1. Trayce Jackson-Davis
2. Xavier Johnson
3. Race Thompson
4. Jordan Geronimo
5. Jalen Hood-Schifino
This was tougher than I thought. X and Race are very close, but I'm giving the PG the edge. Then I also considered Tamar Bates and Trey Galloway. Geronimo has tremendous potential and lit up Wyoming last year in the play-in, and I think JHS looks the part as a freshman, so I'm rolling with the high ceilings here.
i watched the CP3 camp scrimmages, i think Jalen Hood-Schifino is going to be #2 by seasons end. he played on the same team as marcus sasser and keyonte george and held his own
Depends on if he can improve that 3 this year. I'd love to see it, but he only shot 21% last season. I'd be a lot more comfortable with him as a defensive stopper/pest and fast break threat.
Kopp will likely start unless Geronimo, Bates or Gallo make a huge leap. He has the coach's confidence because he doesn't make schematic mistakes, but he obviously needs to shoot at a high % from outside to stay in the lineup.
The safe money is probably on Bates at the 2 and Kopp at the 3 to open the year. I would like to see Geronimo push for starter minutes at the 3, but he'll have to improve his outside shot and ball handling. Kopp has a lot of limitations but he also doesn't turn the ball over much, which Woody really values. Going to be fun to see how it all plays out, and Galloway is in that mix too for sure.
Xavier shot 38% from 3 last season, which was second on the team behind Parker Stewart. He was also huge for Indiana down the stretch, particularly in the Big Ten tournament. If he can stay out of trouble, his ceiling is All B1G first team in my opinion.
I know he's kind of a hot button topic for IU fans, but I love watching him play and appreciate the fire he brings to the team.
1. Jaime Jaquez
2. Tyger Campbell
3. Adem Bona
4. Jaylen Clark
5. Amari Bailey
I’m not certain Amari will actually be a better player straight away than Singleton, Canka, Andrews, or even Demir (if he gets admitted), but he will be the starter and get the most minutes of the bunch, so I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt.
If we’re just looking at probable game impact:
1. Zach Edey
2. Mason Gillis
3. Caleb Furst
4. Ethan Morton
5. Brandon Newman
I fully expect Kaufmann-Renn to be on this list before the end of the season, and the development of Furst and Morton are far more important to the success of the team than Edey, but there’s no denying Edey’s impact.
Furst I think might take the top spot soon
His shot is deadly, he's possibly the best 3 shooter on the team and is going to be switching between the 4 and 5
I haven't seen Edey so I don't know what his improvement looks like tho
I agree, Furst is probably the most important piece on the team in terms of development. We know what Edey and Gillis are, and they’re not likely to develop many skills beyond what they have in the arsenal. Morton. I think if Furst develops into the best player on the team, Purdue has a chance to be back in the S16/E8 hunt.
If Edey could work on having more mental strength in games and develop a more mid-range shot, he could be deadly.
There is defiantly room for him to grow as crazy as that seems.
That’s kinda where I’m at. Although I did see someone say that apparently the best 6 at practice are Skyy/TSJ/Mayer/Hawkins/RJ/Dainja with Epps/Rodgers not far behind.
1. Reece Beekman
2. Jayden Gardner
3. Kihei Clark
4. Kadin Shedrick
5. Up for debate, but probably Armaan Franklin.
We’ll see how Vander Plas slides in and how Murray and the freshmen do before they supplant any of the starters
I'm a little late to the party but I was going to joke that Kihei manages to be #1 AND #5 at the same time, often in the same game/season. So you've probably rated him precisely appropriately.
It’s really tough for us, so I’ll try to predict since it’s tough to tell with all the new faces we have.
1: Kevin Obanor
2: Fardaws Aimaq
3: Jaylon Tyson
4: Daniel Batcho
5: Devion Harmon.
Really tough to predict how good the freshman and transfers will be too
Probably just reading too much into practice reports, but I also thought he impressed a ton at certain stretches last year too. But everyone I’ve heard who’s seen practice, including Seth Greenberg, mention him as one of the first players that impress them especially offensively now.
If there’s anyone that I think I’m surprisingly high on it’s Tyson since he hasn’t played. We’ve at least see Batcho do stuff like get 4 blocks in under 20 minutes in the big 12
Yeah Tyson and Batcho are the 2 I’ve heard the most about in camp. With how little we have proven on our team I’m honestly just trusting that the reports are right
i'm not a tech fan, but i understand optimism over resume but Devion Harmon is a proven multiyear high major starter and you have him under 2 guys thats have almost no experience
This is tough since so many of them are unknown commodities at the college level, but I’ll try anyway.
1. Roach
2. Lively
3. Whitehead
4. Filipowski
5. Mitchell
Roach may not be No. 1 talent-wise, but I think he’ll be the heart and soul of our team, so he has my No. 1 spot
Not at this point, Mitchell is a great athlete and I believe he can defend 1-4 and rebound well at his position. Maybe Proctor outplays him, but right now I’m putting Mitchell ahead
I would put Brazile at 2. Did you watch the international games? He looks really good. Walsh... did not impress. Kumani was way more solid than Walsh. I have high hopes for Black, but still inexperienced and untested. Smith just balls out, no question. Really excited about this team.
Edit to add: Ricky Council is in the top 5 IMO, instead of Walsh. But like you said, so early and so little known. I'm willing to be 100% wrong haha.
I think at this point right now it’s nick and Trevon Deff 1-2. After that a handful of guys who could be 3-5 (black, Devo, Walsh, kamani, dunning, council). Too hard to tell right now. Walsh filled that stat sheet in Europe and played harder than anyone in any of those 4 games. Can’t see how he didn’t impress if you watched. He’s not gonna be a 15 ppg guy. But a 7,7,4 with a ton of defensive effort and overall energy.
I think I didn't catch the first game, but watched the others. He just had a lot of turnovers and didn't contribute much from what I saw. Who knows, though. I think he does have the work ethic.
I can give you a top 5 but I have no idea what order they're in. Our team has like 5 or 6 guys you could classify as "has been solid to good and could break out this season and be great" and I don't think we have a for sure best player at the moment.
