National Basketball Association

An ACC-centric guide to the NBA playoffs

Published May. 8, 2015 5:35 p.m. ET

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As much as college basketball diehards besmirch the quality of NBA basketball, many of them tune in this time of year -- the playoffs. If they're not tuning in now, they're going to be tuning in soon as the Western and Eastern Conference Finals will begin after these quarterfinal series end. And besides, every fan likes to brag about the number of NBA players who used to play at their school

The ACC was -- and is -- well-represented in the playoffs this year. Of the 16 teams that made it, 13 have at least one ACC player on the roster, and seven of the eight teams remaining now do, too.

So for the casual NBA fan -- or at least the college basketball diehard who loves the ACC and wants a reason to watch -- here's a guide to the NBA playoffs, ACC-style:

BY THE NUMBERS

34: That's how many ACC players saw action in at least one playoff game this year, no matter how limited.

10: The number of teams in the ACC that had at least one former player see action in the NBA playoffs. North Carolina and Duke led the way with eight players apiece, making up nearly half of the 34. Wake Forest was third with five, Georgia Tech had four and Louisville, Syracuse and Virginia had two apiece. Miami, Florida State and Boston College were also represented.

17: The number of ACC players still alive in the playoffs (on seven different teams).

24.0: Duke alum Kyrie Irving's playoff scoring average, which ranks seventh.

241: Tim Duncan's total number of playoff games. The former Wake Forest power forward is nearing the end of his illustrious career, and he may go down as one of the best players of all-time at his position -- whenever he decides to end his career.

5: The Milwaukee Bucks' playoff roster featured five former ACC players, the most of any NBA team that made the postseason.

WHAT TO WATCH

Golden State Warriors-Memphis Grizzlies (Tied 1-1)

The names you know from this series -- Stephen Curry, Marc Gasol, etc. -- don't have ACC ties. But in one of those "he's still in the league?" moments, North Carolina's own Vince Carter found a home in Memphis and has played in all seven games, averaging 4.4 points per game on the tail end of his career.

Former Louisville guard Russ Smith has played in just one game in the series (he played in just 12 in the regular season) during his first year in the NBA for the Grizzlies. Memphis won its first-round series against Portland, 4-1.

The Warriors have the Splash Brothers and Draymond Green, but the No. 4 guy is Harrison Barnes, the former North Carolina wing who is averaging 9.3 points, but has set career highs in field-goal percentage in the playoffs (50 percent) and three-point percentage (40 percent).

But the better story is arguably former North Carolina forward James Michael McAdoo, who surprised some folks in 2014 by going pro early. He went undrafted, toiled some in the D-League and earned a spot on Golden State's roster. He doesn't see much time (he's played in one game and hasn't scored), but he's carving out a spot for himself. He played in 15 games during the regular season and averaged 4.1 points.

Los Angeles Clippers-Houston Rockets (Tied 1-1)

The Rockets don't have a former ACC player. But if you like Duke, the Clippers are the team for you.

Los Angeles has three former Blue Devils, plus a former Demon Deacon in Wake Forest's Chris Paul, who's averaging 22.7 points per game in the playoffs but missed the first two games of the series against Houston with a hamstring strain. Paul is likely back for Game 3, though.

Former Duke sharpshooter J.J. Redick has developed perhaps beyond expectations as an NBA player, and he's averaging 13.9 points in the playoffs, which is to date a career-best mark for him in his eighth NBA season. He's the third-leading scorer on the team.

Duke's Austin Rivers, who was the 10th-overall pick in the 2013 draft, has found a new home in L.A. playing for his father Doc and is averaging 7.2 points in 17.0 minutes per game. He's struggled at times, but he's also been a spark for the Clippers at times as well.

Duke's Dahntay Jones is in his 11th NBA season and has always been a valued bench guy. But he's seen his role more limited and has played in just one game in this series.

Atlanta Hawks-Washington Wizards (Tied 1-1)

The Washington Wizards don't have a lot of ACC representation -- just Georgia Tech guard Will Bynum, who has played in just one game in the playoffs so far (though he's due to see some more time with the injury to point guard John Wall).

But the Hawks have three ACC players, led by former Wake point guard Jeff Teague, who's averaging 13.1 points on 36.3 percent shooting and 7.8 assists. It's still a far cry from his 19.3 points per game in the playoffs a season ago, and while he's facilitating effectively, he's still not playing as well as he'd like.

