March 2, 2004
There have been plenty of impact diaper dandies across America this season.

	Wake Forest's Chris Paul has a grasp on the ACC's freshman of the year award, in the eyes of Dickie V.

The ACC has been the premier conference in college hoops this season, so it only figures that the league has one of the hottest races for freshman of the year.

That's right, Duke forward Luol Deng vs. Wake Forest guard Chris Paul.

Deng and Paul have been impact diaper dandies in winning environments. They have been major contributors to the success of their respective teams.

If I had to cast a vote, I would give the slight edge to Paul. For Wake Forest to win, Paul has had to be valuable. Deng has given great value to the Blue Devils, but they have other players to help them get to the winner's circle. Duke's supporting cast is stronger -- with Chris Duhon, J.J. Redick, Daniel Ewing, Shelden Williams and Co.

The statistics for Paul and Deng are comparably successful (of course, they play different roles). The 6-foot Paul is averaging 13.4 points, 5.8 assists, 3.0 steals and 3.4 rebounds per game. The 6-8 Deng is averaging 14.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.3 steals per game (each player has two regular-season games left).

To me, the key is that if Mr. Paul is sub-par, Wake Forest has no shot to win. He has been dominant at times -- just ask Cincinnati coach Bob Huggins about Paul's 30-point performance against the Bearcats, followed up by a 23-point effort against the Dukies.

Paul is, without a doubt, one of my favorite diaper dandies this year. It's a tough call, but I pick Paul over Deng.

Dick Vitale coached the Detroit Pistons and the University of Detroit in the 1970s before providing color commentary for ESPN's first college basketball game in 1979 (he has been an ESPN analyst ever since). Send a question for Vitale for possible use on ESPNEWS.