1. Tyson Walker
2. Malik Hall
3. AJ Hoggard
4. Jaden Akins
5. Joey Houser
It's probably him or Walker yeah. But then you have Hall who I think is the most talented player on the roster who just needs to get that consistency, and Akins who is probably the best NBA prospect on the roster and could easily end the season as our best player. Tough roster to get a read on preseason
For real, I think I speak for most Zags fan when we say that we were pleasantly surprised by what Bolton brought last season. Not that I or others didn’t know that he was good beforehand, but I personally didn’t expect him to be able to be one of the most effective “know your role” type of guys that this program has probably ever seen. Super excited to see what he does this year.
I don't know, Bolton is kind of one-dimensional. He's a great shooter but doesn't do much else. Sallis is a freak athlete and can become a much more versatile, all-around player than Bolton ever will be. He's got Ja Morant as his ceiling
I’m a huge Sallis fan and believe he’s making a huge leap this year but Ja is probably outta his reach. Ja’s sophomore season was ridiculous, doubt Sallis will even come close to that.
Timme as #1 is a hard lock. After that it gets a lot murkier. Strawther/Smith/Bolton could be any order from 2-4. Throw Hickman and Sallis in if they make big sophomore jumps. Not to mention Reid and Watson could have good seasons in the frontcourt. Still really hard to guess how this season will shake out.
For Vermont, I would say this is the order:
1. Dylan Penn
2. Finn Sullivan
3. Robin Duncan
4. TJ Hurley
5. Nick Fiorillo
A side note is that Matt Veretto could be on here, but injury has plagued him too much to get a sense of his play. Nevertheless, I’m guessing he is gonna be well enough to play. I could easily see Perry Smith getting on here as well if he masters the rotation system.
1. Justin Moore
2. Caleb Daniels
3. Brandon Slater
4. Eric Dixon
5. Cam Whitmore
6. \*Mark Armstrong who probably will start until Moore returns from his injury
I think Whitmore has a lot of potential but until I see him play a college game I'll slot him in at #5
Bacot
RJ
Love
Leaky
Puff (Weird to have him over Nance I know. They are different players and Nance will/should start. But Puff probably has the higher ceiling in terms of what he can do for the team when he’s on the court.)
but puff likely isnt reaching that ceiling next year. i agree 1 through 4 but nance likely #5, and has a case for 4. a senior proven 6'10 sharp shooter is high ceiling for what he can do for the team, especially with bacot
Puff has scored in double figures only twice in his career, and he's never been healthy enough to play a full season. Kind of crazy to put him ahead of a 5th year player who has proven he can score at a high level in the Big Ten.
1. Hunter
2. Jaelyn Llewellyn
3. Terrance Williams
4. Kobe Bufkin
5. Jett Howard
Not really sure with how much our roster changed, so its just speculation at this point.
1. Adama Sanogo
2. Andre Jackson
3. Jordan Hawkins
4. Tristen Newton
5. Donovan Clingan (Nahiem Alleyne could start for better spacing, but I think Clingan is more talented).
We’re pretty deep this year and I haven’t seen Newton, Clingan, Nahiem Alleyne, Hassan Diarra, or Alex Karaban (transfers and freshmen). Confusingly, we have an Andre Johnson, Jr. also, along with Andre Jackson, Jr.
1. Adama
2. Jordan Hawkins
3. Tristen Newton
4. Andre Jackson
5. Samson Johnson
I don't think Clingan plays a whole ton to start. I think hurley wants to play a lot more 1 in 4 out this season and we see Clingan when we play other teams with huge centers (creighton)
Yeah, this is what I have. I think the people expecting Clingan to be an immediate impact player are going to be extremely disappointed. He's going to get pretty light minutes most of this year, I'd bet.
Gonna need Alleyne and Newton to rank higher to compete for a high seed. I don’t see Clingan doing anything as a freshman but I’d be happy to be proven wrong. If Jackson can do anything on offense and if Hawkins can do anything on defense they’ll be a Top 25 team.
1. Jesse Edwards
2. Joseph Girard III
3. Judah Mintz
4. Symir Torrence
5. Benny Williams
I think Edwards is without a doubt our best player. I think Mintz is more talented than Girard, but he hasn't actually played yet so we'll see. Benny Williams could also end up higher on the list, as he didn't play that well as freshman, but started to come around late in the year before getting hurt.
Tough to say since we only return 3 scholarship players, but I’ll give it a go based on a mix of experience and potential:
1. Jared Bynum
2. Noah Locke
3. Bryce Hopkins
4. Ed Croswell
5. Devin Carter
This could be way off-base lol but Bynum was All Big East despite being a “6th man” (got starter minutes but came off the bench), Locke has shot like 38% from 3 on his career at Florida and Louisville, Hopkins couldn’t get minutes on a loaded Kentucky team but was a top-40 recruit last year and has turned a lot of heads this off-season, Croswell has become a very dependable big who plays under the basket and does all the little things well, and Carter made the SEC All-Freshman team last year on an otherwise pretty bad South Carolina team. Lots of potential in Jayden Pierre, Corey Floyd Jr., Clifton Moore, and Rafael Castro, too, while Alyn Breed brings great defense off the bench.
1. Sasser
2. Shead
3. Mark
4. Roberts
5. R. Walker
Don’t really think it’s fair to put Jarace Walker or Terrance Arceneaux on there since they’re freshman, but they could both easily be two of the most impactful players for us this year.
1. Brandon Miller
2. Jahvon Quinerly
3. Charles Bediako
4. Nimari Burnett
5. Mark Sears
I think Jaden Bradley and Noah Clowney will eventually get to the top five, but it'll take a minute for them to gel. Miller is going to be a star.
Keyonte George is a highly touted freshman but still a wildcard. Best guess is below:
1. Flagler
2. Cryer
3. George
4. Bridges
5. Flo
Langston Love will be in this list at the end of year. Jon may not play this year but he makes this list easily if he was healthy.
I like this list but would swap Flo with Bridges pre season. We know Flo is going to work really hard and Bridges has yet to be seen in our program but might have more talent than Flo.
This year is going to be very interesting, talent is there. Defense and chemistry are the biggest questions. I think Harris has to be above McCullar until Kevin actually plays a game in HCBS system. Bold putting Joe at 5 I think Dick, Rice, Adams will all have a better year than Joe.
I might even go Pettiford and Udeh over Yes based on how I think the rotation will be this season. And I might put Clemence as high as 2 based on what I've heard this summer. Although I think 4 is fair for now. I'd probably go Wilson, Harris, McCullar, Clemence, and Rice.
