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New York Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
2026 NBA mock draft: Darryn Peterson, AJ Dybantsa and Cameron Boozer lead way
The 2025 NBA Draft has come and gone, which means it's time to introduce you to the new crop of NBA Draft prospects who have a chance to be selected in 2026. The good news? This class is expected to be deeper than the 2025 class both at the top and throughout the middle and latter portion of the first round. Not only have name, image and likeness rights resulted in players returning to school for extra years, but the incoming freshman class is seen as quite strong, led by a trio at the top in Darryn Peterson, AJ Dybantsa and Cam Boozer. While I would rank Cooper Flagg over this trio right now, they all profile as potential Tier One talents depending on how their collegiate seasons go. Advertisement So strap in and get excited for this upcoming group. A few notes: Peterson is my current pick for the No. 1 spot. He's a tremendous shot maker and scorer, developed beyond his years because of his handle and polish with the ball. He can play both on the ball or off it and projects as the kind of high-level backcourt shot maker in the Donovan Mitchell mold. He has an innate understanding of how to change pace and direction to get to the exact spots on the court that he wants. He projects to be a high-level shooter, and I also love his craft at getting to the foul line. Defensively, he's super competitive and tough on the ball, rebounds for his position, and is typically engaged away from the ball. The next course of action for Peterson will be continuing to develop as a primary on-ball weapon who can both create shots for himself as well as his teammates. He'll step in at Kansas and contend for an All-America berth as a freshman. Boozer projects to be the best college basketball player out of the clear top trio of players in this class. The son of former NBA forward Carlos Boozer is the most polished of the three right now, capable of impacting the game all over the court. His post game in high school was tremendous, but what's most exciting for the next level is his improvement on the perimeter as a power forward. He handles the ball very well as a four man and can use pace and changes of direction to get past his man. He shoots it well from distance off the catch already, and I buy him as a 3-point shooter. Ultimately, the key for his upside will be how he develops as a pull-up shooter. But if that comes, he has an All-Star ceiling. He's a monster rebounder, a sharp defender who is always in the right spot and someone with elite feel for the game. Boozer will be a successful pro. It's just a determination on what the upside is at the end of the day. Advertisement Dybantsa probably has the highest ceiling in the class if everything goes right. He's a big-time shot maker who can get to his midrange jumper seemingly at will. He can get there from mid-post sets, out of ball screens, or in isolation. He is a mismatch nightmare waiting to happen, as he can shoot over the top of guards or merely just blow by bigs. Defensively, there are moments when you can see the upside, when he covers ground all over the court and is switchable onto the toughest opposing players. I have seen Dybantsa disappear too often, and I'd like to see him fully engage this year at BYU consistently. But when he's at his best, his upside is better than anyone else as the kind of apex wing that every team wants. You can see the outlines of an awesome player in Ament, and the consistency continues to improve every time he takes the court. Ament is a massive wing/forward hybrid who projects at the very least as a sharp 3-and-D player. He's a shot maker from the corners and wings, capable of hitting catch-and-shoot 3s with ease. We've also started to see some ballhandling potential, particularly in transition, although his lack of strength can hold him back from getting to his spots consistently. He also covers ground at a high level on defense, something that will assuredly endear him to Tennessee coach Rick Barnes as he enters a likely one-and-done year. Ament could enter the top-three discussion if he hits his ceiling, but he has a bit more of a floor than some of the other prospects. The youngest player in the Australian NBL last season, the Mexico native has long been considered a potential top-10 pick with his ability to impact the game across the court. He started slowly as a 17-year-old in a high-level professional league last year but came on late and looked the part of a lottery pick. He averaged 11.