The 2026-27 college basketball season is right around the corner as November approaches. For the North Carolina Tar Heels, there are still questions to be answered in the first year of the Michael Malone era.
After a positive exhibition game against USC, the Tar Heels will take on Indiana this Sunday in Indianapolis for another preseason game. But before that, the results of last week's media poll at the Atlantic Coast Conference Tipoff event have been released. And the media believes the Tar Heels will be just outside the top four this season.
North Carolina has been picked to finish fifth in the preseason ACC poll released on Tuesday. UNC is behind No. 1 Duke, No. 2 Virginia, No. 3 Louisville and No. 4 Miami. Below is the full poll with votes:
1. Duke (45), 8612. Virginia (1), 7783. Louisville (1), 7584. Miami (1), 7535. North Carolina, 6586. Clemson, 6237. Florida State, 5198. NC State, 5029. Virginia Tech, 48910. SMU, 44311. Syracuse, 35312. Pitt, 32313. Stanford, 26714. Wake Forest, 23415. California, 22516. Notre Dame, 15317. Boston College, 15018. Georgia Tech, 119
As for the All-ACC preseason teams, the Tar Heels did not have a single player listed. Freshman Maximo Adams was fourth in the Preseason ACC Rookie of the Year poll, finishing with three votes.
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: Where UNC basketball program lands in preseason ACC media poll