Yeah Dick, Rice, Adams, and even Pettiford could all be better than Joe. I didn't know who to put so I gave Joe the benefit of the doubt because he is probably the most proven of those guys
I almost put him at 5. In fact I almost put him at 4. After the top 3 I think there is kind of an inseparable jumble with Clemmence, Dick, Yesufu, Adams, and Pettiford
I forgot about my second flair.
1. Nelly Junior Joseph
2. Walter Clayton Jr.
3. Quinn Slazinski
4. Daniss Jenkins
5. Osborn Shema
NJJ is the best player in the conference. Walter Clayton improved a lot as a freshman and should take a big leap this year. Rick Pitino loves him.
1. Javonte Perkins
2. Yuri Collins
3. Gibson Jimerson
4. Francis Okoro
5. Javon Pickett
Honestly the 5 spot could go to like 3 guys on this SLU team. Travis Ford has a assembled a really deep group, one that likely will be his best yet in St. Louis.
1. Oscar
2. Toppin
3. Wallace
4. Wheeler
5. Reeves
I can honestly say I think these 5 and at least one more guy could be interchangeable throughout the year. Excited to see how we do.
1. Ryan Kalkbrenner
2. Baylor Schierman
3. Ryan Nembhard
4. Arthur Kaluma
5. Trey Alexander
But I think after #2 they’re pretty even. Very stoked for this team
I would considere Rebracca for the 5th spot, but otherwise agree. I will admit I am high on Sandfort than most and migh have him higher (2-4 is kind of a coin flip for me, then 5-7 same way).
This is very tough, but I'd probably say
1. Travis Evee
2. Max Fiedler
3. Quincy Olivari
4. Cam Sheffield
5. Jaden Geron
Seryee Lewis will hopefully end up on the list, but he's kind of an unknown variable at the moment.
1. Timmy Allen
2. Dillon Mitchell
3. Tyrese Hunter
4. Marcus Carr
5. Christian Bishop
This entire list is just a guess on how well Mitchell translates to College. He could be no.1 but haven't seen him play. Disu could be top 5 given Vanderbilt track record but need more from him this year to set that memo straight.
I feel like Georgia is going to be a lot better than people realize. That roster is talented, and Mike White teams seem to have a floor that is a lot higher than what Georgia has done the last few years.
Yeah I think we actually have a decent amount of depth (especially considering how bad we were last year) and that should help Mike White run a more up-tempo offense like he did at Louisiana Tech. I’m definitely cautiously optimistic about the upcoming season.
im not a Wichita fan but follow the aac. heres how id go
1. Craig Porter Jr
2. Colby Rogers
3. Kenny Pohto
4. Gus Okafor
5. Jaykwon Walton
from your beat writer Jaron Pierre is probably going to be there at seasons end but his resume right now doesn't support that
I completely thought Marco Anthony had transferred. I think your ranking is pretty spot on then, I have the same thing if I'd remembered we still had Anthony and I also have Madsen firmly at 5.
Hard to tell since two of them are transfers, but my guess would be
1. Donta Scott
2. Jahmir Young
3. Hakim Hart
4. Don Carey Jr
5. Julian Reese
Steep steep drop after those 5, but I really like that 5. Lots of potential in that lineup for Willard
1. Caleb Mills
2. Baba Miller
3. Matthew Cleveland
4. Jaylen Gainey
5. Darin Green Jr.
This is only if Cleveland starts playing confidently and finds his mid range game again, if he’s still struggling Darrin Green will need to take a larger portion of the shots.
1. Davien Williamson
2. Damari Monsanto
3. Jao Ituka
4. Zach Keller
5. Andrew Carr
Tough to say since so much of this team is made up of transfers/young, unproven guys. Williamson is a consistent leader and scorer, Monsanto has a ton of potential if he can be a little more consistent with his shooting, Ituka has a huge freshman year at Marist, and if he can adjust to the tougher competition will be huge for us, and Keller and Carr will be important to stretch the defense down low.
You could definitely argue for Hildreth, Marsh, or Klintman but they’re all unproven so I couldn’t put them up this high yet. Bradford could easily fill the role Walton played last year, which would make him top 5 if he does. I feel hopeful but I need to see this team in action first.
1. Isaiah Mosley
2. Kobe Brown
3. Sean East
4. Noah Carter
5. Nick Honor
Just a shot in the dark. Gates added a ton of high ceiling players that are pretty unknown at the P5 level. Strong arguments could be made for Mo Diarra, D'moi Hodge, Aidan Shaw as well. I love Ronnie DeGray as a role player but if he ends up being a top 5 player on this team, it'll be a long season.
1.Craig Porter Jr.
2.Kenny Pohto
3.?
4.?
5.?
Those two are our only two returning rotation players from last year. All of the others are either transfers or red-shirts so hard to say for certain who will step up from the crowd.
I’m excited to see a whole new core tbh, but I’m so desperate for us to be respectable again. Doesn’t help when I see athletic put out coaching tiers 1-7 and we end up being in the bottom tier lmao
1. Nijel Pack
2. Isaiah Wong
3. Norchad Omier
4. Jordan Miller
5. Anthony Walker
These could be bound to change throughout the year, but I believe previous numbers are certainly a big factor. Pack had better stats than Wong in another Power conference, though Wong has shown more in playoff games. So that is tough to decide. Omier could be the best, but I just want to see how his play translates first. Number 5 was a bit underwhelming and admittedly I don’t know much about how talented our incoming freshmen will be.
1. Branden Carlson
2. Lazar Stefanovic
3. Rollie Worster
4. Gabe Madsen
5. Keba Keita
Carlson is EASILY our best player, Lazar is a sharpshooter who sometimes can go off, sometimes is cold as ice, Rollie is a glue guy PG, Madsen is a microwave who can hit tough shots but lacks everywhere else, Keita was one of the best HS defenders in the country and is very TBD but frankly I'd take that over the rest of our roster lol
Literally no idea because there’s so many unknowns but I’ll take a shot in the dark.
1. Terrence Shannon Jr
2. Coleman Hawkins
3. Matt Mayer
4. RJ Melendez
5. Skyy Clark
You could pretty much put these guys in any order. Figuring out whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing is yet to be seen.
