My preseason top 50 is obviously still a work in progress since we won’t know for certain who is withdrawing from the NBA Draft, who is staying in, and who else might be a surprise late pickup via the transfer wire.
But here’s what we do know: Veteran teams should have a major advantage this season, and that bodes well for Baylor, Villanova and Gonzaga — which are really 1A, 1B and 1C in my latest rankings.
The biggest surprises just might be Arizona State and Richmond, which both cracked the top 15. The Big Ten and SEC both have nine teams in the Top 50, but the Big Ten has four in the top 15 while the SEC doesn’t have a single team in the top 15.
Big Blue Nation probably won’t be happy about my placement of the Kentucky Wildcats, but they have just one returnee from this past season, and that’s Keion Brooks and his 4.5 points per game. They can move up if they can add a frontcourt grad transfer, but the current roster isn’t worthy of a top-20 ranking.
And without further ado…
1. Baylor
Last Season: 26-4, 15-3 in Big 12
Lose (2): PF Freddie Gillespie* (9.6 ppg, 9.0 rpg), G Devonte Bandoo (7.6 ppg)
Declared, Expected Back (2): MaCio Teague, Jared Butler
Starters Back (4): G Jared Butler (Jr., 16.0 ppg, 3.1 apg), F Mark Vital (RS Sr., 6.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg), SG MaCio Teague (RS Sr., 13.9 ppg), G Davion Mitchell (RS Jr., 9.9 ppg, 3.8 apg)
Other Returners (3): PF Tristan Clark (Sr., 4.0 ppg), SF Matthew Mayer (Jr., 4.8 ppg), F Flo Thamba (Jr., 2.3 ppg)
Redshirted (1): SF Jordan Turner (RS Fr.)
Eligible Transfers (2): G Adam Flagler (Presbyterian, RS Soph., 15.9 ppg), F Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua (UNLV, RS Soph., 3.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg)
Add (3): PF Dain Dainja (No. 47 overall recruit in Class of 2020), PG L.J. Cryer (No. 60), Zach Loveday
2. Villanova
Last Season: 24-7, 13-5 in Big East
Declared, Likely Gone (1): F Saddiq Bey* (16.1 ppg, 4.7 rpg),
Starters Back (4): PG Collin Gillespie (Sr., 15.1 ppg, 4.5 apg), SF Jermaine Samuels (Sr., 10.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg), SG Justin Moore (Soph., 11.3 ppg), PF-C Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (Soph., 10.5 ppg, 9.4 rpg)
Other Returners (5): PF Cole Swider (Jr., 6.1 ppg), F Brandon Slater (Jr., 1.6 ppg), F Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree (Sr., 1.5 ppg), SG Bryan Antoine (Soph., 1.1 ppg), G Chris Arcidiacono (Soph., 0.4 ppg)
Redshirted (1): PF Eric Dixon (RS Fr.)
Eligible Transfers (1): G Caleb Daniels (Tulane, RS Soph., 16.9 ppg)
3. Gonzaga
Last Season: 31-2, 15-1 in WCC
Lose (3): PF Killian Tillie* (13.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg), SG Admon Gilder (10.7 ppg), PG Ryan Woolridge* (10.1 ppg, 4.2 apg)
Starters Back (3): PF Filip Petrusev (Jr., 17.5 ppg, 7.9 rpg), SG Corey Kispert (Sr., 13.9 ppg), G Joel Ayayi (RS Jr., 10.6 ppg, 3.2 apg)
Other Returners (4): PF Drew Timme (Soph., 9.8 ppg, 5.4 rpg), F Anton Watson (Soph., 4.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg), F Pavel Zakharov (Soph., 1.9 ppg), G Martynas Arlauskas (Soph., 1.2 ppg)
Redshirted (1): C Oumar Ballo (RS Fr.)
