Maxine Raynaud came close.
The 7-1 center from Paris led Stanford in scoring and rebounding for the past two seasons, finishing 2025 as the ACC leader in rebounds (10.6) and as its second-best scorer (20.2)
behind Notre Dame guard Markus Burton. A picture of versatility, Raynaud completed 67 threes, tied for 11th-best in the league. He also contributed 1.4 blocked shots per game, fifth in the ACC.
All of which led the Sacramento Kings to sign Raynaud to a three-year, $5.95 million rookie contract after taking him in the second round of last June’s NBA draft.
In some other season Raynaud’s well-rounded ACC debut might have made him a strong candidate for ACC Player of the Year. Not in 2025. He did finish second in the voting, but got just four votes compared to Cooper Flagg’s 75.
The only player from a new member school to immediately lead the ACC in scoring was Virginia’s Buzzy Wilkinson in 1954, the Cavs’ and league’s inaugural season.
Wilkinson followed his 30.1-point average with 32.1 points per game in 1955, the single-season high for any player in ACC history. Since then the best point production by a player from an add-on program was turned in by Georgia Tech’s Dennis Scott, who in 1990 averaged 27.7 points.
Scott, a 6-8 small forward from Virginia, was the ’90 ACC Player of the Year and the fourth pick in that year’s NBA draft. A key to the Yellow Jackets’ first Final Four appearance — they got to the NCAA title game in 2004 — Scott made 42.2 percent of the more than 200 threes he tried per season during his career.
When the Jackets warmed up prior to a game at Duke, students dared the hefty Scott to shoot from marks they set farther and farther from the basket. He obliged, and didn’t miss. If memory serves, someone placed a candy bar on the court far from the basket and, after taking and making a shot from that distance, Scott ate the confection, much to the Cameron Crazies’ vocal delight.
But perhaps the most brazenly impressive move Scott ever made was during a 1990 NCAA victory over LSU. Ahead of everyone on a fast break when the result still was in doubt, he spurned a layup, dribbled back to set up beyond the 3-point line, and coolly sank the shot.
This year, two top scorers from schools’ ACC debut seasons return with a chance to burnish their scoring totals.
Notre Dame’s Markus Burton, hurt for a time in ’25, is widely appreciated. The junior led the league in scoring last year and led the Irish in assists (79) and steals (44) in 26 games, a performance that earned the 6-1 Indianan an equal number of preseason votes for first-team All-ACC as phenom Cameron Boozer of Duke.
SMU’s Boopie Miller, once a Wake Forest Demon Deacon, was picked for the preseason All-ACC second team and figures to improve on last year’s squad-best scoring in the Mustangs’ inaugural ACC effort. The Chicago product, otherwise known as Kevin, remains the league’s reigning nickname champ.
Other Kevins who seemed content with their given name include Duke’s Kevin Strickland, a habitué of contemporary Cameron contests with 1,095 points in a career from 1985-88, and Kevin Billerman (1973-75).
| DANDY DEBUTS Top Season Scoring Avg. By Player From Expansion Team |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pts | Player | School/ACC Entry | Best Yr |
| 32.1 | Buzzy Wilkinson | Virginia/1954 | 1955 |
| 27.7 | Dennis Scott | Ga. Tech/1980 | 1990 |
| 25.0 | Erick Green | Va. Tech/2005 | 2013 |
| 21.5 | Toney Douglas | FSU/1992 | 2009 |
| 21.3 | Markus Burton | ND/2014 | 2025 |
| 20.2 | Maxine Raynaud | Stan/2025 | 2025 |
| 19.6 | Michael Young | Pitt/2014 | 2017 |
| 19.5 | Olivier Hanlan | BC/2006 | 2015 |
| 19.2 | Buddy Boeheim | SU/2014 | 2022 |
| 17.9 | Andrej Stojakovic | Cal/2025 | 2025 |
| 13.2 | Boopie Miller | SMU/2025 | 2025 |