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists while shooting 48 percent from the field, 37 percent from 3 and 77 percent from the line over his final 13 games last season, emerging into a clear starter and difference-maker on the wing. He moves around well on the wing and flies to contest shots defensively, and despite a real physical deficiency in strength last season, he crashed the glass well to try to end possessions. I'd bet he ends up as a lottery pick as long as the improvement on the jumper continues. I am generally not the biggest fan of small guards who aren't particularly strong, but I'll make an exception for Brown. For my money, he's the best floor general in this class. His handle is superb, and he is unbothered by pressure. He's fast enough to get into the lane and polished enough to maintain advantages with his footwork to draw defenders toward him before spraying the ball in every direction. He's a live-dribble passer who can hit reads from a variety of angles with either hand and put them on a dime with velocity or touch. He's also improved immensely as a scorer, drilling shots off the catch or off pull-ups. He sinks his free throws and clearly has touch. I'm fascinated to see how the Louisville backcourt works out — he's not the only Cardinal here — but Brown is the most skilled of the bunch. This is probably where I differ most from the consensus. Mullins was one of my favorite high school prospects in the 2025 recruiting class. He's a complete wing who profiles incredibly well toward the NBA. He's an obscenely high-level shooter, having hit 42 percent of his 3s on the AAU circuit on high volume last year, per Synergy. If you leave him in transition, you're dead. If you struggle to chase around screens, you're in deep trouble. Mullins was also one of the best defensive guards I saw in the class, with an incredibly aggressive and disruptive mindset on that end of the court. As a driver, he picks his spots well and is an excellent finisher on the interior with real timing as a cutter. He makes quick decisions. Mullins is this year's Kon Knueppel: a player who many have off their preseason draft boards because of his perceived weaknesses but one who will ultimately prove worthy of being a one-and-done. Advertisement Wilson is a bit inconsistent on offense because his skill level isn't as developed as some of his peers. He often seems to get by on his physical tools and athleticism, something that's been easy for him because he's enormous at nearly 6-foot-9 with long arms. He moves remarkably well across the court. But there's probably not a wing in this class with more defensive upside than Wilson, a switchable athlete with all sorts of disruption talent. He consistently racks up deflections and can rise to get a weak-side block if you're not paying close enough attention. I haven't loved what I've seen developmentally from Hubert Davis in his time at North Carolina, so I'm skeptical that Wilson is going to explode in the way that some expect. But his ceiling is quite high if the offensive skill set continues to improve. Yessoufou is already built like an NBA player, a scoring wing who looks like Anthony Edwards out there physically. What I like most about Yessoufou, though, is that he already plays with an unceasing motor across the court. He flies around on both ends and is constantly moving. There is something to the fact that he was able to just overpower everyone he played at the high school level, but his blend of power, explosiveness and motor played up during Hoop Summit practices this year against elite competition from around the world. The next steps for him at Baylor — which has a long track record of developing guards — will be to improve his overall handle and poise, as well as work on his pull-up game. Philon was the latest withdrawal of any college player in the 2025 NBA Draft, and I think he made the right call. I love his basketball IQ both with and without the ball. He seems to have a tremendous amount of spatial awareness, and he's a tough defender who figures to only get better as he gets stronger. But the frame is quite thin, and he needs to add a significant amount of strength before he can play NBA minutes effectively. Next year, he'll get to man the lead guard role for Alabama without Mark Sears around, and I'd expect a big leap. If he can add even 10 pounds, it would go a long way. The next step skill-wise is for him to knock down shots from distance, as well, something he struggled a bit with this season. But he has some history of making 3s in high school. Peat was one of the best prospects in high school basketball over his first few prep years, a physically impressive wing/forward who dominated the game inside of 15 feet with his ability to get to his spots by putting his shoulder down and establishing position. But as he's gotten older, it feels like the rest of the class has caught up with him, and he hasn't developed the perimeter game to match it. He has clear touch, but he's never been a particularly high-level shooter from distance, which is what he'll need to succeed at the NBA level. He'll need to be careful and intentional about his frame long-term, too, as he comes from a family of offensive linemen. His father, Todd, played in the NFL for nine years. His uncle, Andrus, is a former Pro Bowler at offensive tackle