Sam's Top 100: 40-21

By Sam Federman

40. Kansas State Wildcats (Big 12)

Jerome Tang is finally done trying to replicate Markquis Nowell with another small guard. PJ Haggerty will provide an immediate floor at the point guard position with strong scoring. The Wildcats will be tougher in the backcourt, with Nate Johnson next to Haggerty, and also brought in international studs Andrej Kostic and Elias Rapieque to solidify a shaky wing group.

39. Marquette Golden Eagles (Big East)

Chase Ross probably won’t turn into Kam Jones, but that’s okay. He’ll still take a big step forward and the return of Sean Jones will add serious speed and experience back into the rotation. Shaka always does a great job developing his players, and it seems as though Zaide Lowery, Royce Parham, and Damarius Owens may have to be next. Nigel James will be one of the best freshmen in the Big East.

38. Maryland Terrapins (Big Ten)

A team that will continue to play with Buzz Williams’ physical identity, Maryland brought over Pharrel Payne and Solomon Washington from Texas A&M to aid with the transition. The backcourt of Myles Rice and Darius Adams should be dynamic, especially with Isaiah Watts and Diggy Coit coming off the bench, and I’m curious to see how it fits with the frontcourt.

37. Oregon Ducks (Big Ten)

Oregon brings back two of the 25-30 best returning players in the country in Jackson Shelstad and Nate Bittle, but the rest of the roster has a ton of question marks. There’s plenty of size and athleticism between TK Simpkins, Kwame Evans, and Sean Stewart, but one or more of them will need to take a big step forward. Also keep an eye out for Chinese guard Wei Lin, who was one of the CBA’s top scorers last season.

36. Baylor Bears (Big 12)

Scott Drew replaced his entire roster, allowing his program to reset with a new identity. Tounde Yessoufou will be one of the best freshmen in the sport thanks to his motor and slashing ability. The backcourt trio of Obi Agbim, JJ White, and Cameron Carr will put points on the board, while Dan Skillings adds to the defensive identity. The versatile Michael Rataj will allow the Bears to play some different lineups, while High Point transfer Juslin Bodo Bodo will turn the rebounding game in Baylor’s favor.

35. Mississippi Rebels (SEC)

Chris Beard put together a strong roster for year three at Mississippi, headlined by returning forward Malik Dia and a “buy-low” on AJ Storr. The Rebels also added French wing Ilias Kamardine, who has played at a high level professionally for the last few years. Koren Johnson, Kezza Giffa, and Travis Perry were added to the backcourt, while James Scott will man the middle and allow Dia to play the four a little more.

34. Clemson Tigers (ACC)

Clemson has one of the best frontcourts in the ACC. Nick Davidson and Carter Welling can play the high-low action that made the Tigers so successful last season, but also bring certain other elements that will elevate the guards. Dillon Hunter needs to take a big step forward, and Middle Tennessee transfer Jestin Porter has to be ready to run the show.

33. USC Trojans (Big Ten)

Eric Musselman built what should be one of the best defensive frontcourts in the Big Ten with Amarion Dickerson and Jacob Cofie leading the way. However, I wonder how much the ball will be in Chad Baker-Mazara’s hands, and how much he can handle it. Rodney Rice adds a ton of juice at the guard spot, likely to be this team’s top scorer. UNC Asheville transfer Jordan Marsh is a pure point guard, but undersized in the Big Ten.

32. Saint Mary’s Gaels (WCC)

The lesson has been learned. Even with as many questions as I had last year, I never should’ve ranked the Gaels as low as I did. This year, even with a plethora of new starters, I’m certain that Saint Mary’s will make the NCAA Tournament. Mikey Lewis can be one of the best scorers on the west coast, while Paulius Murauskas’ flashes will be more consistent.

31. Creighton Bluejays (Big East)

I’m not sure who on this team – besides Jasen Green – is going to defend anything, but I know for a fact that the Bluejays will be hard to guard. Owen Freeman and Josh Dix have put up numbers for Iowa, while Jackson McAndrew is getting serious breakout buzz. I’m extremely curious to see how Blake Harper adjusts to the high-major level, as his range of outcomes is extremely wide. Creighton could also really use a breakout from Fedor Zugic, who never settled into a rhythm last year.

30. North Carolina Tar Heels (ACC)

UNC will be much stronger in the paint than it was last season. The additions of Henri Veesaar, Caleb Wilson, and Jarin Stevenson bring size and mobility to a frontcourt that bled points. The ceiling comes down to Wilson and Luka Bogavac and how well they can score. If Seth Trimble leads the Heels in scoring, they’re probably hitting closer to the floor than the ceiling, especially if they can’t take pressure off of Kyan Evans to play free.