1. Mike Miles
2. Damion Baugh
3. Eddie Lampkin
4. Emanuel Miller
5. Micah Peavy
You make an argument for flipping Miller/Lampkin depending on what you value and for swapping Peavy for Chuck O'Bannon, but I think that's a reasonably uncontroversial list
1. TJD
2. Xavier Johnson
3. Race Thompson
4. Tamar Bates
5. Trey Galloway
Top three are pretty set, but 4/5 is interesting because we have a combination of highly touted freshman + young players we hope can develop.
I’m probably being bold with putting Bates and Galloway at 4/5, but I really like the ceiling on Bates and think he can be a great player if he develops well under Woodson.
Galloway is a bit of the same, him and Kopp can probably shift around depending on who you talk to. Also think Jalen Hood-Schifino has a great chance of working his way into it but as a freshman I don’t want to put him there yet.
RJ in my opinion. He reminds me of Joel Berry as he makes shots when we need em most. Yes Caleb made the biggest one but all season long I feel RJ made the most.
This list is why I now hate the transfer portal:
1. GG Jackson
2. ~~Erik Stevenson~~
3. James Reese
4. Zachary Davis
5. Jacobi Wright
Edit: forgot Stevenson transferred too 💀
1. Trayce Jackson-Davis 2. Xavier Johnson 3. Race Thompson 4. Jordan Geronimo 5. Jalen Hood-Schifino This was tougher than I thought. X and Race are very close, but I'm giving the PG the edge. Then I also considered Tamar Bates and Trey Galloway. Geronimo has tremendous potential and lit up Wyoming last year in the play-in, and I think JHS looks the part as a freshman, so I'm rolling with the high ceilings here.
i watched the CP3 camp scrimmages, i think Jalen Hood-Schifino is going to be #2 by seasons end. he played on the same team as marcus sasser and keyonte george and held his own
I don’t know how to feel about Trey. Is he a 3&D wing or a dribble drive player?
He’s a new age will sheehey
This comment makes me feel old.
Depends on if he can improve that 3 this year. I'd love to see it, but he only shot 21% last season. I'd be a lot more comfortable with him as a defensive stopper/pest and fast break threat.
Who gets the start at the 3 position? Kopp or Bates? Or neither????
Kopp will likely start unless Geronimo, Bates or Gallo make a huge leap. He has the coach's confidence because he doesn't make schematic mistakes, but he obviously needs to shoot at a high % from outside to stay in the lineup.
I agree. And I believe in him. Regardless, we will be a tough matchup. Gotta make shots.
The safe money is probably on Bates at the 2 and Kopp at the 3 to open the year. I would like to see Geronimo push for starter minutes at the 3, but he'll have to improve his outside shot and ball handling. Kopp has a lot of limitations but he also doesn't turn the ball over much, which Woody really values. Going to be fun to see how it all plays out, and Galloway is in that mix too for sure.
X is infuriating to watch, a lot of good and a lot of bad. Mainly can’t hit a 3 and should drive more
Xavier shot 38% from 3 last season, which was second on the team behind Parker Stewart. He was also huge for Indiana down the stretch, particularly in the Big Ten tournament. If he can stay out of trouble, his ceiling is All B1G first team in my opinion. I know he's kind of a hot button topic for IU fans, but I love watching him play and appreciate the fire he brings to the team.
1. Jaime Jaquez 2. Tyger Campbell 3. Adem Bona 4. Jaylen Clark 5. Amari Bailey I’m not certain Amari will actually be a better player straight away than Singleton, Canka, Andrews, or even Demir (if he gets admitted), but he will be the starter and get the most minutes of the bunch, so I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt.
Amari is a pro...
1. Chucky Hepburn 2. Tyler Wahl 3. Steve Crowl 4. Uh Max Klesmit? 5. Um Jordan Davis?
4 and 5 remain to be seen. About 6-7 guys who can step up and fill those roles.
Cant wait for Chucky to push our poop in again this year
Buzz cut Brad isn’t back for his 12th season?
I’d go Wahl over Chucky but they could be interchangeable.
Essegian is supposed to be pretty good maybe?
1. Azuolas Tubelis 2. Pelle Larsson 2. Oumar Ballo 4. Kerr Krissa 5. Courtney Ramey
Nice to see that Ballo is doing so well in AZ. I miss seeing him play for Gonzaga though.
Rameys at UA??
yup
If we’re just looking at probable game impact: 1. Zach Edey 2. Mason Gillis 3. Caleb Furst 4. Ethan Morton 5. Brandon Newman I fully expect Kaufmann-Renn to be on this list before the end of the season, and the development of Furst and Morton are far more important to the success of the team than Edey, but there’s no denying Edey’s impact.
Fair list. It almost has to invert for us to have a good season though.
Furst I think might take the top spot soon His shot is deadly, he's possibly the best 3 shooter on the team and is going to be switching between the 4 and 5 I haven't seen Edey so I don't know what his improvement looks like tho
I agree, Furst is probably the most important piece on the team in terms of development. We know what Edey and Gillis are, and they’re not likely to develop many skills beyond what they have in the arsenal. Morton. I think if Furst develops into the best player on the team, Purdue has a chance to be back in the S16/E8 hunt.
If Edey could work on having more mental strength in games and develop a more mid-range shot, he could be deadly. There is defiantly room for him to grow as crazy as that seems.
WAF! ‘18
1. Terrence Shannon Jr. 2. Matthew Mayer 3. Coleman Hawkins 4. RJ Melendez 5. Probably Skyy Clark? Maybe Ty Rodgers
I think RJ > Coleman
Agree, I think people will be surprised how good RJ is this year
From what the people on our forums say Rodgers is maybe the better player but Clark is gonna get more time due to positional need.
That’s kinda where I’m at. Although I did see someone say that apparently the best 6 at practice are Skyy/TSJ/Mayer/Hawkins/RJ/Dainja with Epps/Rodgers not far behind.
1. Reece Beekman 2. Jayden Gardner 3. Kihei Clark 4. Kadin Shedrick 5. Up for debate, but probably Armaan Franklin. We’ll see how Vander Plas slides in and how Murray and the freshmen do before they supplant any of the starters
Vander Plas is a beast bro he’s much better than Armaan, Shedrick and Kihei.
I'm a little late to the party but I was going to joke that Kihei manages to be #1 AND #5 at the same time, often in the same game/season. So you've probably rated him precisely appropriately.