for the New Orleans Saints. Two of his older brothers, Cassius and Keona, also played as linemen in college. Stirtz was the player whom NBA scouts were most disappointed to see not even declare for the 2025 NBA Draft after he burst onto the scene at Drake after transferring up from Northwest Missouri State with his coach Ben McCollum. McCollum departed Drake after a year to go coach Iowa, and Stirtz went with him. He'll try his luck against Big Ten competition, and I'm betting that we see something very similar to what we saw against Missouri Valley competition this past season. Stirtz has some of the best feel for the game I've seen for his age in a while and is an extension of McCollum on the floor. He also has the skill to match it, averaging 19.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists while shooting 50/40/79 and playing at one of the country's slowest paces. Teams are excited to learn more about him throughout the year. Quaintance was one of the best defensive freshmen in college basketball last season, making the All-Defense team in the Big 12 while averaging 2.6 blocks and 1.1 steals per game. He's listed at 6-foot-9 but has a massive 7-foot-5 or so wingspan that more than makes up for it and allows him to play above his height. But scouts were not that impressed by what they saw offensively and wonder what his role will be at the NBA level given how poorly he shot the ball; he made only 19 percent of his 3s and 48 percent of his free throws. He also tore his ACL late in the season and is hoping to be ready for the start of the 2025-26 season. I'm skeptical that the formula here — new school and scheme to adjust to at Kentucky, coming off of an injury and offensive questions — leads to draft status as highly as he's projected in some corners. Undeniably, though, Quaintance is an exciting prospect. Cenac is about as perfect a Houston big man as you'll find, and he should pair with another player on this mock draft in JoJo Tugler to form maybe the best defensive frontcourt in college basketball this season. Cenac is a terrific athlete at his size with long arms. He's physically developed at about 230 pounds as a teenager and moves incredibly well for a big man. He's going to have few issues running the kind of versatile defensive schemes that Houston wants to run, at times playing in drop, at others aggressively blitzing ballhandlers to make opponents uncomfortable. The offensive end will be the key for Cenac. He's not overly developed there yet, with most of his production coming on the interior with cuts, rolls and offensive rebounds. But we're seeing more flashes of skill and comfort, as he is stepping out to 3 and making plays as a passer. By the end of Florida's national title campaign, Haugh was the Gators player that NBA scouts were most intrigued by. Walter Clayton Jr. rightfully got the accolades, but Haugh's all-around game at his size is impressive. He averaged 12.5 points, six rebounds and three assists over Florida's final 18 games, shooting 51 percent from the field, 37 percent from 3 and 77 percent from the line. He's versatile on defense and a serious athlete who can get up and down in transition as well as guard a bit on the perimeter. He was the matchup nightmare that allowed Florida to go supersized in lineups, or allowed them to stay big while going skilled with him at the four. Per CBB Analytics, he had the biggest impact in on-court net ratings last year for Florida. When Haugh was on the court, they beat their opponent by nearly 28 points per 100. When he was off, the team won by only about 12.5 points. When Haugh played, Florida dominated on its way to a title. I'm expecting a leap this year for him. Advertisement Lendeborg was one of the most productive players in the country last season, averaging 18 points, 11 rebounds and four assists while shooting 52 percent from the field, 36 percent from 3 and 76 percent from the line at UAB. He was a dominant inside-out, mismatch force who got exactly where he needed to go at that level. He hit the transfer portal and declared for the draft after the season, and the read from sources across college basketball was that the financial package Michigan offered was too enticing for Lendeborg to pass up. I would have had Lendeborg as a late first-rounder in the 2025 class if he'd declared, and he has a chance to consolidate that status with the Wolverines in a similar role to what Danny Wolf had this past season. The whole idea with Khamenia is a dribble/pass/shoot wing who is tremendously skilled and can play off the ball. Khamenia moved the needle for me at Nike Hoop Summit this spring, as he showed how he can deal with physicality and athleticism around him while also drilling shots, making timely cuts and consistently moving without the basketball. His feel for the game is terrific, and he has shown before that he can pass the ball, too. He always knows where he's supposed to be on defense and makes the right rotations. I'd expect