Ahead of the Curve 2026: ACC Guards, Part One
Welcome to the Ahead of the Curve series! Getting you ahead of the risers and sleepers to know entering the 2027 NBA draft cycle.
Welcome to the Ahead of the Curve series! This series is designed to identify prospects, by conference, who evaluators, decision-makers, and fans should be tracking as potential risers and sleepers this cycle.
To qualify, I’m focusing on those that are projected to be second round picks and undrafted free agents (UDFA) to begin the 2026-2027 season. I’ll make the pitch for each prospect accompanied by three questions to monitor. Without further ado, let’s get you ahead of the curve on five guard prospects out of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
Acaden Lewis | Sophomore | 6’2” | 180 pounds | Miami
2025-2026 Stats: 12.2 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 5.3 APG, 1.9 SPG in 30.6 MPG (33 G)
2025-2026 Shooting Splits: 45.6/27/58.3
The Pitch
One of the most unique guards in the entire country. Acaden Lewis plays with a mesmerizing herky-jerky style that keeps defenders off balance and guessing what he’ll do next. His playing style is reminiscent of guards like LaMelo Ball, Mikel Brown Jr., and Brandon Jennings.
He’s incredibly creative and tricky with a live dribble while being deceptively strong, allowing him to create point touches on his own, manipulate pick-and-rolls, and access his scoring spots despite lacking ideal athleticism. The multiple-level pull-up and stepback/sidestep game are absolutely lethal when he’s clicking. There aren’t many other collegiate guards that can match Lewis’s high-level blend of footwork, craft, touch, tough shotmaking, and ambidexterity at and around the rim (60.2% FG at the rim in the halfcourt via Synergy).
The driving force of Lewis’s profile is his advanced pick-and-roll operation and overall playmaking ability (176 assists to set the Villanova freshman record). He’s a dangerous shotmaker across three levels that can read defenses, play in the pocket, and deliver live dribble dimes with either hand in addition to his connective hit ahead and skip passes.
With expected high usage under a quickly rising star head coach in Jai Lucas, Lewis is in position to build on his Villanova freshman campaign and be a pivotal piece for a Miami team that has its sights set on a deep NCAA Tournament run.
Three Questions to Monitor
Is he too streaky of a three-point shooter? After connecting on just 27% of his threes (3.0 3PA), there is understandable concern and a need to produce a quality season from distance. I believe in his shooting long-term; there is too much touch and shotmaking ability not to.
Will his decision-making progress? At times, Lewis can be too risky with his decision-making from attempting to fit too many tough passes in tight spaces, questionable shot selection, and essentially trying to hit a home run when only a base hit is needed.
Can he hold up defensively? Lewis isn’t blessed with overwhelming defensive tools, but his marriage of anticipation skills and quick hands allows him to impact games as a defensive playmaker (1.9 SPG, Villanova freshman record 63 total steals).
Zac Foster | Sophomore | 6’4” | 190 pounds | 6’9” wingspan | Clemson
2025-2026 Stats: 6.9 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 2.5 APG, 0.4 SPG in 18.6 MPG (12 G)
2025-2026 Shooting Splits: 31/27.7/81.8
The Pitch
Zac Foster is a dynamic four-star recruit from a basketball family (his brother Marcus played at Xavier and his mother Sheri is in the Loyola Marymount University Hall of Fame) who unfortunately had his freshman season cut short after 12 games due to a season-ending ACL tear.
Even in a limited sample, his tantalizing combination of physical tools and versatility shined. When Clemson visited Georgetown last season, I was able to get an in-person viewing of one of his better performances: 11 points, two rebounds, four assists, and one steal across 19 minutes off the bench. As a bigger guard, Foster is able to get downhill and to his spots with physicality, craft, and burst, then have the athleticism to finish above the rim and the shotmaking talent to be a scoring threat on multiple levels. His flashes of playmaking and feel are very real areas to mine that will significantly alter both his floor and ceiling.
Considering it can take multiple years for players to find their comfort and trust in their bodies/game after ACL injuries, I might be a season too early on Foster’s emergence. Regardless, he’s a long-term prospect with two-way upside that evaluators should be tracking. Get your stock now.
Three Questions to Monitor
Can he stay healthy?
How long will it take for him to regain his form? Foster isn’t playing on Clemson’s current exhibition tour in Italy and rightfully appears to be eased into the season.
Can he develop into a full-time point guard or is he destined to be more of an ancillary guard who can alleviate some of the point guard load?
Rowan Brumbaugh | Senior | 6’4” | 185 pounds | Southern Methodist University
2025-2026 Stats: 19.2 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 3.5 APG, 1.6 SPG in 36 MPG (33 G)
2025-2026 Shooting Splits: 45.2/36/80.4
The Pitch
Over the past couple of seasons at Tulane, Rowan Brumbaugh has steadily developed into one of the best point guards outside of the Power Four conferences after short stints with Texas and Georgetown. He returns to the Power Four this season to be the floor general and engine for the SMU Mustangs.