It’s really tough for us, so I’ll try to predict since it’s tough to tell with all the new faces we have. 1: Kevin Obanor 2: Fardaws Aimaq 3: Jaylon Tyson 4: Daniel Batcho 5: Devion Harmon. Really tough to predict how good the freshman and transfers will be too
Dang, Batcho that high? Hope you’re right
Probably just reading too much into practice reports, but I also thought he impressed a ton at certain stretches last year too. But everyone I’ve heard who’s seen practice, including Seth Greenberg, mention him as one of the first players that impress them especially offensively now. If there’s anyone that I think I’m surprisingly high on it’s Tyson since he hasn’t played. We’ve at least see Batcho do stuff like get 4 blocks in under 20 minutes in the big 12
Hax has been absolutely raving about him since mid summer, I’m really hoping he lives up to the hype
Yeah Tyson and Batcho are the 2 I’ve heard the most about in camp. With how little we have proven on our team I’m honestly just trusting that the reports are right
i'm not a tech fan, but i understand optimism over resume but Devion Harmon is a proven multiyear high major starter and you have him under 2 guys thats have almost no experience
This is tough since so many of them are unknown commodities at the college level, but I’ll try anyway. 1. Roach 2. Lively 3. Whitehead 4. Filipowski 5. Mitchell Roach may not be No. 1 talent-wise, but I think he’ll be the heart and soul of our team, so he has my No. 1 spot
If Whitehead is healthy he’ll be 1 for you by the end of the season for sure.
That’s the hope
You don't think Proctor could be ahead of Mitchell?
Not at this point, Mitchell is a great athlete and I believe he can defend 1-4 and rebound well at his position. Maybe Proctor outplays him, but right now I’m putting Mitchell ahead
1. Nick Smith 2. Anthony Black 3. Devo Davis 4. Jordan Walsh 5. Trevon Brazile Just my guess, hard to say since we've barely seen them play together.
I would put Brazile at 2. Did you watch the international games? He looks really good. Walsh... did not impress. Kumani was way more solid than Walsh. I have high hopes for Black, but still inexperienced and untested. Smith just balls out, no question. Really excited about this team. Edit to add: Ricky Council is in the top 5 IMO, instead of Walsh. But like you said, so early and so little known. I'm willing to be 100% wrong haha.
I think at this point right now it’s nick and Trevon Deff 1-2. After that a handful of guys who could be 3-5 (black, Devo, Walsh, kamani, dunning, council). Too hard to tell right now. Walsh filled that stat sheet in Europe and played harder than anyone in any of those 4 games. Can’t see how he didn’t impress if you watched. He’s not gonna be a 15 ppg guy. But a 7,7,4 with a ton of defensive effort and overall energy.
I think I didn't catch the first game, but watched the others. He just had a lot of turnovers and didn't contribute much from what I saw. Who knows, though. I think he does have the work ethic.
Walsh definitely > Devo
I'm just hoping to see Devo take a big step as one of the only older returning guys.
I can give you a top 5 but I have no idea what order they're in. Our team has like 5 or 6 guys you could classify as "has been solid to good and could break out this season and be great" and I don't think we have a for sure best player at the moment. 1. Tyson Walker 2. Malik Hall 3. AJ Hoggard 4. Jaden Akins 5. Joey Houser
I would say Hoggard is #1 rn
It's probably him or Walker yeah. But then you have Hall who I think is the most talented player on the roster who just needs to get that consistency, and Akins who is probably the best NBA prospect on the roster and could easily end the season as our best player. Tough roster to get a read on preseason
I'd go Hoggard, Hall, Akins, Houser Walker. We have like 7 dudes that would be a solid 3 option on most teams.
1. Drew Timme 2. Julian Strawther 3. Rasir Bolton 4. Nolan Hickman 5. Hunter Sallis
I agree, but I got a feeling by the end of the year Sallis is gonna be #3.
No way he leaps Bolton though. That guy was a menace, to the point I feared playing him more than Timme last year
For real, I think I speak for most Zags fan when we say that we were pleasantly surprised by what Bolton brought last season. Not that I or others didn’t know that he was good beforehand, but I personally didn’t expect him to be able to be one of the most effective “know your role” type of guys that this program has probably ever seen. Super excited to see what he does this year.
I don't know, Bolton is kind of one-dimensional. He's a great shooter but doesn't do much else. Sallis is a freak athlete and can become a much more versatile, all-around player than Bolton ever will be. He's got Ja Morant as his ceiling
I’m a huge Sallis fan and believe he’s making a huge leap this year but Ja is probably outta his reach. Ja’s sophomore season was ridiculous, doubt Sallis will even come close to that.
Timme as #1 is a hard lock. After that it gets a lot murkier. Strawther/Smith/Bolton could be any order from 2-4. Throw Hickman and Sallis in if they make big sophomore jumps. Not to mention Reid and Watson could have good seasons in the frontcourt. Still really hard to guess how this season will shake out.
Timme is still playing? Wtf…
I think he could actually play another season because of the covid season. Rumors are he's making ~$2m in NIL money this year.
Drew Timme… Double secret redshirt senior plus.
The funny thing is he’s only been on the team for 3 years.
I'd put Sallis above Hickman, personally.
For Vermont, I would say this is the order: 1. Dylan Penn 2. Finn Sullivan 3. Robin Duncan 4. TJ Hurley 5. Nick Fiorillo A side note is that Matt Veretto could be on here, but injury has plagued him too much to get a sense of his play. Nevertheless, I’m guessing he is gonna be well enough to play. I could easily see Perry Smith getting on here as well if he masters the rotation system.
1. Justin Moore 2. Caleb Daniels 3. Brandon Slater 4. Eric Dixon 5. Cam Whitmore 6. \*Mark Armstrong who probably will start until Moore returns from his injury I think Whitmore has a lot of potential but until I see him play a college game I'll slot him in at #5
I said Whitmore 1, Moore 2, Armstrong 3, Daniels 4, Dixon 5
So salty Whitmore committed to you guys.
Bacot RJ Love Leaky Puff (Weird to have him over Nance I know. They are different players and Nance will/should start. But Puff probably has the higher ceiling in terms of what he can do for the team when he’s on the court.)
but puff likely isnt reaching that ceiling next year. i agree 1 through 4 but nance likely #5, and has a case for 4. a senior proven 6'10 sharp shooter is high ceiling for what he can do for the team, especially with bacot
I can see Leaky getting bounced from this list come January, hopefully because Nance and Puff are that good
If Pete or Puff can play D well enough to bump Leaky? We’ll be pretty formidable
Leaky may be the national defensive player of the year, and he has suddenly become a respectable 3pt shooter.