him to have a big season at Duke. Knox was one of the more exciting late-season breakouts in college basketball last season as Arkansas made a bit of a late run under John Calipari despite myriad injuries. The former five-star prospect averaged 11.5 points and three rebounds while shooting 56 percent from the field, 42 percent from 3 and 80 percent from the line in his final 12 games. The brother of former New York Knicks' first-round pick Kevin Knox, Karter is more athletic and flexible than Kevin was, with a strong slashing game and a burgeoning ability to shoot the ball off the catch. If the shooting holds up next year, look for him to be a serious impact player at Arkansas and work his way into a potential first-round slot. Harwell has always been one of my favorites in this class, a big, physical guard who has skills to match his power game. He missed a year with a torn ACL injury but came back with a vengeance and affirmed his status as one of the best guards in the class. He doesn't have an enormous bag of tricks or any particularly impressive shiftiness, but he is efficient and methodical in how he gets to his spots and understands how to be a real three-level threat. He accepts contact well, can stop and pop from the midrange and has improved his range beyond the 3-point line. Defensively, Harwell is tough and will certainly be able to play within Houston's scheme. Daniels is Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels' brother, and he brings a similar intensity on the defensive end of the court as his brother. He was the defensive MVP of Basketball Without Borders in 2025, a monster on that end who attacks ballhandlers by crawling into their space and disrupting their rhythm. Offensively, he's more of a work-in-progress, continuing to develop his jumper as well as his polish in ball screens. Dyson was a bit ahead of Dash on that end because of his ability to run an offense and make plays for his teammates out of screens. But Daniels is a jumper away from being a killer role player in the NBA, much like his brother. Dash Daniels was huge in Sandringham's win over Casey in the NBL1 South 💪 The @MelbUnited Next Star finished with 25 points in just 25 minutes 🤩 — NBL Next Stars (@NBLNextStars) June 6, 2025 Pettiford was one of the final players to decide to withdraw from the draft after a robust pre-draft process in which he impressed NBA scouts with his speed, shot-making ability, energy and competitiveness. There might not have been a freshman who made more big shots this past season, including 21 points against Houston, 20 against Duke, 18 against Purdue, 21 against Kentucky, 19 against Alabama, and then back-to-back 20-point games against Creighton and Michigan in the NCAA Tournament. The key for Pettiford will be ironing out the consistency and doing this every night. He'll get the chance to start at Auburn this year after mostly coming off the bench last year, and I'd bet we see it night in, night out from him. His stock is probably limited by his size, but he has a shot to be a first-rounder despite it. PETTIFORD AGAIN ARE YOU KIDDING 😱#MarchMadness @AuburnMBB — NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 29, 2025 I thought Tugler was one of the three best defensive players in college basketball last season. There are things that truly only he can do on that end of the court among all college players. He'll make remarkably long scramble rotations, blitz ballhandlers and attack the ball in ball screens, make wildly impressive weak-side rim rotations and swat long closeouts. He averaged 1.9 blocks and one steal per game in just 22 minutes per game on his way to the Big 12's Defensive Player of the Year award. The question is what you do with him on offense. At some point, he's going to have to develop some skill on that end that hopefully involves him improving his jumper. But the defensive upside is truly remarkable and could allow him to stick in the NBA. Advertisement The entire appeal for Evans is that he's a monster shooter off action. He struggled to open last season before a strong stretch in February when he had 16-plus points over four straight games. The former five-star prospect still needs to develop as a ballhandler and defender. More than anything, he needs to get stronger and more physical. He might still be one more year away in that respect. But the shooting ability is lethal and could give him a chance to stick in the NBA after he drilled 41.4 percent of his 149 3s this past season. By the end of the regular season, maybe only Walter Clayton Jr. was playing better than Uzan. He averaged 14 points, three rebounds and 3.8 assists over his final 17 games before the NCAA Tournament, dictating seemingly everything with confidence and poise for Houston. He never felt out of control as Houston won 16 of those 17 games. His NCAA Tournament wasn't quite as impressive; he scored in single figures in four of the six games as teams scouted heavily to slow him down. But with