Brumbaugh is a wonderful pick-and-roll handler who opposing teams must account for as both a scorer and playmaker. He possesses a feel for manipulating ball screens with pace, flips, and rescreens while using his eyes to move and freeze defenses. Brumbaugh can reliably play in the pocket, whip skip passes, and get to his pull-up game. The value isn’t just on the ball. Draining 44.4% of his unguarded catch-and-shoot threes (54 3PA via Synergy), Brumbaugh brings the steady off-ball shooting and floor spacing to play alongside a primary creator.
I would be shocked if Brumbaugh isn’t a leading name for the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament (PIT) and doesn’t earn an invite to the NBA Combine. His pathway to the NBA is likely in a backup or third guard role.
Three Questions to Monitor
Can he consistently finish amongst NBA trees? Brumbaugh is a below-the-rim finisher without much vertical pop. He must show that he can find consistent success against the NBA-caliber size and athleticism that ACC will deploy.
Are the athletic concerns too limiting on both ends of the floor?
Will there be a readjustment period back to Power Four basketball or will he hit the ground running?
Aiden Tobiason | Junior | 6’5” | 200 pounds | 7’0.75 wingspan | Syracuse
2025-2026 Stats: 15.3 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.2 SPG, 0.2 BPG in 35.3 MPG (32 G)
2025-2026 Shooting Splits: 48.0/33.8/80.0
The Pitch
Aiden Tobiason enters his first season with Syracuse after a breakout sophomore campaign as a member of the Temple Owls and a standout G League Elite camp where his combination of a shoot-dribble-pass skillset and defensive tools piqued the interest of NBA evaluators.
The Wilmington, Delaware native isn’t the most bursty or explosive of athletes, but he’s able to get to his spots with craft and footwork, featuring a go-to hesitation, crossover, and stepback move. The midrange is where we mostly see his intriguing self-creation flashes and tough shotmaking ability upside.
Tobiason is converting at a 65% clip at the rim in the halfcourt on 100 attempts. That ridiculous plus wingspan is leveraged for extension finishes with both hands alongside touch and capable above-the-rim athleticism when there is a runway. I love the fearlessness that he will attack with. Although lean, Tobiason rarely shies away from contact at the rim and will often initiate it.
The off-ball work is marvelous and my favorite part of his game. He’s a tremendous cutter that understands timing, how to set defenders up before darting to the rim, and just always feels like he’s moving. Knocking down 35.5% of his catch-and-shoot threes (via Synergy), including movement shooting flashes, Tobiason should warrant closeouts and is more than capable of attacking them for scoring and playmaking chances.
His pairing of outstanding length and activity fuels his defensive appeal. There is a 3-and-D floor with upside as Tobiason continues to add strength and develop his game.
Three Questions to Monitor
How good of a three-point shooter is he? Logging more minutes and higher usage, Tobiason’s three-point percentage dropped from 41.2% (1.9 3P) to 33.8% (4.3 3PA). I’m ultimately buying him as a viable floor spacer because of his touch and shotmaking, but another year of evidence should ease the concerns of most evaluators.
Could his playmaking become a reliable ancillary skill? Tobiason needs one and has shown flashes as a connective and pick-and-roll handler playmaker.
What’s the NBA role? The role likely is 3-and-D guard/wing, but there could be real on-ball juice as a secondary handler.
Ben Hammond | Junior | 5’11” | 170 pounds | Virginia Tech
2025-2026 Stats: 13.2 PPG, 2.3 RPG, 3.2 APG, 2 SPG in 31.4 MPG (32 G)
2025-2026 Shooting Splits: 43.8/43.1/86.5
The Pitch
Ben Hammond is the type of small guard that absolutely understands the assignment: control the game offensively while being a disruptive defensive pest at the point of attack and in passing lanes (finishing second in the ACC in SPG).
Thanks to a blend of speed, quickness, and shifty handle, he’s able to create paint touches on his own in the halfcourt plus be a ridiculous blur in transition for scoring and playmaking opportunities. When working ball screens, Hammond can split them with ease or effectively snake them (despite his smaller stature) to get all the way to the rim for tough finishes, stop and pops in the midrange or beyond the arc, and find his teammates via lobs, drop-offs, and spray-outs. Because of his shooting prowess, Hammond forces defenders to either push up to prevent open threes or drop to avoid getting blown by, forcing the defense into scramble rotations.
There might not be a better two-way guard in the ACC than Ben Hammond. Projected to be a full-season starter for the first time in college, Hammond is bound to firmly entrench himself on the NBA radar.
Three Questions to Monitor
How real is the three-point shooting? Across his two seasons, Hammond is a 44.9% career three-point shooter on 2.2 3PA (138 total 3PA).
Is he too small?
Is there an elite skill or collection of compensating skills for his lack of size? Maybe it’s the shooting or the shooting paired with his speed/quickness, ball skills, playmaking, and defense.
back in the lab
Great piece Jamaill! Very well written and put together