29. Wisconsin Badgers (Big Ten)

John Blackwell has the chance to be an All-American as a junior with San Diego State transfer Nick Boyd initiating the offense. Andrew Rohde also provides a little bit of wing playmaking, while Austin Rapp adds an element of shooting from the four spot. Seven footer Nolan Winter is back to play the five as well, finishing out a starting group that gives them a chance in the Big Ten.

28. UCLA Bruins (Big Ten)

Donovan Dent and Mick Cronin doesn’t seem like a match made in heaven, but they’re both good enough at their respective jobs to establish a certain floor. Dent is one of the best point guards in the sport, and Skyy Clark evolved into an elite perimeter defender last season. Both Eric Dailey and Tyler Bilodeau can take over games in different ways in the frontcourt, while Jamar Brown adds an element of shooting off the wing.

27. Auburn Tigers (SEC)

I dropped the Tigers six spots in my rankings when Bruce Pearl retired simply out of the unknown for his son, but I do have belief that Steven will be a good coach. Returning Tahaad Pettiford gives him one of the best scoring point guards in the country, while Keyshawn Hall, Elyjah Freeman, and Filip Jovic have scoring juice in the frontcourt. Experienced SEC big man KeShawn Murphy gives the requisite toughness and defense for the scheme at the five.

26. Tennessee Volunteers (SEC)

For a program that has finished top 10 each of the last four seasons, 26 feels like a low ranking, but Tennessee has a lot of question marks heading into this season. While I love Ja’Kobi Gillespie, I’m not sure where else the offensive juice comes from. Perhaps it’s five-star freshman Nate Ament being better than I anticipate. Perhaps Amaree Abram finds his stroke and turns into a reliable SEC scorer. The combination of Felix Okpara and Cade Phillips is fun, but provides no spacing.

25. Illinois Fighting Illini (Big Ten)

If you know how to predict this Illinois team, you’re lying, but I know this will be an entertaining group. Adriatic League MVP Mihailo Petrovic will be an elite point guard from day one, and Tomislav Ivisic is one of the best bigs in the Big Ten, while his brother is the perfect platoon for him. Andrej Stojakovic will infuse some scoring, while Kylan Boswell is back for his senior year. Freshmen David Mirkovic and Keaton Wagler are the two biggest swing pieces.

24. Washington Huskies (Big Ten) (Will be moved down in final rankings)

The Huskies will move down when I release the final rankings due to Jacob Ognacevic’s injury, but I’m not sure how far yet. I’m still believing in German freshman big Hannes Steinbach to be one of the best international players in the sport. I still think Quimari Peterson and Wesley Yates are two of the more underrated guards in the Big Ten, but I’m concerned about how much Desmond Claude might take away from them.

23. Iowa Hawkeyes (Big Ten)

I’ve learned a few things over the years, and one of them is to not bet against Ben McCollum and Bennett Stirtz. That duo has dominated Division II and Division I, winning 31 games for Drake last season. At Iowa, they’re bringing a few other Bulldogs along with them, like Cam Manyawu in the middle and Tavion Banks on the wing. Stirtz has his dream ball screen partner in Alvaro Folgueiras from Robert Morris, and Brendan Hausen will be perfect in the Mitch Mascari role.

22. Virginia Cavaliers (ACC)

While the names Thijs De Ridder and Johann Grunloh may not be familiar to most fans right now, they’ll lead one of the nation’s best frontcourts in Charlottesville this year. De Ridder is one of the top international prospects in all of college basketball, and Grunloh will patrol the paint. Malik Thomas comes in from San Francisco with elite scoring ability, and the backcourt of Jacari White and Dallin Hall has offense and experience as well. Ryan Odom also stocked the bench with Devin Tillis, Sam Lewis, Chance Mallory, and Ugonna Onyenso.

21. N.C. State Wolfpack (ACC)

Will Wade is not messing around at all in year one in Raleigh. The Wolfpack will immediately bring a level of physicality and athleticism to the ACC that it desperately needs. Wade pulled off a coup in landing Darrion Williams from Texas Tech to be the offensive hub and heart of the team, while also bringing in Michigan State transfer Tre Holloman to run the point. Finishing off the trio of transfers from Elite 8 teams, Terrance Arceneaux adds toughness on the wing. N.C. State also stole Ven-Allen Lubin from in-state rival UNC to start at the five.