Wake Forest Demon Deacons
2022-23 record: 19-14, 10-10 in the ACC
Head coach: Steve Forbes
Tenure at Wake Forest: Fourth season
Career coaching record: 180-83 (in Division 1)
Home court: Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Projected starters: G Kevin Miller, G Cameron Hildreth, G Damari Monsanto, F Andrew Carr, F/C Efton Reid III
Bench: G Hunter Sallis, G Jao Ituka, G Abramo Canka, F Zach Keller, C Matthew Marsh
Overview: This season, Wake Forest is looking to build upon recent success and end its NCAA Tournament drought. The Demon Deacons have enjoyed March Madness basketball just twice since 2010, a far cry from the program’s consistent success of the early 2000s. Wake Forest hopefuls now have reason to believe their team finally has the firepower needed to grab the extra couple of regular season wins needed to send them on a run in March.
A key to the Demon Deacons’ steady improvement has been head coach Steve Forbes. He came to Wake Forest after a five-year career at the helm of East Tennessee State, where he led the Buccaneers to two conference tournament championships. Since joining the Demon Deacons, Forbes has achieved back-to-back winning seasons and was named ACC Coach of the Year during the 2021-22 season.
This year is especially exciting for Wake Forest because it now has something it previously lacked — players with experience in March. Over the summer, both forward/center Efton Reid III and guard Hunter Sallis transferred to the Demon Deacons’ squad from Gonzaga, a perennial force in the NCAA Tournament. Redshirt senior guard Damari Monsanto will look to lead the two former Bulldogs and company during a potentially program-defining season.
Team ceiling: Wake Forest’s new transfers gel perfectly, and the experienced squad takes yet another step in the right direction, shocking the ACC and returning to the NCAA Tournament in style.
Team floor: Prior injuries to guards Monsanto and Kevin Miller continue to haunt the Demon Deacons, inhibiting their ability to score points and deferring their return to the NCAA Tournament.
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