NC State Basketball: Biggest Things to Look Forward to in 2015-16

The NC State Wolfpack basketball team enjoyed another successful season under head coach Mark Gottfried, snagging a fourth straight automatic bid for the NCAA tournament. The Wolfpack's run to the Sweet 16 was unexpected but not totally surprising. This program is beginning to develop a penchant for making tournament runs, and it's only a matter of time until it really does some damage on the national level.

This very well could be the most exciting offseason of Gottfried's tenure. Let's take a look at the biggest things to look forward to for next year. 

More Continuity and Experience

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The Wolfpack enter the 2015 offseason with perhaps the most continuity they've had in some time. The number of departures from this season's team (as it stands now) is just two. One is a starter in guard Ralston Turner, and the other is Dez Lee, who averaged less than eight minutes per game. Obviously, another player could end up transferring, but that hasn't happened as of now.

Now, let's take a look at the number of departures from the previous seasons under Gottfried, and the number of average minutes lost, per statistics from ESPN.com:

2011-12: 3 players, 77.4 minutes

2012-13: 7 players, 166.8 minutes

2013-14: 3 players, 77.4 minutes

2014-15: 2 players, 39.4 minutes

As you can see, the Wolfpack have significantly more returning experience for next season than they've had in the past. This means another year of familiarity in Gottfried's offense, which means even better execution and likely leads to more consistency on both ends of the floor. 

They will return four starters in Trevor Lacey, Anthony Barber, Lennard Freeman and Abdul-Malik Abu. They also hope to plug transfer Terry Henderson into Turner's spot and not miss a beat.

What's most impressive about this team is the depth. They return ACC Sixth Man of the Year in BeeJay Anya, as well as spark-plug forward Kyle Washington and the slashing Martin twins (Caleb and Cody). 

This team is projected in the top 25 in just about every preseason poll conducted so far. While it's silly to get caught up in expectations (who could forget 2013?), this team has a legitimate chance to be very good next season. This year is not a mirage—the pieces are there, and now, it comes down to putting it all together. 

The Continued Development of Cat Barber

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When Cat Barber was on this past season, he was on. The sophomore point guard was absolutely electrifying down the stretch run. In the final 14 games of the season, he averaged more than 15 points a game and scored less than 10 points just three times. He also had four games of 20-plus points and a 34-point performance against the Pittsburgh Panthers. In those games, NC State went 9-5. 

Simply put, the kid can ball. 

The most exciting thing about Barber is that it feels like he hasn't even really come close to hitting his ceiling. It could be argued that the "light" didn't come on until midway through this season. If Barber continues to play at a high level (which he should), NC State is all the more dangerous. He's the catalyst that makes things go, and his production next year should be plenty more consistent. 

Tough out-of-Conference Schedule

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Gottfried is a firm believer in scheduling tough out-of-conference games. The results prove it—NC State hasn't finished outside the top 40 since Gottfried's arrival in Raleigh. In 2014-15, the Wolfpack played the sixth-toughest schedule in all of college basketball.

Gottfried believes that scheduling tough opponents early in the season gives the team a good opportunity to be prepared for the gauntlet of the ACC. In essence, no days off. 

Here are the four years under Gottfried and where the Pack finished in terms of strength of schedule, per ESPN.com:

2011-12: 21st

2012-13: 39th 

2013-14: 23rd

2014-15: 6th

On top of that, the Wolfpack are a desirable team to play. What this means going forward is that they will be candidates for top preseason tournaments, as well as suitors for games against top-notch programs. In turn, this means more exciting matchups for fans.

NC State is on the brink of returning to national prominence, and next season should be another step in the right direction.