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NC State Basketball

Missouri Transfer Mohamed Diarra is On an Official Visit to NC State Today

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1 month ago

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April 24, 2023

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Missouri Transfer Mohamed Diarra (6’10″/215) is on an Official Visit to NC State today. Diarra originally spent his first two seasons at Garden City Community College, averaging 17.8 points and 12.6 rebounds per game in his second season. He landed at Missouri last year, after being rated as the #1 JUCO prospect in the 2022 class according to JucoRecruiting.com.

In his only season at Missouri, Diarra averaged 11.7 minutes per game in 25 games played (6 starts), averaging 3.3 points and 3.2 rebounds. Because of the extra year due to Covid, Diarra has 2 years of eligibility remaining.

Diarra entered the Transfer Portal on March 28th.

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