College basketball

Arkansas and Kentucky lead our first look at next year, but there's plenty of NCAA roster movement to come.

But Edey alone combined with a strong collection of role players is enough to keep this club in the top 25. This Dayton team won’t be as good as the one Obi Toppin had trending toward a potential No. 1 seed in ’20, but it has the potential for an incredibly special season. But with the additions of a pair of elite freshmen in Jaden Bradley and Brandon Miller, along with young returnees such as Charles Bediako and Darius Miles, give this group the chance to have a special season. But with a returning backcourt headlined by Dalen Terry and Kerr Kriisa and potential for one or both of Koloko and Tubelis to return, this group will be in the mix to win the Pac-12 yet again. Any questions about Mark Adams’s ability to lead the Red Raiders’ program were quickly answered in his first season as the head man in Lubbock, leading Tech to a No. 3 seed and a spot in the Sweet 16. Achilles injuries are notoriously fickle, and there’s no guarantee that the veteran wing will be 100% by November. But a healthy Moore combined with emerging big man Eric Dixon, talented young wing Jordan Longino and five-star freshman Cam Whitmore should be enough to keep this group relevant in the national picture. If Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua can get healthy after a devastating knee injury in February, this team will be one of the more complete rosters (at least on paper) in the country next season. Baylor adds five-star freshman Keyonte George to this mix for next season, a dynamic scoring guard who’ll pair well with LJ Cryer and Adam Flagler (who could pursue professional options as well) for one of the more impressive backcourts in the sport. But Roach could be one of the nation’s better point guards in ’22–23, and he’ll be feeding the ball to the likes of do-it-all wing Dariq Whitehead and uber-talented forwards Kyle Filipowski and Dereck Lively. There may be some growing pains with a first-time coach, but don’t expect a major drop-off. There will be roster turnover this offseason—we’re penciling in the departure of Bennedict Mathurin in these rankings, but frontcourt stars Christian Koloko and Azuolas Tubelis could also head to the pros. Plus, the future is extremely bright for youngsters Arthur Kaluma and Trey Alexander, who each had huge games in the Big Dance. This group is a couple of transfer additions away from having limitless potential next season. Now, the Cougars should get back Sasser (the team’s best player) and Mark, joining emerging point guard Jamal Shead to form one of the most impressive backcourts in the sport.