Eligible Transfers (1): G Aaron Cook (Southern Illinois, 15.0 ppg – 6 games)
Add (3): PG Jalen Suggs (No. 5), SG Dominick Harris (No. 54), SF Julian Strawther (No. 59)
4. Iowa
Last Season: 20-11, 11-9 in Big Ten
Lose (4): C Ryan Kriener (7.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg), G Bakari Evelyn (3.7 ppg), F Cordell Pemsl (transferred to Virginia Tech, 2.8 ppg), F Riley Till (RS Sr., 0.7 ppg)
Declared, Expected Back (1): Luka Garza
Starters Back (5): C Luka Garza (Sr., 23.9 ppg, 9.8 rpg), G Joe Wieskamp (Jr., 14.0 ppg), G CJ Fredrick (Soph., 10.2 ppg), G Joe Toussaint (Soph., 6.5 ppg) G Connor McCaffery (RS Jr., 6.2 ppg, 4.0 apg)
Other Returners (2): G Jordan Bohannon (Grad, 8.8 ppg, 3.3 apg – 10 games), F Jack Nunge (RS Jr., 6.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg – 5 games)
Redshirted (1): G Patrick McCaffery (RS Fr.)
Add (5): F Keegan Murray, F Kris Murray, PF Josh Ogundele, G Tony Perkins, PG Ahron Ulis
5. Wisconsin
Last Season: 21-10, 14-6 in Big Ten
Lose (2): G Kobe King* (transferred to Nebraska, 10.0 ppg), G Brevin Pritzl (8.0 ppg)
Starters Back (4): F Nate Reuvers (Sr., 13.1 ppg), G D’Mitrik Trice (RS Sr., 9.8 ppg, 4.2 apg), G Brad Davison (Sr., 9.9 ppg), F Aleem Ford (RS Sr., 8.6 ppg)
Other Returners (4): F Micah Potter (RS Sr., 10.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg), F Tyler Wahl (Soph., 2.6 ppg), G Trevor Anderson (RS Sr., 1.8 ppg), C Joe Hedstrom (RS Soph., 0.3 ppg)
Add (6): PF Ben Carlson (No. 89), PG Lorne Bowman (No. 90), G Jordan Davis, G Johnny Davis, C Steven Crowl, F Carter Gilmore
6. Michigan State
Last Season: 22-9, 14-6 in Big Ten
Lose (2): PG Cassius Winston* (18.6 ppg. 5.9 apg), F Kyle Ahrens (3.6 ppg)
Declared for the Draft, Flip of the Coin (1): Xavier Tillman
Starters Back (4): C Xavier Tillman (Sr., 13.7 ppg, 10.3 rpg), SF Aaron Henry (Jr., 10.0 ppg), G Rocket Watts (Soph., 9.0 ppg), F Malik Hall (Soph., 4.6 ppg, 3.7 rpg)
Other Returners (5): F Gabe Brown (Jr., 6.8 ppg), F Marcus Bingham (Jr., 3.5 ppg), F Thomas Kithier (Jr., 3.1 ppg), PG Foster Loyer (Jr., 2.9 ppg), F Julius Marble (Soph., 1.7 ppg)
Up in the Air (1): G Josh Langford (DNP – Injured last season)
Eligible Transfers (1): F Joey Hauser (Marquette, RS Soph., 9.7 ppg)
Add (2): C Mady Sissoko (No. 35), PG A.J. Hoggard (No. 57)
7. Kansas
Last Season: 28-3, 17-1 in Big 12
Lose (3): C Udoka Azubuike* (13.7 ppg, 10.5 rpg), Devon Dotson* (NBA Draft, 18.1 ppg, 4.0 apg), SG Isaiah Moss (7.9 ppg)
Starters Back (3): G Marcus Garrett (Sr., 9.2 ppg), SG Ochai Agbaji (Jr., 10.0 ppg), PF David McCormack (Jr., 6.9 ppg)
Other Returners (3): G Christian Braun (Soph., 5.3 ppg), PF Silvio De Sousa (Sr., 2.6 ppg), SF Tristan Enaruna (Soph., 2.4 ppg)
Redshirted (3): F Mitch Lightfoot (RS Sr., 2.4 ppg), F Jalen Wilson (RS Fr.), G Dajuan Harris (RS Fr.)
