Chet Holmgren, Gonzaga Headline 2021-22 College Basketball Preseason Rankings
The 2021-22 college basketball season is filled with a plethora of unbelievable freshman talent. Guys like Emoni Bates, Paolo Banchero, and Chet Holmgren are all freshmen who have opportunities to make a mark on the college basketball world. With that being said, here are our 2021-22 college basketball preseason top 25 rankings.
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- Gonzaga Bulldogs
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This one is a no-brainer. After losing in the national championship just a year ago, the Zags bring back possibly the best player in all of college basketball in Drew Timme, along with the #1 ranked prospect in the nation in Chet Holmgren. The Bulldogs sit with the #3 recruiting class in the entire country that includes 5 star combo guard Hunter Sallis. With one of the best coaches in the country in Mark Few, the Bulldogs enter as the team to beat.
2. Texas Longhorns
With Chris Beard leaving Texas Tech for Austin last spring, Texas became a transfer magnet. It started with one of the best transfer guards in the nation in Marcus Carr from Minnesota and continued with former top 40 prospect Devin Askew from Kentucky. The Longhorns keep their veteran ring leader Andrew Jones and are easily cemented as a top 3 team in the nation.
3. Kansas Jayhawks
Kansas ended the season on a hot streak, winning nine of its final eleven games. With four starters returning and landing the top ranked transfer in Remy Martin Jr. from Arizona State, the Jayhawks look scary coming into this season. Expect outbreaks from Jalen Wilson and Ochai Agbaji.
4. Villanova Wildcats
Villanova immediately shot up to a top 5 team when Collin Gillespie and Jermaine Samuels each announced their returns. As an advanced team with Jay Wright at the helm, expect Nova to be their normal selves. With the departure of Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, they will have a major hole not having the swiss army knife JRE was.
5. Purdue Boilermakers
Jaden Ivey sits as the best returnee from last year’s draft class, and Purdue could come in hot. Winning 11 of its final 14 games last season in a monster Big 10 conference, Purdue has the potential to be one of the best teams in the country with the duo of Ivey and Trevion Williams down low.
6. Kentucky Wildcats
Kentucky is a sneaky national championship contender after being the biggest disappointment in college basketball a year ago. Adding two top 20 prospects in TyTy Washington and Daimion Collins along with transfers like Oscar Tshiebwe and CJ Fredrick, John Calipari is looking for a bounce back year.
7. Duke Blue Devils
Another major disappointment from last year, Coach K is hungry in his final season as the Blue Devils head coach. Duke landed probably the most pro-ready recruit in Paolo Banchero, who looks like a force to be reckoned with. They sit with the fifth ranked recruiting class, headlined by five star guards AJ Griffin and Trevor Keels. Duke enters with plenty of veteran talent looking to step up.
8. Memphis Tigers
The Tigers are one of the most intriguing teams entering this season. They landed two top 10 recruits in Emoni Bates and Jalen Duren, who were top 3 recruits in the class of 2022 but reclassified to 2021. They also have experienced talent at the guard and small forward positions in Landers Nolley II and Earl Timberlake. With Penny Hardaway being unproven as an elite head coach, this season is make or break.
9. Baylor Bears
The Baylor Bears have not been getting the buzz they deserve. Now, I cannot deny the losses of Jared Butler, Mark Vital, and MaCio Teague being a brutal hit, but the team is still supremely talented. Arizona transfer James Akinjo earned Pac-12 first team honors a year ago, and vets like Adam Flagler and Matthew Mayer will step up. They also landed top 30 prospect Kendall Brown.
10. Alabama Crimson Tide
The Crimson Tide backcourt of Jaden Shackelford and Jahvon Quinerly will be one of the most exciting to watch this year. After what Nate Oats was able to do last year with no expectations, I am excited to see how he can get his team to stay at the top. Bama also added top 15 recruit JD Davison to extend the firepower at the perimeter.
11. UCLA Bruins
UCLA is an interesting team for me to rank. Yes, they broke out in the NCAA tournament with that magical run to the Final Four. Johnny Juzang lit the college basketball world on fire with his ridiculous scoring ability. But, are they legit, or was it a fluke? Well, I am not convinced. Finishing 17-10 in regular season play in the PAC-12 last year and having practically the same lineup as last year, I am going to need to see more before considering them a top 5 team nationally. They also added 5 star recruit Peyton Watson.
12. Michigan Wolverines
With the second ranked recruiting class in the country headlined by five stars Caleb Houstan and Moussa Diabate, the Wolverines look to repeat their dominance from last season. Hunter Dickinson decided to return and run the interior for another year in Ann Arbor, and Juwan Howard looks to keep his successful reign going.