another offseason of physical development, Uzan could be even better and lead Houston back to the Final Four. Byrd pulled out of the draft late after some impressive workouts and a good combine performance that put him on the borderline of staying in. He chose to go back to San Diego State, where the Aztecs are set to have an excellent team returning with another potential draft pick (at some point) in Magoon Gwath, Reese Waters, and a terrific point guard in Sean Newman Jr. Byrd was one of the best defensive playmakers in this class, averaging 2.1 steals and 1.1 blocks per game. He's also a sharp passer and decision-maker who processes the game around him quickly. He's a very confident shooter who just needs to see the ball go in the hoop more. He's a career 30 percent 3-point shooter despite taking six attempts per game last season and hitting 83 percent of his free throws. My bet is the shot comes around and Byrd proves himself. Avdalas was an international prospect in the 2025 NBA Draft class who withdrew late to attend Virginia Tech. Had he stayed in, he likely would have been selected in the top 40. He's a big, skilled wing who can play both with and without the ball in his hands, and I'd expect him to do a bit of both this season with the Hokies. In the NBA, though, he profiles well as an off-ball wing because he can shoot, having hit 36 percent from 3 this past season, and is also a sharp decision-maker. He processes the game well and moves without the ball, cutting and relocating to find open shots. He's also a sharp passer who makes quick decisions. I'm a believer in his game, for sure, and thought this was a massive steal for Virginia Tech to end up with him. Karaban didn't even go through the pre-draft process before returning to Connecticut. He had a rough season as UConn lacked a point guard to get its players involved in the offense. Much like Liam McNeeley, his shooting percentage from 3 slipped to 35 percent because he wasn't getting nearly as many open looks as he received in the previous two years when he was a starter on back-to-back national title teams. This year will be different. With Silas Demary and Malachi Smith entering the fold, the Huskies will have strong point guard play that allows them to get paint touches and create kickouts to open shooters off movement. Karaban is also a high-level defender who uses his length and instincts exceedingly well in help situations as he rotates around. I'm a believer in Smith figuring it out as a backup in the NBA. I wouldn't take him in the top 20 because of his lack of size, but I'm betting that he continues his growth over the last two years and turns into a guy that scouts just can't deny. He was a first-team All-American this past season while averaging 8.7 assists per game to pair with his 16 points. He also has drilled 39 percent of his 3s over his career and is tougher defensively than he gets credit for, owing to a plus-five wingspan that helps him contest better than you'd think. I'm betting on his feel for the game shining through as he leads Purdue to what could be a special season. 🚂 24 PTS 🚂 10 AST 🚂 7 REB 🚂 4 STL 🚂 4-4 FT Braden Smith was ROLLING against No. 21 Michigan, notching his 8th double-double of the season 👏#B1GMBBall x @BoilerBall — Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) January 25, 2025 I've always viewed Condon as a potential NBA player, but I didn't get behind the push that he seemed to get this season as a potential first-round pick. I talked to very few scouts who had him in that range this year. Still, what makes him so interesting is that he's a balanced, polished big man at 6-foot-11 who can handle the ball at his size, pass it, potentially shoot at some point and who has tremendous coordination. He made the All-SEC team last year while averaging 11 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.3 blocks, but what's most impressive is his hand-eye coordination. He catches almost everything in his area, can be disruptive with how he uses his hands and has good touch around the rim. There are tools for him to build upon. Advertisement This is probably my shot in the dark, one I don't think anyone else in the public sphere of draft coverage will have in their first round. By the end of last season at Arizona, Veesaar was awesome. Over his final 17 games, he averaged 11.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.2 blocks and 0.8 steals in 25 minutes per game while shooting 62 percent from the field and drilling 36 percent from 3 on nearly two attempts per game. More than anything, it's the movement he brings to the table. Veesaar can move around the court in a variety of screen coverages and has an NBA-caliber frame that should continue to put on good weight as he ages. He needs to improve as a defensive rebounder, but this should be a perfect fit in North Carolina's scheme. I'm buying into the two-way play here of a skilled big with polished footwork and touch. 