Wednesday, May 11th, 2011 at 12:41 pm  |  15 responses

NCAA Pre-Season Top 25, Pt. 2

The Draft deadline has past and rankings are updated!

11. Xavier

Tu Holloway could’ve declared, but unlike many of his peers, made the mature choice of waiting it out another season. He’ll most likely be happy with his decision, because Xavier will once again be the class of the A-10.

12. Memphis

Luckily for Memphis fans, Josh Pastner has already turned down Texas A&M’s suddenly vacant head coaching position. No surprises there … Pastner has a great thing going with the Tigers, and next year his recruiting efforts (by all accounts one of the most tireless workers on the summer prep circuit) should really pay off. One of the more talented bunches in the country has a year of experience under its belt now. Will Barton, Joe Jackson, and the gang will cruise in Conference USA.

13. Arizona

Breathe, Arizona fans. Sean Miller was this close to taking the Maryland job (probably a lot closer than he’d like people to believe), and Wildcats fans should be thrilled. What Miller is building in the desert in the new Pac-12 is exciting. Fresh off an Elite Eight appearance, Arizona is currently dominating west coast recruiting. There will be no Derrick Williams next year, but Arizona has a deep and experienced roster returning to Tucson.

14. Pittsburgh

Leading scorer Ashton Gibbs’ wise decision to return to the Panthers will offset the loss of a few important seniors. The Panthers would’ve been a tough squad regardless with a nice core group of returning players (led by Nasir Robinson) with big game experience, but getting his biggest offensive threat and top three-point shooter back in the fold should make Jamie Dixon a happy man.

15. Florida

Florida was hit hard by the Draft, but unlike a lot of his peers, there wasn’t anything Billy Donovan could have done about it. Vernon Macklin, Chandler Parsons and Alex Tyus’ eligibility has run dry, but the Gators will definitely win a bunch of games next year with its standout backcourt. Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton and Rutgers transfer Mike Rosario should make Florida’s little guys a tough guard.

16. Alabama

Alabama made a nice climb up the rankings from 20th by hanging on to JaMychael Green and Tony Mitchell. The Tide might have been snubbed in March, but the NIT-runner ups have the entire roster back from a team that won 12 SEC games. If all goes well, watch out for ‘Bama as a national darkhorse.

17. Cincinnati

Yancy Gates, Sean Kilpatrick and Cashmere Wright all return for Mick Cronin, who, after some mid-season uncertainty in Cinci, got a new deal of his own. Cincinnati should be a real player in the Big East. Whether it becomes a national contender depends on how quickly and exciting incoming recruiting class (led by Shaquille Thomas) develops.

18. Gonzaga

Replacing an entire starting backcourt is not an ideal situation for a team that is expected to contend every season, but Mark Few has options. He also has one of the sturdiest frontcourts in the country in Elias Harris and Robert Sacre. If Canadian sensation point guard Kevin Pangos can live up to the hype in his freshman season, the Zags will be solid for the umpteenth season in a row.

19. Missouri

Everyone is back except for the coach. Mike Anderson is off to Arkansas and Frank Haith, apparently to the disappointment of Mizzou fans everywhere, is in. There’s no reason that this Tigers team shouldn’t compete for a Big 12 championship with its roster of experienced and talented vets. If Ricardo Ratliffe, Kim English, Laurence Bowers and the rest mesh with a new system quickly, this team has scary potential.

20. Marquette

Even though most of a Sweet 16 roster returns, the real victory of the offseason for the Marquette program was convincing rising coach Buzz Williams to stick around. The Golden Eagles will be small again, but that didn’t stop them last season. Expect this feisty squad to challenge at the top of the Big East.

21. Baylor

Perry Jones pulled the shocker of the spring when he decided to return to Baylor for his sophomore season, but he returns to a team that, while relatively green, will be bursting with talent. Jones and Quincy Acy will lead a freakishly athletic frontline, and Scott Drew’s recruiting magic has Quincy Miller and Deuce Bello headed to Waco in the fall.

22. Purdue

Robbie Hummel has to be about 28 by now, but even after two ACL tears, the man will still be able to ball. After being courted by Missouri, Matt Painter re-upped at his alma mater and will have another talented team. The Boilers are probably Ohio State’s stiffest competition in the Big Ten.

23. New Mexico

Despite the recent news of another DWI arrest on his roster, Steve Alford should have the Lobos back on top of the MWC after a bit of a down season. BYU bolted for the WCC and UNLV should take a step back without Lon Kruger, so the conference is Drew Gordon and New Mexico’s to lose.

24. George Mason

Though Mason lost a great coach in Jim Larranaga, I think they found an extremely able replacement in Paul Hewitt. How often can you replace on Final Four coach with another (especially at a mid-major school)? If none of Larranaga’s players jump ship, Hewitt will have a loaded roster to work with. The Patriots could be talented enough to make another deep March run.

