Last week, I posted my preseason Top 25. That provided nice
insight on what teams I expect to stand out this season, not only nationally,
but also in their respective conferences. Today though, I want to look at
individual players. I’ll start by going through each Power Conference and give
you my First Team All-Conference. I’ll add a First Team Non-Power Conference
squad. Lastly, I’ll give you a First, Second, and Third All-American team.
Enjoy!
AAC First Team All-Conference
G Ryan
Boatright, Connecticut
G Nic Moore,
SMU
G Will
Cummings, Temple
F Markus
Kennedy, SMU
F Shaq
Goodwin, Memphis
This conference lost a ton due to graduation, so this was a
tough team to project. Boatright was an easy selection, and is my choice to win
POY this season. Moore and Kennedy were great for SMU a year ago, and should be
even better now. Goodwin will be the top option in Memphis after they lost tons
of weapons. And Cummings may end up leading the conference in scoring.
ACC First Team All-Conference
G Marcus
Paige, North Carolina
G Jerian
Grant, Notre Dame
G Malcolm
Brogdon, Virginia
F Montrezl
Harrell, Louisville
C Jahil
Okafor, Duke
Paige, Harrell, and Okafor were no-brainers here. They will
lead their three respective teams to great seasons and will produce on a
nightly basis at an All-American level. Jerian Grant will be among the ACC
leaders in scoring as he makes a triumphant return to South Bend. And Brogdon
is one of the most underrated players in the nation. He will be the backbone of
a solid Virginia squad, just as Joe Harris was a year ago.
Big 12 First Team All-Conference
G Juwan
Staten, West Virginia
G Marcus
Foster, Kansas State
F Buddy Hield,
Oklahoma
F Perry Ellis,
Kansas
F Georges
Niang, Iowa State
These were tough decisions. I liked tons of players from
Texas (Taylor, Ridley, Holmes, Turner), Kansas (Oubre, Selden, Alexander), and
Iowa State (Bryce Dejean-Jones, Hogue), along with studs on worse teams such as
Kenny Chery (Baylor). There is a ton of talent in this conference, so it should
be fun to watch all season.
Big East First Team All-Conference
G D’Vauntes
Smith Rivera, Georgetown
G D’Angelo
Harrison, St. John’s
F Darrun
Hilliard, Villanova
F JayVaughn
Pinkston, Villanova
F LaDontae
Henton, Providence
I was tempted to put a third Villanova player on the squad
(Arcidiacono), but thought I should spread the wealth and figured his stats
wouldn’t be as appealing as others. Harrison puts up points in large
quantities, and should lead the league in scoring this season. Smith Rivera is
a great all-around guard for the Hoyas, and should keep Georgetown among the
best in the league. And Henton will get his chance to shine with Cotton now
gone. Transfer Matt Carlino or Xavier big man Matt Stainbrook could make noise
too.
Big Ten First Team All-Conference
G Yogi
Ferrell, Indiana
G Caris
LeVert, Michigan
F Terran
Petteway, Nebraska
F Brandon
Dawson, Michigan State
F Frank
Kaminsky, Wisconsin
There is one huge name missing from my list: Sam Dekker,
Wisconsin. Dawson and Petteway edged him out due to the numbers they’ll put up
as top options. I also love Valentine (MSU), Russell (OSU), White (Iowa), Hollins
(Minnesota), Rice (Illinois), Hammons (Purdue), and others. There is so much
depth to this conference, much more than any other. Yogi is one of the best
point guards in the country, and it will show this season. LeVert will take
another big leap since Michigan lost so many guys to the NBA. Petteway emerged
last year as a stud, so he’ll produce again. Dawson is now the man in East Lansing,
and is a threat for a double-double each night. Kaminsky was a star of the
tourney last season, and he also scored 40 points in a game last year. That
will continue.
Pac-12 First Team All-Conference
G Chasson
Randle, Stanford
G Delon
Wright, Utah
F Stanley
Johnson, Arizona
F Brandon
Ashley, Arizona
F Josh Scott,
Colorado
How good is Arizona? Well, I feel bad leaving McConnell and
Hollis-Jefferson off of this list even though I included two Wildcats already.