Virginia's Mike Scott averaged 9.4 points in the playoffs last year, but he's down from 20.9 minutes to just 10.4 and thus his production has dropped to 3.7 points per game.

Duke's Elton Brand continues to play sparingly for the Hawks, acting more as a veteran leader. He's played in just two games. Brand will be a free agent after this season and will consider retiring after 16 seasons.

Chicago Bulls-Cleveland Cavaliers (Tied 1-1)

The Bulls' roster features only Duke's Mike Dunleavy in terms of ACC representation, but he's averaging 10.6 points per game in the playoffs to date. It's his lowest career playoff average, but he's shooting nearly 56 percent from three in the eight games, which is his highest mark. In fact, Dunleavy's 13 playoff games in the last two seasons are more than he had in his first 11 seasons combined.

The Cleveland Cavaliers, though, have a lot more ACC representation.

The Cavs have one of the best players in the NBA in former Duke point guard Kyrie Irving (24 points per game in the playoffs).

Georgia Tech guard Iman Shumpert, who is averaging a career-best (in the playoffs) 10.8 points per game, strained his groin in the second game against the Bulls and is a game-time decision for Game 3.

Former Virginia guard Joe Harris has only played in one game in the series for the Cavs, while former Miami big man and longtime veteran James Jones is averaging 4.5 points off the bench.

ELIMINATED TEAMS: WHAT YOU MISSED

Neither the Pelicans nor the Blazers -- both eliminated in the first round -- had an ACC player on their roster. But the other six teams did.

Boston Celtics: The surprise team that made the playoffs did so at least in part because of former North Carolina center Tyler Zeller, who was named the seven-footer their most improved player this season. He went from 5.7 points per game in Cleveland to 10.2 points per game in Boston, becoming a starter. He averaged 8.5 points a game in the playoffs (the Celtics were swept by Cleveland in the first round).

Toronto Raptors: The ACC was technically represented in this series, although both Tyler Hansbrough of North Carolina (1.3 points per game) and James Johnson of Wake Forest (who scored two points in two games) didn't make a big impact. The Wizards swept the Raptors in Round 1.

Brooklyn Nets: The Nets were tied for the second-most ACC players on the roster, and former Georgia Tech guard Jarrett Jack led the way with 12.3 points and 4.5 assists in six games. Another former Georgia Tech star, Thaddeus Young, averaged 10.5 points and 7.2 rebounds. Louisville's Earl Clark scored three points in two games, while Duke's Mason Plumlee averaged around eight minutes per game and scored a total of 12 points off the bench. The Nets lost the opening-round series to the Hawks, 4-2.

Milwaukee Bucks: Unfortunately, if you like ACC hoops, the team that most well represented its former players is now out of the playoffs after a competitive 4-2 series loss to the Bulls. Former Syracuse guard Michael Carter-Williams was second on the team in playoff scoring with 12.2 points per game and a team-high 4.8 assists. Former North Carolina forward John Henson averaged 8.8 points and 8.0 rebounds (up from 1.5 points and 2.0 rebounds back in the 2012-13 playoffs). Boston College's Jared Dudley averaged 6.7 points, while Syracuse's Tyler Ennis and Duke's Miles Plumlee played in one game each.

San Antonio Spurs: As mentioned before, Wake's Tim Duncan is nearing the end of a spectacular career, but he had one of his best playoffs in awhile with 17.9 points per game and 11.1 rebounds. It was a shorter stay in the playoffs than he would have liked, but the 39-year-old clearly has plenty left in the tank. Teammate and former North Carolina guard Danny Green wasn't quite as good as he's been in the past; after shooting 48.2 percent from 3 and 47.5 percent from 3 in the playoffs in the two seasons before this one, he shot just 30 percent in the seven-game series loss to the Clippers.

Dallas Mavericks: No former ACC players had a huge impact on the Mavericks' first-round series loss to the Rockets (a 4-1 final). But Wake's Al-Farouq Aminu averaged 11.2 points on 54.8 percent shooting to go with 7.2 rebounds. Former North Carolina point guard Raymond Felton was the beneficiary of Rajon Rondo's squabbling with the head coach. He couldn't do much with it though, shooting just 26.7 percent in the three games he played in and scoring 11 points. Former FSU big man Bernard James played in just one game.