31. Sergio De Larrea | 6-5 wing | 20 years old | Valencia 32. Dame Sarr | 6-7 wing | 20 years old | Duke 33. Darrion Williams | 6-6 wing | 22 years old | NC State 34. Nate Bittle | 7-0 big | 23 years old | Oregon 35. Tomislav Ivisic | 6-11 big | 22 years old | Illinois 36. Ian Jackson | 6-3 guard | 21 years old | St. John's 37. Johann Grunloh | 6-10 big | 21 years old | Virginia 38. Dailyn Swain | 6-7 wing | 21 years old | Texas 39. Flory Bidunga | 6-7 big | 20 years old | Kansas 40. Anthony Robinson | 6-3 guard | 21 years old | Missouri 41. Boogie Fland | 6-2 guard | 20 years old| Florida 42. Adrian Wooley | 6-5 wing | 20 years old | Louisville 43. Ryan Conwell | 6-4 guard | 22 years old | Louisville 44. Josh Dix | 6-5 wing | 22 years old | Creighton 45. Silas Demary | 6-5 guard | 21 years old | Connecticut 46. JT Toppin | 6-7 big | 22 years old | Texas Tech 47. Donovan Dent | 6-2 guard | 22 years old | UCLA 48. Richie Saunders | 6-5 wing | 23 years old | BYU Advertisement 49. Jaland Lowe | 6-2 guard | 21 years old | Kentucky 50. Hugo Facorat | 6-10 big | 19 years old | France 51. Ben Henshall | 6-4 guard | 22 years old | Australia 52. PJ Haggerty | 6-2 guard | 22 years old | Kansas State 53. Donnie Freeman | 6-9 big | 20 years old | Syracuse 54. Tucker DeVries | 6-7 wing | 23 years old | Indiana 55. Joshua Jefferson | 6-8 wing | 22 years old | Iowa State 56. Jaron Pierre Jr. | 6-6 wing | 23 years old | SMU 57. Mackenzie Mgbako | 6-7 wing | 21 years old | Texas A&M 58. Momo Faye | 6-10 big | 21 years old | Senegal 59. KJ Lewis | 6-4 guard | 21 years old | Georgetown 60. Trey Kaufman-Renn | 6-9 forward | 22 years old | Purdue (Illustration: Will Tullos / The Athletic; photos of, from left, A.J. Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer and Darryn Peterson: Brian Spurlock / Getty Images)
USA Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
2026 NBA mock draft: Son of famous forward is a top-3 pick
The 2025 NBA Draft JUST ended, with grades for all the draft classes in and undrafted free agents signing. But it's not too early to read 2026 NBA mock drafts. There are a few of them out on Friday, and there's some consensus among them. After look at a mock from USA TODAY Sports, one from CBS Sports, another from ESPN and an SB Nation mock, there's one familiar name that keeps popping up: Cam Boozer, who's the son of Carlos Boozer who's joining Duke along with his twin brother Cayden Boozer. Here's the ESPN take on him going to the Nets with a projected No. 3 pick: Boozer is one of the most productive high school players we've ever seen, with a winning résumé unmatched by any prospect in recent memory. He has an elite feel for the game, and can handle, pass, shoot and guard every position. He brings relentless physicality, crashes the glass and takes pride in dominating his matchups inside. His outside shooting has significantly improved in the past year, as well. Boozer's first-year production could rival Cooper Flagg's, which would clearly set him up as a legitimate candidate for National Player of the Year honors, even if some NBA executives question his long-term upside.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Carlos Boozer expected to join Utah Jazz as a scout
According to Michael Scotto, the Utah Jazz are expected to bring Carlos Boozer into the organization as a scout. From HoopsHype: In other news, former two-time Jazz All-Star forward Carlos Boozer is with the team here at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago and is expected to join the organization as a scout, league sources told HoopsHype. This is a fun move by the Jazz to have Boozer close to the organization. But it's also a smart idea, Boozer should bring great insight with the different big men the Jazz might bring in. The other obvious wrinkle to this is the fact that Boozer's son, Cam Boozer, will very likely be a top-3 pick in the draft next season. The fact that Boozer is happy to join the Jazz and be in Utah, bodes well for the future of Cam Boozer potentially being in Utah. Advertisement It's very likely that Utah will be in a similar spot in the lottery next season, and I hope the Jazz get a Boozer AND 1!!! and bring Cam Boozer into the organization next year as the star they've been waiting for. This is looking like the beginning of a really fun story. In case you haven't seen Cam Boozer play, here are some of his highlights: More from
New York Times
13-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
AJ Dybantsa's impact on Big 12? Can Kevin Willard win at Villanova? College basketball mailbag
