Way Too Early "All-ACC" Teams: Who Makes the Cut?

We're heading into ACC play, and I figure it's a good time to see who the best players are that the league has to offer right now.

Let's just get started with a little first and second team "All-ACC," shall we? 

First Team "Too Early" All-ACC Team

G: Jon Scheyer (Duke)

The numbers alone tell the story. He's third in the league in scoring (18.8 ppg) and first in assists (6.4 apg). His 2.8 threes per game lead the ACC, as does his 90.1 free throw percentage. His most impressive stat? His 4.9 assist-to-turnover ratio is twice as good as the next guy in the league (in fact, he leads the nation).

He's not only on pace for All-ACC honors, but is looking at national honors as well if he keeps these stats up.

G: Greivis Vasquez (Maryland)

He had a horrid start and couldn't hit a shot in an empty arena (30-of-93, 32 percent from the floor), but he's really rediscovered his groove lately (46-of-83, 55 percent). He leads Maryland in scoring and assists, sitting fourth in rebounds. Also, his 2/1 assist-to-turnover ratio is nothing to sneeze at.

However, his recent successful run has come against the likes of Eastern Kentucky, Winston-Salem, Florida Atlantic, William & Mary (loss), and UNC Greensboro. Let's see what he can do now that the competition gets tougher.

F: Al-Farouq Aminu (Wake Forest)

If the player of the year isn't Scheyer, then it's Aminu. He has stepped beautifully into the lead role for Wake. He is fifth in scoring and first in rebounds, averaging a double-double (17.4/11.5). Against Xavier, he played 41 minutes and dominated with 26 points and 18 boards.

If I had to nitpick, he's turning the ball over way too much for a non-guard (3.2 per game), and he needs to get his shooting percentage above 50 percent. Currently he's hovering around 47 percent, but that has a lot to do with the number of threes he's shooting. He's 9-of-28 from three. Last year he took only 39 all season long. Take away those threes, and he's hitting a respectable 53 percent from two.

F: Ed Davis (North Carolina)

Davis is one of only two players averaging a double-double (15/10). Carolina may have lost four games, but it isn't because of this guy. He leads the league in shooting percentage, hitting a solid 63 percent from the floor.

He gets the first-team nod over teammate Deon Thompson because defensively, Davis shines. He's tied with Solomon Alabi in blocks at 2.9 per game and is the only player with over 100 defensive rebounds (106 on the season).

F: Tracy Smith (North Carolina State)

Don't be ashamed if you don't know much about him. Google him and he isn't even the first "Tracy Smith" to pop up. The 6'8" forward is the highest scoring forward in the ACC (17.5 ppg) and fourth overall. He's fourth in rebounding and third in scoring percentage.

Overall, he really has improved each and every season at NC State. His points have gone up seven ppg each season (from 3.3 ppg in 2007-2008 to 10 ppg last year to 17.5 ppg this year). Obviously this means he'll average 24 ppg next year, right?

While he may not be as famous as the other forwards in this league, let's not forget he was a four-star recruit and ranked the 18th best PF coming out of high school.

Second Team "Too Early" All-ACC Team

G: Ishmael Smith (Wake Forest)

Right now (and yes, it's early), Smith is looking like the best pure point guard in the ACC (although Larry Drew and his 6.3 assists could argue otherwise). The difference is, Smith can dish 5.8 apg (2/1 assist-to-turnover rate) and score (Smith averages 12 ppg, while Drew only produces 8.4 ppg).

Hell, just for fun, Smith also grabs over four rebounds per game (despite barely standing six feet tall) and is fifth in steals in the ACC (1.8 spg). He had his breakout game this past weekend against Xavier, hitting on 10 of 14 shots and scoring 28 while dishing out nine assists.

His two problems (and they are big problems)? His free throw average would make Shaq blush (he shoots 47 percent from the line, 17 of 40 on the season), and he only makes 26 percent of his three-pointers, making him only the seventh best three-point shooter on his own team. Meaning? If Wake is down by three or trying to hold a three point lead, the ball should not be in Smith's hands.