Add (4): SG Bryce Thompson (No. 27), SF Tyon Grant-Foster (JUCO), C Gethro Muscadin, PG Latrell Jossell
8. Virginia
Last Season: 23-7, 15-5 in ACC
Lose (2): F Mamadi Diakite* (13.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg), F Braxton Key* (9.9 ppg, 7.4 rpg)
Declared, Expected Back (1): Jay Huff
Starters Back (3): PG Kihei Clark (Jr., 10.8 ppg, 5.9 apg), F Jay Huff (RS Sr., 8.5 ppg, 6.2 rpg), G Tomas Woldetensae (Sr., 6.6 ppg)
Other Returners (4): SG Casey Morsell (Soph., 4.0 ppg), G Kody Stattmann (Jr., 3.6 ppg), C Francisco Caffaro (RS Soph., 1.4 ppg), SF Justin McKoy (Soph., 1.0 ppg)
Eligible Transfers (1): F Sam Hauser (Marquette, 14.9 ppg, 7.2 rpg)
Potential Sit-Out Transfers (1): F Trey Murphy III (Rice, 13.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg)
Redshirted (1): C Kadin Shedrick (RS Fr.)
Add (3): SF Jabri Abdur-Rahim (No. 33), PG Reece Beekman (No. 46), SG Carson McCorkle
9. Arizona State
Last Season: 20-11, 11-7 in Pac-12
Lose (5): SG Rob Edwards* (11.6 ppg), F Mickey Mitchell* (1.8 ppg), F Khalid Thomas (transferred to Portland State, 2.6 ppg), G Elias Valtonen (Turned pro, 2.6 ppg), F Andre Allen (transferred to Southern)
Declared, Expected Back (2): Remy Martin, Romello White
Starters Back (3): PG Remy Martin (Sr., 19.1 ppg, 4.1 apg), PF Romello White (RS Sr., 10.2 ppg, 8.8 rpg), F Kimani Lawrence (Sr., 4.9 ppg)
Other Returners (5): G Alonzo Verge Jr. (Sr., 14.6 ppg), F Taeshon Cherry (Jr., 4.6 ppg), G Jaelen House (Soph., 3.9 ppg), F Jalen Graham (Soph., 3.2 ppg), G Caleb Christopher (Soph., 0.7 ppg)
Potential Sit-Out Transfers (2): SG Luther Muhammad (Ohio State, Jr., 7.0 ppg), G Holland Woods (Portland State, Jr., 17.7 ppg, 5.2 apg),
Add (2): SG Josh Christopher (No. 10), SF Marcus Bagley (No. 34)
10. Creighton
Last Season: 24-7, 13-5 in Big East
Lose (3): C Kelvin Jones (3.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg), G Jalen Windham (transferring to Ball State, Fr., 2.6 ppg), G Davion Mintz (transferring to Kentucky, DNP last season)
Declared, Likely Gone (1): SG Ty-Shon Alexander* (16.9 ppg)
Declared, Expected Back (1): Denzel Mahoney
Starters Back (4): PG Marcus Zegarowski (Jr., 16.1 ppg, 5.0 apg), SG Mitch Ballock (Sr., 11.9 ppg), F Damien Jefferson (Sr., 9.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg), F Christian Bishop (Jr., 8.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg)
Other Returners (2): F Denzel Mahoney (Sr., 12.0 ppg), PG Shereef Mitchell (Soph., 2.7 ppg)
Redshirted (1): C Jacob Epperson (RS Jr., DNP – Injury)
Eligible Transfers (1): SG Antwann Jones (Memphis, RS Soph., 4.7 ppg)
Potential Sit-Out Transfers (1): SG Alex O’Connell (Duke, RS Jr., 5.2 ppg)
Add (1): C Ryan Kalkbrenner (No. 99)
But here’s what we do know: Veteran teams should have a major advantage this season, and that bodes well for Baylor, Villanova and Gonzaga — which are really 1A, 1B and 1C in my latest rankings.