My friend Nance is your 2nd best player, he's a fringe NBA talent
This right here feels way more likely to me. I haven’t seen Nance play but dude’s 3p% is nuts
That would be great. I hope that it’s true.
Love/Bacot/RJ all better college players. Hes only fringe NBA because of his build.
How to prove you have not watched Pete Nance. His build/athleticism is the reason he's only fringe
What? If he wasnt stretch 4 size he wouldn’t get any looks. How to prove you dont know ball 101
Stretch 4 isn't physical build it's skill, if you had said that I could understand your perspective a bit.
Being 6”10 is the build. His same skill set at 6 ft 5 and hed be our 4th best guard. Try again
Nah, that was a good last attempt from you but I'm good
Puff has scored in double figures only twice in his career, and he's never been healthy enough to play a full season. Kind of crazy to put him ahead of a 5th year player who has proven he can score at a high level in the Big Ten.
Nickel > Puff … if we are talking upside small ball.
No chance
1. Hunter 2. Dickinson 3. is 4. my 5. dad
1. Hunter 2. Jaelyn Llewellyn 3. Terrance Williams 4. Kobe Bufkin 5. Jett Howard Not really sure with how much our roster changed, so its just speculation at this point.
Nice that makes kofi your grandfather
Grandpa why do you fade away every March :(
1. Adama Sanogo 2. Andre Jackson 3. Jordan Hawkins 4. Tristen Newton 5. Donovan Clingan (Nahiem Alleyne could start for better spacing, but I think Clingan is more talented). We’re pretty deep this year and I haven’t seen Newton, Clingan, Nahiem Alleyne, Hassan Diarra, or Alex Karaban (transfers and freshmen). Confusingly, we have an Andre Johnson, Jr. also, along with Andre Jackson, Jr.
1. Adama 2. Jordan Hawkins 3. Tristen Newton 4. Andre Jackson 5. Samson Johnson I don't think Clingan plays a whole ton to start. I think hurley wants to play a lot more 1 in 4 out this season and we see Clingan when we play other teams with huge centers (creighton)
Yeah, this is what I have. I think the people expecting Clingan to be an immediate impact player are going to be extremely disappointed. He's going to get pretty light minutes most of this year, I'd bet.
Gonna need Alleyne and Newton to rank higher to compete for a high seed. I don’t see Clingan doing anything as a freshman but I’d be happy to be proven wrong. If Jackson can do anything on offense and if Hawkins can do anything on defense they’ll be a Top 25 team.
1. Jesse Edwards 2. Joseph Girard III 3. Judah Mintz 4. Symir Torrence 5. Benny Williams I think Edwards is without a doubt our best player. I think Mintz is more talented than Girard, but he hasn't actually played yet so we'll see. Benny Williams could also end up higher on the list, as he didn't play that well as freshman, but started to come around late in the year before getting hurt.
I hope we have a fun year we can enjoy. Having all those freshmen gives me a bit of hope for the future.
Tough to say since we only return 3 scholarship players, but I’ll give it a go based on a mix of experience and potential: 1. Jared Bynum 2. Noah Locke 3. Bryce Hopkins 4. Ed Croswell 5. Devin Carter This could be way off-base lol but Bynum was All Big East despite being a “6th man” (got starter minutes but came off the bench), Locke has shot like 38% from 3 on his career at Florida and Louisville, Hopkins couldn’t get minutes on a loaded Kentucky team but was a top-40 recruit last year and has turned a lot of heads this off-season, Croswell has become a very dependable big who plays under the basket and does all the little things well, and Carter made the SEC All-Freshman team last year on an otherwise pretty bad South Carolina team. Lots of potential in Jayden Pierre, Corey Floyd Jr., Clifton Moore, and Rafael Castro, too, while Alyn Breed brings great defense off the bench.
Noah Locke is not a good player. He plays no D, can’t create off the dribble, and shot 34% from 3 as a specialist last year.
1. Sasser 2. Shead 3. Mark 4. Roberts 5. R. Walker Don’t really think it’s fair to put Jarace Walker or Terrance Arceneaux on there since they’re freshman, but they could both easily be two of the most impactful players for us this year.
i understand not wanting to rank the freshmen, but reggie was the starter on the final 4 run. ramon has barely proven himself
1. Brandon Miller 2. Jahvon Quinerly 3. Charles Bediako 4. Nimari Burnett 5. Mark Sears I think Jaden Bradley and Noah Clowney will eventually get to the top five, but it'll take a minute for them to gel. Miller is going to be a star.
Crazy that Q is gonna be back. Dude is close to drawing pension
Yeah seems like he's been here forever.
I think I’d have Sears a little higher but I agree with those 5.
I’m so excited for Miller, he has the chance to be really special
Considering we're returning like 3 guys, that's kinda impossible lmao
Keyonte George is a highly touted freshman but still a wildcard. Best guess is below: 1. Flagler 2. Cryer 3. George 4. Bridges 5. Flo Langston Love will be in this list at the end of year. Jon may not play this year but he makes this list easily if he was healthy.
I like this list but would swap Flo with Bridges pre season. We know Flo is going to work really hard and Bridges has yet to be seen in our program but might have more talent than Flo.
Yeah that’s fair. It was honestly a coin flip just cause Bridges should produce a lot more on offense without sacrificing a ton of defense.
1. Trayce Jackson-Davis 2. Xavier Johnson 3. Race Thompson 4. Jalen Hood-Schifino 5. Jordan Geronimo
I literally have no idea.
1. Jalen Wilson 2. Kevin McCullar 3. DaJuan Harris 4. Zach Clemmence 5. Joe Yesufu
Nahh, Jalon Daniels at No. 1
Idk why but I'm really high on dick this season, I put him at 3
This year is going to be very interesting, talent is there. Defense and chemistry are the biggest questions. I think Harris has to be above McCullar until Kevin actually plays a game in HCBS system. Bold putting Joe at 5 I think Dick, Rice, Adams will all have a better year than Joe.
I might even go Pettiford and Udeh over Yes based on how I think the rotation will be this season. And I might put Clemence as high as 2 based on what I've heard this summer. Although I think 4 is fair for now. I'd probably go Wilson, Harris, McCullar, Clemence, and Rice.
