Wake Forest Demon Deacons Basketball Preview 2026-27 — Wake Forest Demon Deacons head coach Steve Forbes answers questions from the media during the ACC Tip-Off in Charlotte, NC. | Source: Lastwordonsports.com – Daniel Benjamin, Editor

The Wake Forest Demon Deacons head into the 2026-27 season with a lot to figure out after losing their top eight players. The Demon Deacons brought in 12 newcomers, including eight transfers.

Wake Forest Basketball 2026-27 Preview

Wake Forest has been fairly consistent since head coach Steve Forbes took over the program following three straight losing seasons under Danny Manning. The Demon Deacons went 18-17 this past season, marking their fifth straight winning campaign. However, the Deacs posted their first conference losing season in ACC play since 2021-22, finishing 13th with a 7-13 record. Overall, Forbes is 110-82 in six seasons in Winston-Salem, which puts him on the school’s all-time ledger.

Wake Forest got a glimpse of their squad for the first time last week in a 94-77 loss to Georgetown. Wake struggled mightily on defense against Georgetown, allowing the Hoyas to shoot 60% from the field and connect on 16 threes (55%). Transfer Kevair Kennedy led the way for the Demon Deacons with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting and four steals in 27 minutes. Twin freshmen Gavin and Gallagher Placide combined for 27 points on 9-of-16 shooting and four steals.

Demon Deacons Return Four Players

Wake Forest returns just one starter from last year and four players overall. Six-foot-4 sophomore guard Isaac Carr is the Demon Deacons’ top returnee. Carr averaged 2.2 points over 11 minutes and 26 appearances, including four starts.

Carr, a four-star 2024 recruit, is expected to start this year in the backcourt. He possesses good size, standing at 6-4, and potential to be a secondary creator due to his ball-handling and passing.

Anson Beard Jr., Will Underwood, and Vincent Ricchiuti are the other returning players. Ricchiuti and Beard project to be depth pieces.

Wake Forest Transfers

Steve Forbes asks Jamari McDowell a question — Wake Forest Demon Deacons head coach Steve Forbes interrupts the media questions with his own to Jamari McDowell during the ACC Tip-Off in Charlotte, NC. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon, Imagn Images via Reuters Connect

Forbes has brought in a solid transfer class. Six of the eight transfers are slated to have major roles this season, led by Jamari McDowell,Justin Ray, and Kennedy.

McDowell struggled in his two collegiate seasons with Kansas. McDowell is a lengthy and athletic wing with defensive versatility and an improving perimeter game. The 6-4 guard started against Georgetown, finishing with eight points and four assists in 18 minutes. But he is dealing with plantar fasciitis and is expected to miss a couple of weeks.

“Jamari is going to be out for a while,” coach Steve Forbes said on Wednesday. “We tried to manage it before we played Georgetown. We had him out four or five days. He was feeling good, and then it just flared up on him during the game.

Kennedy had a fantastic freshman campaign at Merrimack. Kennedy, the 2025-26 MAAC ROY and POY, led the conference with 18.6 points a game. He is a super-quick combo guard who thrives in transition and is a capable playmaker.

Xander Pintelon came to Wake Forest after spending last year at Florida Atlantic. The 6-11 Belgium native is a stretch 4/5 with a soft touch around the rim. He is competing

Ray showed massive improvement between hisfirst- and second-year studente campaigns at Monmouth. Ray is a 6-3 guard who can put up points in bunches in a variety of ways. He knocked down 1.9 triples at a 42% clip last year. He is expected to be a major contributor, whether coming off the bench or starting.

Ring Nyeri is a 6-8 forward who comes to Wake from Northern Colorado, where he showed massive improvement over his freshman campaign at UMKC. Nyeri is an athletic high-motor forward who rebounds well on both ends. He can guard multiple positions in the frontcourt and is highly efficient around the rim.

Justin Abson was a late addition in the transfer portal, joining Wake in September after being granted a waiver for a fifth season. After starting his career at Appalachian State, Abson spent the last two seasons at Georgia. The 6-9 forward is a shot-blocker who is efficient around the rim and a solid offensive rebounder.

Antonio Dorn is another depth piece for the Demon Deacons in the frontcourt. The 7-foot German, who appeared in 24 games for Virginia Tech last year, has recently returned to the court after suffering an injury during summer workouts. He is expected to be a major part of the Deacs frontcourt.

“We’ve got Dorn back in there now; he didn’t play against Georgetown,” Forbes added.

Demon Deacons 2026-27 Recruiting Class

Cliff Placide in high school — Oak Cliff Faith Family Academy (TX) forward Gavin Placide (12) against CIA Bella Vista (AZ) during the HoopHall West Tournament at Skyline High School. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images via Reuters Connect

The Placide twins are the top recruits in Forbes four-man class. Both are consensus four-star recruits.

Gavin Placide, who is 6-11 and weighs 225 pounds, started at power forward against Georgetown. Placide is a strong defender who can play both forward spots and provide rim protection. He is an outstanding rebounder and excels at rim-running and finishing above the rim.

Gallagher Placide is a 6-9, 220-pound forward who is more perimeter-oriented than his brother. Placide is an athletic ball-handler and capable 3-point shooter who possesses defensive upside. He finished with 13 points against Georgetown on 5-of-11 shooting, including 1-of-2 from the 3-point line.

Lukas Bojovic was the Serbian Junior League Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year this past season while playing for Partizan KK U18. The 6-6 point guard has good size, is a three-level scorer, and excels in pick-and-roll situations. He scored 8 points on 3-of-5 shooting, including 2-of-4 from deep, against the Hoyas.

Projecting Wake Forest Basketball’s 2026-27 Depth Chart

Forbes typically uses an eight-man rotation, though he ran out 10 players regularly last season. Expect him to use a 9- to 10-man rotation.

Starters

PG: Kevair Kennedy

SG: Isaac Carr

SF: Justin Ray or Jamari McDowell: Ray should start at least until McDowell returns from injury.

PF: Gavin Placide

C: Xander Pintelone

Bench

6th: Ray or McDowell: Whoever doesn’t start figures to be the first player off the bench.

7th: Gallagher Placide

8th: Antonio Dorn

9th: Lukas Bojovic

10th: Ring Nyeri

11th: Justin Abson

Deep Bench

Vincent Chaudhri, Vincent Ricchiuti, Anson Beard Jr., Will Underwood, Maddox Watson

Demon Deacons Schedule

Wake Forest will travel to Rock Hill (SC) to face South Carolina in another exhibition on August 15. As for the nonconference slate, Wake will play 14 games, including seven at home. The Demon Deacons have some interesting nonconference contests: at Vanderbilt, at LSU (ACC/SEC Challenge), and two games at the Battle for Atlantis (Mississippi State and either Penn State or Memphis). They also face UMass in the Basketball Hall of Fame Classic.

Wake Forest will play NC State and Notre Dame twice. The Demon Deacons won’t face Virginia this season.

Wake’s other home games are against: Virginia Tech, Florida State, Duke, Boston College, Pittsburgh, North Carolina and Georgia Tech. The Deacons will also travel to SMU, Clemson, Miami, Louisville, Stanford, California and Syracuse.