Wednesday: My way-too-early Top 5 in college basketball

Happy Wednesday! It’s time for this week’s Top 5.

College basketball is done, but before you get all depressed, here’s a look at what next season’s going to be like.

This week’s topic: My way-too-early Top 5.

1.     Duke: The Blue Devils are always going to be in this conversation, but they look poised to win the national title next season. Stars Rodney Hood and Jabari Parker are likely heading to the NBA draft, though Parker seems to be taking a lot longer to decide this. Duke will return veteran guards Quinn Cook and Rasheed Sulaimon along with big man Amile Jefferson. The biggest difference though will be incoming freshman Jahil Okafor, the top-rated high school center in the country. Okafor will be the next freshman star, so expect him to do big things next season.

2.     Wisconsin: It’s not too often the Badgers are in the discussion for the top 5 this early, but they return almost everybody from a Final Four team. Ben Brust—the school’s all-time leading 3-point shooter—is gone to graduation. But if big men Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker decide to avoid the NBA draft for a season, watch out. With Nigel Hayes, Traevon Jackson and Bronson Koenig, the Badgers won’t just be favorites to win the Big Ten. They might just win it all.

3.     Arizona: Like Duke, the Wildcats are kind of waiting on players to decide whether they will declare for the NBA. And Arizona has a lot of those caliber of players. Nick Johnson—the Pac 12 Player of the Year—and Aaron Gordon will likely be lottery picks in the draft, but both have yet to make a decision. Even if both of them declare, Arizona would still be a threat to win it all in 2015. The frontcourt will be fantastic, led by Brandon Ashley and Kaleb Tarczewski. T.J. McConnell gives this team some leadership while coach Sean Miller brings in another solid recruiting class.

4.     Kansas: The Jayhawks always find ways to reload. Andrew Wiggins has already declared for the draft, while center Joel Embiid will likely do so today at 1 p.m. But Wayne Seldon and Perry Ellis return to a squad that lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Pair them alongside incoming freshmen Cliff Alexander and Kelly Oubre and the Jayhawks will be favorites (as usual) for another national title. If Embiid somehow decides to come back, this team will likely jump a few spots in this ranking.

5.     North Carolina: Yes, the Tar Heels lost forward James Michael McAdoo to the NBA. But this team is still full of talent, particularly at guard. And we all saw what happened with UConn when its guards excelled. Marcus Paige will lead the way alongside Brice Johnson and J.P. Tokoto. Incoming freshmen Justin Jackson and Theo Pinson will give Carolina some depth at forward as well. Watch out for Kennedy Meeks. He has the ability to have a breakout sophomore season.

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Thanks for reading and have a great hump day!

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