An honest ‘glass half-full / glass half-empty’ preview of NC State Basketball | The Forwards/Centers

We’re baaaack!!!

NC State is coming off one of the most improbable Final 4 runs in history. However, they’ve lost their the two most important pieces from last year’s squad. Can Kevin Keatts build on last year’s magic and solidify NC State as an ACC powerhouse, or will NC State fade back into mediocrity? I’m going to take a look at all the pieces and give an honest (but not always popular) take.

Let’s look at the forwards and centers…

Dontrez Styles

Glass Half Full: Styles comes in takes control of the 4 spot for NC State. Although undersized, his strength and ability to stretch the floor pairs perfectly with BHH’s ability to protect the rim and rebound. Styles shoots around 38% from 3pt range and is NC State’s 3rd perimeter option, filling up catch-and-shoot 3s from the corner much like Casey Morsell did during the Joiner/Smith years.

Glass Half Empty: Styles struggles from the perimeter a little bit, like he did during his freshman year at UNC, and is relegated to play more in the paint where his undersized frame gets exploited by bigger, quicker 4s in the league.

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Brandon Huntley-Hatfield

Glass Half Full: BHH comes in after studying how NC State used Burns and does his best to fill that role. Plays a strong back to the basket 5, playing patient, finding open men, and dominating on the block if they don’t double him. He expands on Burns’s previous role by knocking down the occasional short corner jumper, protecting the rim, and leading the team in rebounds.

Glass Half Empty: BHH falls in love with the freedom Keatts gives his players and starts attempting to showcase his jumper and abandons the back-to-the-basket patience that NC State found so much success with under Burns.

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Ben Middlebrooks

Glass Half Full: Ben takes the next step and really steps up the consistency on the offensive end. He becomes the scrappy enforcer who either backs up BHH or becomes NC State’s rugged 4-man. He shows a huge improvement in his ability to knock down the short corner jumper and is able to fill the Mo Diarra void from last season’s team, allowing Keatts to go big, which is how he found success down the stretch last year.

Glass Half Empty: Middlebrooks is not able to extend the floor and him and BHH at the same time, end up clogging the floor up for the guards. This forces Keatts to only use BHH and Middlebrooks one at a time, despite both being extremely valuable pieces to this team

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Ismael Diouf

Glass Half Full: Diouf gets acclimated to the ACC by midseason, gets used to the speed and physicality and truly becomes the Mo Diarra of last year’s team. The skill set is similar so if Diouf can be strong and aggressive on both ends of the floor, he will give Keatts the versatile piece that this team looks to be missing. In a best-case scenario, Diouf is NC State’s starting 4 man and is causing matchup problems every single night as he did in Canada.

Glass Half Empty: Diouf is unable to acclimate to the physical nature of ACC basketball and he loses confidence in his ability to compete at this level. He is relegated to backup until he can put on a little more beef and compete with ACC bigs.