By R.L. Bynum
CHARLOTTE — Jim Phillips says that the ACC is reshaping its competitive balance and its basketball schedule to better position the league for national prominence.
He delivered that message on Tuesday during the Commissioner’s Forum on the second of three days of the ACC Tipoff media event at the Hilton Charlotte Uptown.
At the center of that push is the conference’s new scheduling model. For the first time since 2018–19, ACC men’s teams will play an 18-game conference slate rather than 20. Phillips said that the reduction was deliberate to give schools more flexibility to schedule high-major nonconference games that can boost NCAA Tournament résumés.
He acknowledged the decision wasn’t easy. The league’s century-old rivalries were weighed against the practical need to modernize scheduling, and one result is that UNC and N.C. State will only play once next season.
Phillips said the process involved extensive collaboration between athletics directors, coaches, and staff, all of whom were trying to balance history with opportunity. Ultimately, he said, the change offers a strategic advantage.
By scaling back to 18 games, ACC schools can target marquee opponents across the Power Four landscape — the kind of games that catch the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee’s attention.
“It has brought us the ability to schedule a little differently in the nonconference,” Phillips said. The shift, he added, “is a driver about trying to get more teams in the NCAA tournament.”
The impact, Phillips said, is visible in the schedule, which features the league teams playing 72 non-conference games against Power Five and Big East opponents, excluding potential matchups in early-season tournaments.
Phillips said the numbers prove the move is working.
“I’m exceptionally pleased about where this thing ended up,” he noted. “It will only get better as we go forward.”
The commissioner praised schools for adapting quickly to the new format, especially those with first-year head coaches who benefited from the added flexibility. He said the extra nonconference openings gave programs a chance to balance challenging games with opportunities to build chemistry early in the season.
Beyond scheduling, Phillips emphasized two new conference-wide initiatives that will now extend from football into basketball — court and field safety protocols and mandatory player availability reports.
Beginning this season, ACC schools must submit those reports by 8 p.m. the night before each conference game, and again two hours before tipoff.
The policy, he said, reflects the league’s “ongoing commitment to safety and best protecting our student-athletes.” He said that it also brings transparency to a process that has become increasingly scrutinized in college sports, ensuring consistent reporting across all 18 men’s and women’s basketball programs.
Phillips’ remarks underscored the ACC’s intent to strengthen its national standing in both competition and structure. The new basketball model, paired with expanded leadership hires and a growing revenue framework, he said, is part of a larger plan to modernize the league’s operations while maintaining its traditions.
“We have to continue to pay attention to the legacy of this conference and the history,” Phillips said, “and it starts with men’s basketball.”
Photo by Nell Redmond/theACC.com
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