Preseason College Basketball Rankings, Part 2

Part 1 can be found here.

The Top Ten

10. Villanova - The defending champs make the top 10 due to one reason alone: Jay Wright. It’s crazy how in three seasons Wright has gone from “choker in March” to the second best coach in the game (to only the GOAT, Roy Williams). Forward Eric Paschall and guard Phil Booth have flashed as role players the last two years, but we will find out how far they can carry the team. I’m most intrigued to see if freshman point guard Jahvon Quinerly (29th ranked player in the class of 2018 according to 247sports) can run the offense as well as Jalen Brunson and Ryan Arcidiacono did over the last half decade.

9. Auburn - Jared Harper and Bryce Brown will once again form one of the most fun backcourt tandems to watch in the country. The main question surrounding the team is how front court players Danjel Purifoy and Austin Wiley will assimilate into the offense (both suspended in 2017-18). The floor spacing from their small ball line-up gave the offense its potency last season. I still expect Bruce Pearl to figure it out, as the Tigers contend for the SEC title and a big postseason.

8. Duke - don’t care about their number one recruiting class, I’ve seen this story before. I am here for the ego trips that will undoubtedly surface though.

7. Tennessee - Forward Admiral Schofield and big men Grant Williams and Kyle Alexander may form the most #thicc front court in the nation. And their physical defense matches their physical appearances: the Vols suffocate their opponents like a python slaughters its prey. They rarely blow assignments, close out on threes, and mix in some full court press. I expect Williams, the reigning SEC player of the year, to contend for the award again. And Big Orange has a national championship ceiling. 

6. Nevada - Head coach Eric Musselman has never met a transfer he doesn’t like (ten on the current roster…not a typo). But the Wolf Pack are deep and versatile. NC State transfer (lol) Cody Martin runs the point at 6’7” and his brother Caleb, a forward (also an NC State transfer), will shine as a Player of the Year candidate. On top of bringing back three starters from an Elite 8 team a season ago, Nevada also welcomes in 5 star big man Jordan Brown, along with their bevy of new transfers.

5. North Carolina - Biased? Who me? No, never! The Heels rotation could potentially be ten or eleven deep, with the roster flexibility to play small or big based on need. Big man Luke Maye will again contend for National Player of the Year, and he’s probably only the third most talented player on his team. Freshman wing Nassir Little is a projected top three pick who dunks everything. If you’re reading this, you probably already know that. But its freshman point guard Coby White who will give Carolina fans flashbacks of Ty Lawson with his speed and quickness, especially on the fast break. The Wilson, North Carolina, product’s development will be the most important factor in the Tar Heel’s pursuit of another championship banner. Oh yeah, don’t be surprised if senior shooting guard Kenny Williams makes an All-ACC team.

4. Kansas - The roster is loaded, but how will they all fit? Memphis transfers Dedric and KJ Lawson (the former a forward, the latter a guard) have generated the most hype in Lawrence. While I expect Dedric to put up monster numbers (much like power forwards Perry Ellis and the Morris twins did before him), neither he or his brother have a reliable jump shot. And although he’s a mammoth in the paint as a rebounder and a finisher, we know Udoka Azubuike  won’t space the floor. And finally, for the first time in what feels like eons, Kansas won’t have an experienced point guard. This probably sounds overly pessimistic—I don’t mean it to be. The Jayhawks ooze with talent, and they’ll almost certainly win the Big 12 for a 15th straight year. I’m just not ready to make them the surefire preseason #1 team.

3. Gonzaga - I had the Zags at 2 before big man Killian Tillie injured his foot (expected to be out seven weeks). Honestly, I didn’t bump them down further only because a) I don’t feel confident putting Kansas at 3 and b) because I didn’t want to seem like too much of a homer with the Heels any higher. Mark Few is an #elite coach, and I believe he will adapt lineups around Tillie's absence—but their non-conference schedule is brutal. They play in the Maui Invitational, in Phoenix against Tennessee, and in Chapel Hill against UNC all before Tillie’s projected return. But they should have enough firepower behind junior forward/potential NBA first rounder Rui Hachimura (could this actually be his breakout year??) and sophomore guard Zach Norvell Jr. 

2. Virginia - Not even gonna analyze the UMBC loss because UVA was dominant in literally all but one game last season. The team that won the best conference in the country by four games will once again engulf opposing teams like a Venus fly trap with their trademark pack line defense. Pure point guard Ty Jerome remains one of the most overlooked players in the country (10 ppg, 4apg in 2017-18…which is like averaging 16 and 6, considering how slow Virginia plays), and All-ACC shooting guard Kyle Guy returns alongside him as the team’s best shooter. But I’m most excited to watch wing DeAndre Hunter. Hunter (who missed the UMBC game due to a wrist injury) can guard all five positions and is the best NBA prospect Tony Bennett has ever coached. I expect the freak athlete to emerge as the Hoos’ leading scorer. And don’t forget about Alabama transfer Braxton Key (10ppg, 5rpg average in two years for the Crimson Tide) gaining eligibility to play this year. 

1. Kentucky - I know I made jokes in Part 1 about Kentucky’s early season chemistry issues…but UK boasts a lot of continuity for a Calipari coached team. I expect former five star recruit PJ Washington to bloom into a star in his sophomore season; and the Cats added the offseason’s most coveted grad transfer to partner with him in the front court: Reid Travis, a power forward formerly at Stanford. In addition to the big men, the Cats add five star freshman Keldon Johnson on the wing, and a pair of top 15 ranked point guards in Ashton Hagans and Immanuel Quickley. I don’t expect Cal to employ his “platoon” shtick that he did in 2014-15, but this squad exudes some similar vibes to the team that came so close to going undefeated 3 years ago.