G: Nolan Smith (Duke)

In reality, Smith probably should be a first team player. He's put up better numbers than Vasquez, but we're giving it to the Maryland guard simply because he's more valuable to his team right now.

After a so-so start, where Nolan was scoring a lot but taking too many shots to get there (31 of 80, 39 percent), he's been on fire in his last six games. He's averaged a career-best 18.4 ppg (10 more than last year) while leading the ACC in three-point shooting (51 percent) after hovering below 40 percent his first two seasons.

Hell, his 1.9/1 assist-to-turnover ratio is the ninth best in the league, which is pretty good for a guy who doesn't really play the point.

G: Malcolm Delaney (Virginia Tech)

I decided to go with three guards on the second team, simply because I can't ignore the league's top scorer, although I wouldn't put him ahead of any of the four other guards who make up the first and second teams.

Like I said, he's first in scoring (19-plus per game) and is third in three-pointers made. However, despite hitting many threes, he's taking a lot of shots. In fact, he's only 10th in the league in three-point average. He needs to get more out of his shots and get that percentage up.

F: Gani Lawal (Georgia Tech)

Freshman Derrick Favors may get all the press in Atlanta, but it's Lawal getting it done. He's 10th in the league in scoring (15.3 ppg) and third in rebounds (9.4 rpg). He nails 55.5 percent of his shots and can swat the ball away on the defensive end (fifth in the ACC in blocks at 1.4 bpg).

Still, Georgia Tech's schedule has been weak (not Miami Hurricanes weak, but weak nonetheless), so let's see what this guy can do against some of the front lines he's going to meet in the ACC. It should be fun to watch.

F: Deon Thompson (North Carolina)

The Carolina senior is playing like a leader, knocking in a team-leading 15.9 ppg, while his 7.4 rebounds are second only to Davis. Most amazingly, he has yet to receive a fourth foul in a game this season (not an easy feat for a big man who likes to get down and dirty inside the paint). In fact, no Carolina big man has fouled out this season. This can become an important stat now that we're entering more physical play in the ACC. 

So Who's Missing From these Lists?

F: Trevor Booker (Clemson)

His stats aren't bad (14-plus ppg and nearly nine boards), but here's my question...he's clearly the best player on Clemson, but he has failed to hit double digits in shot attempts in seven of their 15 games. Why?

F: Derrick Favors (Ga Tech)

Despite hitting a solid 60 percent of his shots as a freshman, he's only scoring 12 ppg. What's the deal? Well, he tends to pick up fouls (he's had three-plus fouls in 11 of Tech's 13 games), thus he's only played 30-plus minutes three times and taken 10-plus shots only twice. Trust me, Favors is a freak of nature. Every minute he's not on the floor is a bad minute for the Yellow Jackets.

F: Kyle Singler (Duke)

He was my preseason pick as ACC player of the year, and so far he's having a fine season. On the best team in the ACC, he's third in scoring, first in rebounds, and third in assists, all while learning to play at a new position. Yet his 43 percent shooting percentage (including 36 percent from three) tells me we have yet to see the best we can see from Kyle.

F: Solomon Alabi (Florida State)

Sure, he leads the league in blocks, and his 12 points and seven rebounds per game are all well and good, but my gut says he could be so much better. I really thought Alabi was going to make a very special sophomore-to-junior jump, and while his numbers are slightly up from last year, only his free throw percentage has really jumped up (60 to 80 percent).

G: Sylven Landesberg (Virginia)

He's seventh in scoring, but let's face it, he's a 6'6" guard facing off against a ton of six-footers. He should be dominating. It doesn't help that he's a guard afraid to shoot a three. He's taken only 14 three-pointers in 11 games (hitting 36 percent). As a guard, this makes him one-dimensional.

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