The biggest surprises just might be Arizona State and Richmond, which both cracked the top 15. The Big Ten and SEC both have nine teams in the Top 50, but the Big Ten has four in the top 15 while the SEC doesn’t have a single team in the top 15.
Big Blue Nation probably won’t be happy about my placement of the Kentucky Wildcats, but they have just one returnee from this past season, and that’s Keion Brooks and his 4.5 points per game. They can move up if they can add a frontcourt grad transfer, but the current roster isn’t worthy of a top-20 ranking.
And without further ado…
1. Baylor
Last Season: 26-4, 15-3 in Big 12
Lose (2): PF Freddie Gillespie* (9.6 ppg, 9.0 rpg), G Devonte Bandoo (7.6 ppg)
Declared, Expected Back (2): MaCio Teague, Jared Butler
Starters Back (4): G Jared Butler (Jr., 16.0 ppg, 3.1 apg), F Mark Vital (RS Sr., 6.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg), SG MaCio Teague (RS Sr., 13.9 ppg), G Davion Mitchell (RS Jr., 9.9 ppg, 3.8 apg)
Other Returners (3): PF Tristan Clark (Sr., 4.0 ppg), SF Matthew Mayer (Jr., 4.8 ppg), F Flo Thamba (Jr., 2.3 ppg)
Redshirted (1): SF Jordan Turner (RS Fr.)
Eligible Transfers (2): G Adam Flagler (Presbyterian, RS Soph., 15.9 ppg), F Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua (UNLV, RS Soph., 3.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg)
Add (3): PF Dain Dainja (No. 47 overall recruit in Class of 2020), PG L.J. Cryer (No. 60), Zach Loveday
2. Villanova
Last Season: 24-7, 13-5 in Big East
Declared, Likely Gone (1): F Saddiq Bey* (16.1 ppg, 4.7 rpg),
Starters Back (4): PG Collin Gillespie (Sr., 15.1 ppg, 4.5 apg), SF Jermaine Samuels (Sr., 10.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg), SG Justin Moore (Soph., 11.3 ppg), PF-C Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (Soph., 10.5 ppg, 9.4 rpg)
Other Returners (5): PF Cole Swider (Jr., 6.1 ppg), F Brandon Slater (Jr., 1.6 ppg), F Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree (Sr., 1.5 ppg), SG Bryan Antoine (Soph., 1.1 ppg), G Chris Arcidiacono (Soph., 0.4 ppg)
Redshirted (1): PF Eric Dixon (RS Fr.)
Eligible Transfers (1): G Caleb Daniels (Tulane, RS Soph., 16.9 ppg)
3. Gonzaga
Last Season: 31-2, 15-1 in WCC
Lose (3): PF Killian Tillie* (13.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg), SG Admon Gilder (10.7 ppg), PG Ryan Woolridge* (10.1 ppg, 4.2 apg)
Starters Back (3): PF Filip Petrusev (Jr., 17.5 ppg, 7.9 rpg), SG Corey Kispert (Sr., 13.9 ppg), G Joel Ayayi (RS Jr., 10.6 ppg, 3.2 apg)
Other Returners (4): PF Drew Timme (Soph., 9.8 ppg, 5.4 rpg), F Anton Watson (Soph., 4.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg), F Pavel Zakharov (Soph., 1.9 ppg), G Martynas Arlauskas (Soph., 1.2 ppg)
Redshirted (1): C Oumar Ballo (RS Fr.)