25. Michigan

Outside of Texas (which lost nearly its entire team to the Draft), the Wolverines got docked more than any other team in these rankings. Match-up nightmare Darius Morris’ decision to stay in the Draft really hurts Michigan and leaves Tim Hardaway Jr as the only playmaker on the roster. With Morris and Hardaway, Michigan would’ve been a pain to guard. John Beilein’s team will still compete for a Big Ten title because this team has some savvy veteran players, but easy shots will be harder to come by without Morris.

Jon Jaques is a former starter for the Cornell Big Red and current forward for Israel’s Ironi Ashkelon club.

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  • http://www.bulls.com Rigo Gonzalez

    I think you’ve got Baylor too low. I realize they seriously underacheived this past season, but I think that year of experience will help Perry Jones tremendously and the recriuting class is solid. I’d rank them in the 13-17 area.
    I like Kentucky ahead of Ohio State, I just think they’ll be stacked with too much talent next year. Not enough to be better than UNC, who will also be stacked AS WELL as experienced, but I think enough to be better than Ohio St.
    We shall see though!

  • logues

    ^i was thinking the exact same thing about baylor before i even read ur comment. with that athletic talent, maybe even top 10 by seasons end

  • The Beetle

    UNC is going to the top AGAIN

  • the truth

    Umm louisville loses jennings and leading scorer knowels?

  • tim

    Austin Rivers is dynamic and a playmaker??? When has he ever passed the ball?

    Louisville lost their leading scorer, Knowles.

    Kansas needs to be ranked around 20, not 10.

    Sorry, no way Ohio St. ranks higher than UK. This is a UK team that got better with this recruiting class. And they beat Ohio St. in the sweet 16.

    You’re way off this time.

  • John

    I’ve never read your stuff but when I see Ohio State ranked over Kentucky I immediately think, hmm, what’s his agenda. You can rank Ohio State over Kentucky as long as you’re willing to take the credibility hit. No need to read this list beyond #2.

    Also, this:

    The Draft deadline has *passed*

    not this:

    The Draft deadline has *past*

  • billy

    How is OSU above KY? Yeah sullinger came back..pretty sure UK’s original third string center did a pretty good job against him in the tournament. They lose Knight but they get Davis, Gilchrist, and Teague. With Miller and Jones…aka experience. UNC will be nasty too.

  • theatetus

    Kentucky behind Ohio State? What a freaking joke…how can OSU possibly be any better than they were last year when we beat them….and how can anyone possibly think that UK won’t be better with the enormous amount of incoming talent and versatility. UNC is a legitimate preseason no.1 but OSU #2? That is just wishful thinking…

  • rusty

    Lol @ OSU ranked ahead of UK…UK has a clear advantage at every position besides pf, which is a close call between future lottery picks.

  • Brasky Guy

    Think you reeeally missed the boat on this one Jonny. Maybe put a little more time and effort into Pt. 3. And I won’t even address the OSU/UK situation…think you get the point.

  • mikeinlex

    I certainly agree that UK has to be in the top 2, they just beat the 2 teams you have ranked ahead of them in the tourney and they will be much better next season than they were last season, especially with their added depth. As for your comment about Liggins’s early departure “raising some eyebrows”, it wouldn’t raise the eyebrows of anyone that actually understands his situation. DeAndre recently had a baby boy that he now needs to provide for, and that means he has to go out and earn a paycheck somewhere, something the NCAA doesn’t really let college athletes do. This is the problem with depending on national media outlets that cover everything just so-so rather than covering one subject really well. If you are going to cover a certain person or subject in an article, you need to do in-depth research and know exactly what you are talking about, even if it is just one line in parentheses.

  • jerald gilland

    liggins offense has improved every year under calaperi. he wll continue to improve in pros.he will never command big money,but he will earn a nice living. he will be a good def. player also.

  • http://slamonline.com Jon Jaquqes

    Since everyone seems to be in agreement besides me …

    You’re all right. Kentucky will probably end the season ahead of Ohio State. However, the purpose of this post was to think about a PRE-SEASON ranking for the start of next season. While UK loses a bit (Knight, Liggins, Harrelson) and brings in the nation’s top class, the Buckeyes lose less (Lighty, Diebler, but its best player stuck around while UK’s did not) and bring in their own stud class (less hyped than Calipari’s but I’ll bet its equally as effective).

    Because Ohio State has more experienced talent coming back and the freshmen learning curve will make the recruiting classes a wash at first, Ohio State gets 2, Kentucky gets 3.

  • mark

    Jon, why no mention of Doron Lamb and his 12ppg returning along with Jones and Miller?That’s three double digit scorers returning,there’s really not much difference in what OSU has returning over UK.If you really beleive OSU’s recruiting class is going to be as effective as UK’s ,you have to be the only person in America,sans OSU fans
    , who beleives that.

  • Fan

    i think as long as the team is on the top 25 thats all that matters, even though it maybe wrong, its an opinion. let the games play out and things will prove themselves. i think with andre drummond, Uconn has a chance to be right in the mix with UK and OSU. everyone cant play for UK and that will be seen this year, someone isnt going to be happy. OSU has there key role players, they just need another big output for scoring to makeup. And Uconn has great guard and great front court now with great role players. The only clear rank, is UNC at number one.

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