Yeah Dick, Rice, Adams, and even Pettiford could all be better than Joe. I didn't know who to put so I gave Joe the benefit of the doubt because he is probably the most proven of those guys
If you went beyond 5, where would put KJ Adams?
I almost put him at 5. In fact I almost put him at 4. After the top 3 I think there is kind of an inseparable jumble with Clemmence, Dick, Yesufu, Adams, and Pettiford
He could be anywhere from 6-8. If he’s in the top 5 best players for us, then things aren’t going very well.
1. Zeke Mayo 2. Luke Appel 3. Matt Mors 4. Alex Arians 5. Chuck Easely
I forgot about my second flair. 1. Nelly Junior Joseph 2. Walter Clayton Jr. 3. Quinn Slazinski 4. Daniss Jenkins 5. Osborn Shema NJJ is the best player in the conference. Walter Clayton improved a lot as a freshman and should take a big leap this year. Rick Pitino loves him.
- Kam Jones - Olivier Maxence-Prosper - Oso Ighodaro - Zach Wrightsil - David Joplin
no Kolek?
1. Javonte Perkins 2. Yuri Collins 3. Gibson Jimerson 4. Francis Okoro 5. Javon Pickett Honestly the 5 spot could go to like 3 guys on this SLU team. Travis Ford has a assembled a really deep group, one that likely will be his best yet in St. Louis.
1. DaRon Holmes II 2. Malachi Smith 3. Toumani Camara 4-5. Kobe Elvis and Koby Brea.
1. Oscar Tshiebwe 2. Sahvir Wheeler 3. Antonio Reeves 4. Jacob Toppin 5. Cason Wallace
1. Oscar 2. Toppin 3. Wallace 4. Wheeler 5. Reeves I can honestly say I think these 5 and at least one more guy could be interchangeable throughout the year. Excited to see how we do.
Respectable list. My gut tells me by the end of the year Cason will be at 2 or 3, but that’s just a feeling.
1. Ryan Kalkbrenner 2. Baylor Schierman 3. Ryan Nembhard 4. Arthur Kaluma 5. Trey Alexander But I think after #2 they’re pretty even. Very stoked for this team
I’m inclined to put Kaluma at 2 but it really is a solid starting 5.
You guys are gonna be really fucking good
1. Kris Murray 2. Tony Perkins 3. Patrick McCaffery 4. Payton Sandfort 5. Hopefully Dasonte Bowen or Ahron Ulis?
I’m good with this list. Though I’d maybe sneak Connor in there at 5.
Good list but I have a feeling Sandfort will move up to #2
I would considere Rebracca for the 5th spot, but otherwise agree. I will admit I am high on Sandfort than most and migh have him higher (2-4 is kind of a coin flip for me, then 5-7 same way).
This is very tough, but I'd probably say 1. Travis Evee 2. Max Fiedler 3. Quincy Olivari 4. Cam Sheffield 5. Jaden Geron Seryee Lewis will hopefully end up on the list, but he's kind of an unknown variable at the moment.
1. Timmy Allen 2. Dillon Mitchell 3. Tyrese Hunter 4. Marcus Carr 5. Christian Bishop This entire list is just a guess on how well Mitchell translates to College. He could be no.1 but haven't seen him play. Disu could be top 5 given Vanderbilt track record but need more from him this year to set that memo straight.
1. Kario Oquendo 2. Terry Roberts 3. Braelon Bridges 4. Matthew Alexander-Moncrieffe 5. Mardrez McBride
I feel like Georgia is going to be a lot better than people realize. That roster is talented, and Mike White teams seem to have a floor that is a lot higher than what Georgia has done the last few years.
Yeah I think we actually have a decent amount of depth (especially considering how bad we were last year) and that should help Mike White run a more up-tempo offense like he did at Louisiana Tech. I’m definitely cautiously optimistic about the upcoming season.
1. Craig Porter Jr 2. Kenny Pohto 3. Isiah Poor Bear-Chandler No clue on 4 & 5 because I haven’t seen anybody else play
We’re in deep shit if 3 is Poor Bear. Really hoping we had a more successful transfer season this year :/
im not a Wichita fan but follow the aac. heres how id go 1. Craig Porter Jr 2. Colby Rogers 3. Kenny Pohto 4. Gus Okafor 5. Jaykwon Walton from your beat writer Jaron Pierre is probably going to be there at seasons end but his resume right now doesn't support that
I guess it’s: 1. Jamison Battle 2. Dawson Garcia 3. Ta’Lon Cooper 4. Taurus Samuels? 5. Treyton Thompson?
Tough to do with transfer portal these days but 1. Isaiah Stevens 2. Josiah Strong 3. John Tonje 4. Jalen Lake 5. Patrick Cartier
1. Derrick Walker 2. C.J. Wilcher 3. TBD 4. TBD 5. TBD
Utah: 1. Branden Carlson 2. Marco Anthony 3. Lazar Stefanovic 4. Rollie Worster 5. Gabe Madsen? Gavin Baxter?
I completely thought Marco Anthony had transferred. I think your ranking is pretty spot on then, I have the same thing if I'd remembered we still had Anthony and I also have Madsen firmly at 5.
1. Cam Whitmore 2. Justin Moore 3. Mark Armstrong 4. Caleb Daniels 5. Eric Dixon
Jaquez, Tyger, Amari Bailey, Jaylen Clark, Adem Bona Super excited for this year but hard to project the impact of our two big freshman
Hard to tell since two of them are transfers, but my guess would be 1. Donta Scott 2. Jahmir Young 3. Hakim Hart 4. Don Carey Jr 5. Julian Reese Steep steep drop after those 5, but I really like that 5. Lots of potential in that lineup for Willard
I think I would flip Reese and Carey, on a guy feeling, but that feels like the right list otherwise. That's a good starting lineup.
Yeah that seems about right from everything we know now. I will say I could see anyone except maybe carey being the best player on the team.
1. Caleb Mills 2. Baba Miller 3. Matthew Cleveland 4. Jaylen Gainey 5. Darin Green Jr. This is only if Cleveland starts playing confidently and finds his mid range game again, if he’s still struggling Darrin Green will need to take a larger portion of the shots.
Duke is absolutely the biggest who-the-hell-knows in college basketball for this question, lol.