We talked SEC and Big East in the first of of our two-part mailbag. Let's dive into the Big 12, Kansas, Michigan State, the new Pac-12 and more in Part 2. (Note: Submitted questions have been lightly edited for clarity and length.) How much does adding AJ Dybantsa affect BYU and the rest of the Big 12? — Sarah K. Let's establish a couple of realities. First, the reigning Big 12 player of the year, JT Toppin of Texas Tech, is coming back for the 2025-26 season. Second, there is always an adjustment period, no matter how talented you are, when you move from high school to college or college to the pros. Advertisement Dybantsa, one of the top recruits nationally and a heralded NBA prospect, has drawn a lot of intrigue since he got a reported $7 million in name, image and likeness money to pick BYU. (In April, Dybantsa told a fan that the $7 million payday is a 'false rumor.') He is obviously very good … but is he even the best player in the 2025 class? At the Hoop Summit in April, the World Team had no answer for Cam Boozer, the former No. 1 player in the 2025 class who is headed to Duke. Dybantsa scored 24 points in Team USA's 124-114 overtime win; Boozer had 22, plus 16 rebounds. What happens when Dybantsa is the top player on the scouting report? And don't forget that Dybantsa won't be the only superstar rookie in the Big 12: Kansas is bringing in guard Darryn Peterson, who 247Sports currently rates as the top recruit in the country. Dybantsa is going to have plenty of competition for both conference and national freshman of the year honors, which benefits us, the people who love watching good basketball. He'll also play alongside All-Big 12 selection Richie Saunders, who has announced he'll be back. But given Toppin's return and how much talent Houston is bringing in, plus the fact that both of those programs made deep runs in the NCAA Tournament, I don't see BYU finishing higher than third in the Big 12 … which is exactly where the Cougars were at the end of the 2024-25 season. But it is plausible that they make a deep postseason run — they lost in the Sweet 16 to Alabama this year — when matched up with teams that aren't as familiar with guarding Dybantsa. Peterson should help KU with that, too. A deep run from either (or both!) of these teams could ultimately help the Big 12 recapture the claim as the best men's college basketball conference. — Lindsay Schnell Do you think Kevin Willard can bring Villanova back to the top of the Big East? National contender status? — Brian S. Yes, and we'll see. I'm not quite willing to go there yet on the second one — at least at the level of consistency of what Jay Wright reached — but I do think hiring Willard was a lot smarter than going with an unproven assistant. I'm always wary of in-the-family hires. Some have gone brilliantly. Tom Izzo, Mark Few, Matt Painter, Jon Scheyer (on track). But others have really crashed. Advertisement When you're one of the best programs in the sport, why limit yourself to one or two candidates when theoretically you should be able to attract some awesome candidates? Willard made sense because he had success in the Big East at one of the toughest places to win (Seton Hall), and then he was off to a solid start at Maryland. I'm not sure he's Wright, but the floor is a lot higher than hiring a Kyle Neptune. Villanova has been willing to put resources — i.e., NIL funds — toward basketball, and Willard has done a nice job of roster building at his past two stops. The league has more depth at the top than when Wright had it rolling, so maybe how Villanova is judged should be slightly different. But if Villanova can consistently be a top-four team in the league with a league championship every four or five years, then that should be considered a success. And a league winner is usually going to be a national title contender. — CJ Moore How does Michigan State keep up after the losses of Tre Holloman and Jase Richardson? Tom Izzo doesn't usually get big talent from the portal, so I feel like we're stuck. — Kaiden B. Losing Richardson hurts much more than Holloman, IMO. By season's end, Richardson was Sparty's best player, and I thought there was a decent chance that he might run things back in East Lansing for a second season. Instead, with a first-round landing spot seemingly guaranteed, Richardson is testing his luck, and then Holloman's departure only exacerbated MSU's backcourt situation. So far, the only true guard Izzo has added is journeyman Trey Fort (Samford), who at least has high-major experience from his lone season at Mississippi State. Fort brings much-needed scoring and shooting punch — he shot 37.9 percent from 3 last season on five attempts per game — but he's not a true point guard. Fellow perimeter addition Kaleb Glenn (Florida Atlantic) is more of a wing, meanwhile, and even less suited to run MSU's offense. If Fort had to serve as a temporary lead ballhandler, he probably could. But you'd rather find someone a bit more natural at creating behind Jeremy Fears Jr., who is going to almost singularly have the keys to Izzo's offense. Even with Kur Teng returning, I'd be surprised if Izzo doesn't add at least one more ballhandling guard who can set up his offense when Fears needs a breather. As for Michigan State's outlook at large, though? I pegged the Spartans as a mid-tier Big Ten team last season, before Richardson's emergence and the team's incredible depth made clear