13. Oregon Ducks
Dana Altman’s squad enters as one of the deepest teams in the country. With the return of vets Will Richardson and Eric Williams Jr. and a strong frontcourt with N’Faly Dante and Franck Kepnang, Oregon is a contender to win the PAC-12. They landed key transfers in Jacob Young, Quincy Guerrier, and De’Vion Harmon along with top 15 prospect Nathan Bittle.
14. Arkansas Razorbacks
Arkansas has a totally new squad entering the new season. They added six transfers and lost a few starters, so Eric Musselman is going to have some readjusting to do. Some of their top transfer contributors will be Chris Lykes and Au’diese Toney, while Davonte Davis is ready to step up after lighting it up in the NCAA tournament a year ago.
15. Tennessee Volunteers
The Volunteers were able to build the fourth best recruiting class this year, topped with five stars Kennedy Chandler, who will be one of the best point guards in the country, and Brandon Huntley-Hatfield. They enter with lots of the hype they had last year, and hopefully they have better chemistry than last year’s team. Tennessee kept some of their top vets like John Fulkerson and Josiah Jordan-James.
16. Ohio State Buckeyes
Ohio State has a ton of depth in the backcourt this year. Even without Duane Washington Jr. and CJ Walker, they bring in Penn State transfer Jamari Wheeler and Meechie Johnson Jr., along with talented shooters like Justin Ahrens. EJ Liddell remains a frightening force down low, and the Buckeyes look to get rid of the sour taste left in their mouths after the tragic first round exit last year to 15 seed Oral Roberts.
17. Maryland Terrapins
I love the new backcourt in College Park of Eric Ayala and Rhode Island transfer Fatts Russell. Along with the addition of Georgetown big man transfer Qudus Wahab, Maryland is one of the most well-rounded teams in the Big 10. Although a team sitting with a lot to prove with the loss of Aaron Wiggins, I really like the talent around this team.
18. Illinois Fighting Illini
Illinois is another team which I have trouble buying stock in. Obviously, Kofi Cockburn coming back was a gift from up above, and they have a lot of perimeter talent with Andre Curbelo and Trent Frazier. I just have a hard time leaning into the idea they can be as good as they were last year.
19. Auburn Tigers
Allen Flanigan. Keep him on your radar. Averaging 14.3 PPG last year and testing the waters of the NBA before ultimately deciding to come back, I think he is poised for an encore. Auburn also landed UNC transfer big man Walker Kessler and top 10 prospect Jabari Smith. Look for the Tigers to be one of those sneaky teams that can make a run come March.
20. North Carolina Tar Heels
UNC is an interesting team. I could see them contending in the ACC, but I can also see them be below .500. Caleb Love did not exactly live up to the hype his lottery pick projection bought him, but I see him improving this year. Armando Bacot is also due for a solid year and they landed Marquette transfer Dawson Garcia. With a brand new coach, Carolina will be a fun program to monitor.
21. Houston Cougars
Tough to rank Houston any lower than this. They have just been so consistent with Kelvin Sampson and seem to always overachieve. Marcus Sasser looked like an elite player towards the end of last year and should be ready to build on that. They also landed Texas Tech transfer Kyler Edwards and UConn transfer Josh Carlton. One of those teams that is just always good but not super exciting to talk about.
22. St. Bonaventure Bonnies
After finishing last season as the best team offensively and defensively in the Atlantic 10 conference, the Bonnies have some sneaky talent that could put the team on people’s radars around march. They returned Osun Osunniyi, the A-10 reigning Defensive Player of the Year and brought back the rest of their starting lineup. They also landed transfers Abdoul Karim Coulibaly from Pittsburgh and Quadry Adams from Wake Forest.
23. Oklahoma State Cowboys
Avery Anderson III is ready to become a household name. I love the offensive show he put on in the Big 12 and NCAA tournaments last year and I am excited to see what he can do. Besides the 2021 NBA Draft #1 pick Cade Cunningham, the Cowboys returned the rest of their starters. They also added former five star recruit transfer guard Bryce Thompson. Oklahoma State is one of my picks to shock the world this year.
24. Florida State Seminoles
Similar to Houston, teams led by Leonard Hamilton just always find a way to get good. Even without supreme talent, Florida State seems to always be in the conversation as the best team in the ACC. They bring back a lot of veteran talent including RayQuan Evans and Anthony Polite. They sit with a top 10 recruiting class in the nation, headlined by top 30 prospect Matt Cleveland.
25. Virginia Tech Hokies
Virginia Tech has the potential to be one of the best perimeter shooting teams in the country. Many guys can consistently hit the three, and two starters finished last season with 3-point percentages over 40%; Nahiem Elleyne (41%) and Hunter Cattoor (43.4%). Although their defense is probably going to take a step back, I like the offensive firepower they bring.