Eligible Transfers (1): G Aaron Cook (Southern Illinois, 15.0 ppg – 6 games)
Add (3): PG Jalen Suggs (No. 5), SG Dominick Harris (No. 54), SF Julian Strawther (No. 59)
4. Iowa
Last Season: 20-11, 11-9 in Big Ten
Lose (4): C Ryan Kriener (7.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg), G Bakari Evelyn (3.7 ppg), F Cordell Pemsl (transferred to Virginia Tech, 2.8 ppg), F Riley Till (RS Sr., 0.7 ppg)
Declared, Expected Back (1): Luka Garza
Starters Back (5): C Luka Garza (Sr., 23.9 ppg, 9.8 rpg), G Joe Wieskamp (Jr., 14.0 ppg), G CJ Fredrick (Soph., 10.2 ppg), G Joe Toussaint (Soph., 6.5 ppg) G Connor McCaffery (RS Jr., 6.2 ppg, 4.0 apg)
Other Returners (2): G Jordan Bohannon (Grad, 8.8 ppg, 3.3 apg – 10 games), F Jack Nunge (RS Jr., 6.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg – 5 games)
Redshirted (1): G Patrick McCaffery (RS Fr.)
Add (5): F Keegan Murray, F Kris Murray, PF Josh Ogundele, G Tony Perkins, PG Ahron Ulis
5. Wisconsin
Last Season: 21-10, 14-6 in Big Ten
Lose (2): G Kobe King* (transferred to Nebraska, 10.0 ppg), G Brevin Pritzl (8.0 ppg)
Starters Back (4): F Nate Reuvers (Sr., 13.1 ppg), G D’Mitrik Trice (RS Sr., 9.8 ppg, 4.2 apg), G Brad Davison (Sr., 9.9 ppg), F Aleem Ford (RS Sr., 8.6 ppg)
Other Returners (4): F Micah Potter (RS Sr., 10.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg), F Tyler Wahl (Soph., 2.6 ppg), G Trevor Anderson (RS Sr., 1.8 ppg), C Joe Hedstrom (RS Soph., 0.3 ppg)
Add (6): PF Ben Carlson (No. 89), PG Lorne Bowman (No. 90), G Jordan Davis, G Johnny Davis, C Steven Crowl, F Carter Gilmore
6. Michigan State
Last Season: 22-9, 14-6 in Big Ten
Lose (2): PG Cassius Winston* (18.6 ppg. 5.9 apg), F Kyle Ahrens (3.6 ppg)
Declared for the Draft, Flip of the Coin (1): Xavier Tillman
Starters Back (4): C Xavier Tillman (Sr., 13.7 ppg, 10.3 rpg), SF Aaron Henry (Jr., 10.0 ppg), G Rocket Watts (Soph., 9.0 ppg), F Malik Hall (Soph., 4.6 ppg, 3.7 rpg)
Other Returners (5): F Gabe Brown (Jr., 6.8 ppg), F Marcus Bingham (Jr., 3.5 ppg), F Thomas Kithier (Jr., 3.1 ppg), PG Foster Loyer (Jr., 2.9 ppg), F Julius Marble (Soph., 1.7 ppg)
Up in the Air (1): G Josh Langford (DNP – Injured last season)
Eligible Transfers (1): F Joey Hauser (Marquette, RS Soph., 9.7 ppg)
Add (2): C Mady Sissoko (No. 35), PG A.J. Hoggard (No. 57)
7. Kansas
Last Season: 28-3, 17-1 in Big 12
Lose (3): C Udoka Azubuike* (13.7 ppg, 10.5 rpg), Devon Dotson* (NBA Draft, 18.1 ppg, 4.0 apg), SG Isaiah Moss (7.9 ppg)
Starters Back (3): G Marcus Garrett (Sr., 9.2 ppg), SG Ochai Agbaji (Jr., 10.0 ppg), PF David McCormack (Jr., 6.9 ppg)
Other Returners (3): G Christian Braun (Soph., 5.3 ppg), PF Silvio De Sousa (Sr., 2.6 ppg), SF Tristan Enaruna (Soph., 2.4 ppg)
Redshirted (3): F Mitch Lightfoot (RS Sr., 2.4 ppg), F Jalen Wilson (RS Fr.), G Dajuan Harris (RS Fr.)