they could play above that level. That might be more what reality is for this team. Purdue and Michigan already look like the clear Big Ten favorites, with Iowa and Illinois also looking dangerous. While I'm a big fan of Coen Carr, Jaxon Kohler and Fears, the two things that made MSU special this season — a dynamic lead guard and depth — just don't seem like they'll be there. Maybe some late portal additions change that, but this should only underscore just how special a season Michigan State just had. — Brendan Marks Advertisement From a basketball perspective, which school would be a great addition to the Revised Pac-12: Another Mountain West team, Saint Mary's, University of San Francisco, UC Irvine or another school? — Z77Pwjpycd As both a Pac-12 alum and someone constantly trying to look at the glass half full, I was holding out hope that UNLV would join the Pac-12 2.0. The league is already slated to be excellent in men's basketball, with programs like Gonzaga, Colorado State, Boise State, San Diego State and Utah State set to join Oregon State and Washington State. (This is also a pretty good women's basketball conference.) Of the schools you listed as a possible pickup, Saint Mary's has been the most consistent. The issue is that if the Pac-12 wants to be taken seriously, it can't have teams playing in high school gyms, which is essentially where Saint Mary's plays (I understand this is part of the Gaels' charm, but it's a branding issue). New Mexico would be a solid choice from a men's basketball perspective, but given how important football is, you can't invite a school that's gone a combined 16-39 the past five years. Now, is this pipe dream given that UNLV is getting as much as $24 million to stay in the MWC when other schools were fleeing? Technically, yes. But I'm going to hold out hope. In the history of realignment, things that once seemed impossible are now a reality. (I will never have a truly satisfactory answer to, 'Why is Nebraska in the Big Ten instead of the Big 12?') With the way things have gone, it seems like only a matter of months before we have another major shakeup in the college sports conference landscape — maybe then that $24 million becomes irrelevant. — Schnell I saw recently on ESPN that Kansas was projected to be a 7-seed again. Additionally, I haven't seen anybody discussing it as a legitimate Elite Eight threat, let alone a title threat. Is this an overreaction to KU underachieving in the past two years? Or is the roster that it built around Darryn Peterson simply not good enough to contend? — Sam W. Bracketology in April and May is hilarious. Just like Top 25s this time of year, it's all guesswork, and there are a lot of picks that will look dumb in about seven months. But yes, you're right in both regards: This is probably a slight overreaction to what KU has been the past two years, and also on paper, the portal class looks slightly underwhelming. I think not just chasing names has been a sign of progress when it comes to the portal class. This is Bill Self approaching the portal more like Duke's Scheyer did last year. Scheyer got some criticism because his portal additions were not ranked highly on any portal lists, but he was intentional in finding players who he thought fit around Cooper Flagg, and he also wanted positional size. That approach ended up working out great, and an addition like Sion James was one of the steals of the 2024 portal cycle. KU's grade is still incomplete because Self still needs to add one or two more players. But what's apparent is that athleticism/ability to guard mattered more this time around than just trying to add scoring/top names on a list. He got a shooter in Jayden Dawson; he got a point guard/secondary handler who can guard and also generate paint touches in Melvin Council Jr., which addressed a weakness from this past year; and then he got a Swiss Army knife kind of wing in Tre White, whose size (6-foot-7) and position 3/4 type have been really important pieces on Self's best teams. The Jayhawks could still use another scorer, and they had Dame Sarr on campus last week. A 6-7 shooting guard, Sarr is one of the most talented unsigned players left who are planning to play college hoops next season. He would allow Self to lean into playing two to three big wings at a time, mimicking the approach in 2022-23, which is the last time KU was a No. 1 seed. KU could also still be in the mix for former Texas Tech wing Darrion Williams, who is in the portal but also considering the NBA. If Self lands either of those players, I'd likely bump KU into the top 10. So let's wait to see what the final product looks like, but you are correct to assume that just like KU's preseason ranking is usually inflated because of past success, there's a hint of recency bias right now and also the hesitancy that comes with ranking a team whose best player is someone we haven't seen play at this level yet. — Moore (Top photo of AJ Dybantsa: Soobum Im / Getty Images)