But Johnson and Ashley have them well represented. Josh Scott is a beast down
low for Colorado, and they’ll lean on him with Dinwiddie gone. Randle may lead
the conference in scoring, and will lead a dynamite Stanford team. And Delon
Wright could be the POY if Utah continues to improve as they did a year ago.
SEC First Team All-Conference
G Jarvis
Summers, Ole Miss
G Aaron
Harrison, Kentucky
F Bobby
Portis, Arkansas
F Dorian
Finney-Smith, Florida
F Jordan
Mickey, LSU
It was difficult to choose the SEC because Kentucky alone
has at least five players capable of making the squad. At the same time, their
platoon system may make it hard for any of them to shine as bright individually
as those of other teams. I did add Harrison, as he led them to the Championship
Game a year ago. Summers may lead the league in scoring with teammate Henderson
gone. Portis is an all-around star for Arkansas, a team capable of the NCAA
Tourney. Mickey leads a beefy frontcourt in LSU, but will carry more of a load
with O’Bryant gone. Lastly, I added Finney-Smith, who will likely star for the
Gators. Florida, after all, will be the only legit contender to Kentucky this
season.
Non-Power Conference First Team
G Fred Van
Vleet, Wichita State
G Ron Baker,
Wichita State
G Tyler Haws,
BYU
G Kevin
Pangos, Gonzaga
F Treveon Graham,
VCU
This was a very tough list to put together, considering I
was considering players from over 250 teams. As you can see, I ignored finding
positions to fill out a roster, and just selected the best players. That
started with Van Vleet and Baker from Wichita State. These guys helped lead the
Shockers to a 1-seed in the tourney and a near perfect season. Haws could end
up leading the nation in scoring, so he was an easy choice also. Pangos leads a
very dangerous Gonzaga squad that could be one of Mark Few’s best in years.
Graham does the same for VCU, who is a major sleeper nationally entering the
season. There are a ton of quality players in the non-major conferences, so
don’t ignore this bunch.
All-American Teams
First Team
G Fred Van
Vleet, Wichita State
G Marcus
Paige, North Carolina
F Montrezl
Harrell, Louisville
F Frank
Kaminsky, Wisconsin
C Jahil
Okafor, Duke
Second Team
G Ryan
Boatright, Connecticut
G Tyler Haws,
BYU
F Stanley
Johnson, Arizona
F Perry Ellis,
Kansas
F Georges
Niang, Iowa State
Third Team
G Juwan
Staten, West Virginia
G Chasson
Randle, Stanford
G Caris LeVert,
Michigan
F Buddy Hield,
Oklahoma
F Karl Towns,
Kentucky
The first team is ACC heavy, but I just couldn’t leave any
of those guys off. Notice also that four of the top five teams in my Top 25 are
represented by a first team player. Arizona is the only team that isn’t. Van
Vleet is one of my favorite players in college basketball. Okafor is a freshman
I have faith in.
We see another freshman in Stanley Johnson here on the
second team, as I expect him to replace some of Aaron Gordon and Nick Johnson’s
load. Haws will be one of the top scorers in the nation. Ellis is a flat out
rock in the middle of the Jayhawks’ lineup. Boatright could become a great
point guard as Napier was before him.
The first four selections on the third team were driven by
scoring. Staten and Randle are both scoring point guards that will likely lead
their respective conferences in that stat. LeVert will have a monster season
with the early departures suffered by Michigan. Hield is a budding star at
Oklahoma that could be POY in that league. And Towns made my list despite not
making the All-Conference team. Why? Because I think Kentucky will get a
representative on the All-American squad simply by being #1 in the country.
Towns could be the most talented player they have.
So there are some of the players to watch in college
basketball this season. Remember though, players emerge each year that we didn’t
see coming. Kaminsky did that last year, and Oladipo before that… Games begin
this week, so get ready!
By: The Sports Guys
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