Add (4): SG Bryce Thompson (No. 27), SF Tyon Grant-Foster (JUCO), C Gethro Muscadin, PG Latrell Jossell
8. Virginia
Last Season: 23-7, 15-5 in ACC
Lose (2): F Mamadi Diakite* (13.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg), F Braxton Key* (9.9 ppg, 7.4 rpg)
Declared, Expected Back (1): Jay Huff
Starters Back (3): PG Kihei Clark (Jr., 10.8 ppg, 5.9 apg), F Jay Huff (RS Sr., 8.5 ppg, 6.2 rpg), G Tomas Woldetensae (Sr., 6.6 ppg)
Other Returners (4): SG Casey Morsell (Soph., 4.0 ppg), G Kody Stattmann (Jr., 3.6 ppg), C Francisco Caffaro (RS Soph., 1.4 ppg), SF Justin McKoy (Soph., 1.0 ppg)
Eligible Transfers (1): F Sam Hauser (Marquette, 14.9 ppg, 7.2 rpg)
Potential Sit-Out Transfers (1): F Trey Murphy III (Rice, 13.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg)
Redshirted (1): C Kadin Shedrick (RS Fr.)
Add (3): SF Jabri Abdur-Rahim (No. 33), PG Reece Beekman (No. 46), SG Carson McCorkle
9. Arizona State
Last Season: 20-11, 11-7 in Pac-12
Lose (5): SG Rob Edwards* (11.6 ppg), F Mickey Mitchell* (1.8 ppg), F Khalid Thomas (transferred to Portland State, 2.6 ppg), G Elias Valtonen (Turned pro, 2.6 ppg), F Andre Allen (transferred to Southern)
Declared, Expected Back (2): Remy Martin, Romello White
Starters Back (3): PG Remy Martin (Sr., 19.1 ppg, 4.1 apg), PF Romello White (RS Sr., 10.2 ppg, 8.8 rpg), F Kimani Lawrence (Sr., 4.9 ppg)
Other Returners (5): G Alonzo Verge Jr. (Sr., 14.6 ppg), F Taeshon Cherry (Jr., 4.6 ppg), G Jaelen House (Soph., 3.9 ppg), F Jalen Graham (Soph., 3.2 ppg), G Caleb Christopher (Soph., 0.7 ppg)
Potential Sit-Out Transfers (2): SG Luther Muhammad (Ohio State, Jr., 7.0 ppg), G Holland Woods (Portland State, Jr., 17.7 ppg, 5.2 apg),
Add (2): SG Josh Christopher (No. 10), SF Marcus Bagley (No. 34)
10. Creighton
Last Season: 24-7, 13-5 in Big East
Lose (3): C Kelvin Jones (3.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg), G Jalen Windham (transferring to Ball State, Fr., 2.6 ppg), G Davion Mintz (transferring to Kentucky, DNP last season)
Declared, Likely Gone (1): SG Ty-Shon Alexander* (16.9 ppg)
Declared, Expected Back (1): Denzel Mahoney
Starters Back (4): PG Marcus Zegarowski (Jr., 16.1 ppg, 5.0 apg), SG Mitch Ballock (Sr., 11.9 ppg), F Damien Jefferson (Sr., 9.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg), F Christian Bishop (Jr., 8.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg)
Other Returners (2): F Denzel Mahoney (Sr., 12.0 ppg), PG Shereef Mitchell (Soph., 2.7 ppg)
Redshirted (1): C Jacob Epperson (RS Jr., DNP – Injury)
Eligible Transfers (1): SG Antwann Jones (Memphis, RS Soph., 4.7 ppg)
Potential Sit-Out Transfers (1): SG Alex O’Connell (Duke, RS Jr., 5.2 ppg)
Add (1): C Ryan Kalkbrenner (No. 99)