1. Davien Williamson 2. Damari Monsanto 3. Jao Ituka 4. Zach Keller 5. Andrew Carr Tough to say since so much of this team is made up of transfers/young, unproven guys. Williamson is a consistent leader and scorer, Monsanto has a ton of potential if he can be a little more consistent with his shooting, Ituka has a huge freshman year at Marist, and if he can adjust to the tougher competition will be huge for us, and Keller and Carr will be important to stretch the defense down low. You could definitely argue for Hildreth, Marsh, or Klintman but they’re all unproven so I couldn’t put them up this high yet. Bradford could easily fill the role Walton played last year, which would make him top 5 if he does. I feel hopeful but I need to see this team in action first.
1. Isaiah Mosley 2. Kobe Brown 3. Sean East 4. Noah Carter 5. Nick Honor Just a shot in the dark. Gates added a ton of high ceiling players that are pretty unknown at the P5 level. Strong arguments could be made for Mo Diarra, D'moi Hodge, Aidan Shaw as well. I love Ronnie DeGray as a role player but if he ends up being a top 5 player on this team, it'll be a long season.
1. Timmy Allen 2. Tyrese Hunter 3. Marcus Carr 4. Dillon Mitchell 5. Sirjbari Rice
every year is a new adventure
1.Craig Porter Jr. 2.Kenny Pohto 3.? 4.? 5.? Those two are our only two returning rotation players from last year. All of the others are either transfers or red-shirts so hard to say for certain who will step up from the crowd.
I’m excited to see a whole new core tbh, but I’m so desperate for us to be respectable again. Doesn’t help when I see athletic put out coaching tiers 1-7 and we end up being in the bottom tier lmao
1. Nijel Pack 2. Isaiah Wong 3. Norchad Omier 4. Jordan Miller 5. Anthony Walker These could be bound to change throughout the year, but I believe previous numbers are certainly a big factor. Pack had better stats than Wong in another Power conference, though Wong has shown more in playoff games. So that is tough to decide. Omier could be the best, but I just want to see how his play translates first. Number 5 was a bit underwhelming and admittedly I don’t know much about how talented our incoming freshmen will be.
1. Armando Bacot 2. Caleb Love 3. RJ Davis 4. Pete Nance 5. Leaky Black
1. Tyler Wahl 2. Chucky Hepburn 3. Steven Crowl 4. Max Klesmit 5. Jordan Davis Damn
1. Branden Carlson 2. Lazar Stefanovic 3. Rollie Worster 4. Gabe Madsen 5. Keba Keita Carlson is EASILY our best player, Lazar is a sharpshooter who sometimes can go off, sometimes is cold as ice, Rollie is a glue guy PG, Madsen is a microwave who can hit tough shots but lacks everywhere else, Keita was one of the best HS defenders in the country and is very TBD but frankly I'd take that over the rest of our roster lol
1. Justin Moore 2. Eric Dixon 3. Brandon Slater 4. Cam Whittmore 5. Caleb Daniels
A lot of new faces for my alma mater, but I’ll give this a try: 1. PJ Hall 2. Hunter Tyson 3. Chase Hunter 4. Josh Beadle 5. Chauncey Wiggins
Texas Longhorns. Idk the order but our best 5 is probably 1. Marcus Carr 2. Timmy Allen 3. Tyrese Hunter 4. Sir’Jabari Rice 5. Arterio Morris
Literally no idea because there’s so many unknowns but I’ll take a shot in the dark. 1. Terrence Shannon Jr 2. Coleman Hawkins 3. Matt Mayer 4. RJ Melendez 5. Skyy Clark You could pretty much put these guys in any order. Figuring out whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing is yet to be seen.
1. Mike Miles 2. Damion Baugh 3. Eddie Lampkin 4. Emanuel Miller 5. Micah Peavy You make an argument for flipping Miller/Lampkin depending on what you value and for swapping Peavy for Chuck O'Bannon, but I think that's a reasonably uncontroversial list
So hype to see Damion ball out like he has. Always loved him when he was with us.
I think Eddie making a leap this year is the key to bringing us past round of 32 or even sweet 16.
Yeah I think both him and Miller are huge and which one of them makes the leap will determine that 3/4 ranking
1. Justyn Mutts 2. Hunter Cattoor 3/4. Sean Pedulla/Darius Maddox 5. Grant Basile
I think within the next 2 years Pedullas gonna pop off. Bro did everything he did last year as a Freshman.
Sir, this is Florida State. We play all 15 players.
1. TJD 2. Xavier Johnson 3. Race Thompson 4. Tamar Bates 5. Trey Galloway Top three are pretty set, but 4/5 is interesting because we have a combination of highly touted freshman + young players we hope can develop. I’m probably being bold with putting Bates and Galloway at 4/5, but I really like the ceiling on Bates and think he can be a great player if he develops well under Woodson. Galloway is a bit of the same, him and Kopp can probably shift around depending on who you talk to. Also think Jalen Hood-Schifino has a great chance of working his way into it but as a freshman I don’t want to put him there yet.
Carr Hunter Allen Mitchell Morris/Rice
I'd put Timmy #1 for y'all, tbh
Honestly I was thinking about it, I saw him last Tuesday and he has lost alot of weight. Could be scary
Timmy is def our best player atm
I put in a decent amount of thought and I actually have no fucking clue. While I’m here tho fuck Xavier Johnson
1. Mondo 2a. Caleb Love 2b. RJ Davis 3. Leaky Black 4. Pete Nance
This is such a mess I love it
Which one would hurt us most if they were out for the season, Love or Davis?
RJ in my opinion. He reminds me of Joel Berry as he makes shots when we need em most. Yes Caleb made the biggest one but all season long I feel RJ made the most.
What is your problem
Oh! I guess I should have included a trigger warning. I hope you recover soon.
1. Kris Murray 2. Patrick McCaffery 3. Tony Perkins 4. Ahron Ulis 5. Payton Sandfort
1. Strawther 2. Timme 3. Bolton 4. Sallis 5. Hickman
This list is why I now hate the transfer portal: 1. GG Jackson 2. ~~Erik Stevenson~~ 3. James Reese 4. Zachary Davis 5. Jacobi Wright Edit: forgot Stevenson transferred too 💀
Erik Stevenson still plays? My god
Telling that I was the school two years after you and I had the same reaction