Now that the draft is over it’s time to look at the teams and see who’s looking good in these turbulent times, which I call the “portal era.” It’s very difficult, if not impossible to build roster continuity now from season to season, which puts an even greater emphasis on scouting and drafting. I am going to go by conference and then division, ranking the rosters in order of strongest to weakest within division.
Big “O” Robertson Conference
Driesell Division
Arguably, two of last season’s strongest teams came out of the Driesell Division, the Hoosiers & the Virginia Gentlemen. This division took a lot of hits and there will be a serious changing of the guard, to say the least.
North Pole Fightin’ Reindeer: The class of the division with their own version of an Edey in Dickinson-one of the few true elite players in fantasy college basketball.
G-Lipsey
G-
F-Batcho
F-Ndongo
C-Dickinson
6th-Ognacevic?
FR-Jakucionis
Summary: Frontline heavy with not only Dickinson, but the underrated Batcho (an impact player at 23+fppg) and a riser coming off a strong frosh year in Ndongo. Guard position is the question. Lipsey needs to bump up is numbers. And frosh Jakucionis will have every opp to get numbers for Illinois. If they get good guard play, they have a great chance to be in the championship game.
Post-draft Add(s): As has been their modus operandi (MO), NPFR has not yet made a move.
Hoosiers: The Hoos’ were hit hard from just about every possible angle as far as being able to retain players goes. If you’re a fan of the “Lord of the Rings” series, this roster looks like it has seen the “Desolation of Smaug,” if you catch my drift. No guards?!
G-
G-
F-
F-Hawkins
C-Ballo
6th-Bodo
FR-Knueppel or Fland
Summary: I like Bodo but question if Ballo will be as effective (should be close) as he was at Arizona. Wagner should have a better soph year but I doubt he can be counted on to get at least 20 fppg every time out. Mack also figures to not have the same impact as a Hoya that he did at Harvard. UCF had “guys” before Hall transferred there. His numbers figure to go down. Hawkins is Hawkins. Which is to say that fantasy-wise he has been an underachiever and I don’t see him being able to elevate his fantasy stats. Good freshmen (I like Mobley’s future as well) in search of a fantasy force behind them.
Post-draft Add(s): Hoosiers can’t resist taking a Hoosier. Unfortunately, I call “no help” on their addition of Mgbako.
Vindaloos: The ‘Vins can’t catch a break. Besides the fact that they only had one draft pick, they just found out that Lassina Traore is injured & done for the year. He was one of their top three returnees.
G-Clayton
G-Burton
F-Osobor
F-Ike
C-
6th-Anderson/Townsend
FR-Alston
Summary: If they do their due diligence, they can add some nice pieces that will elevate what is not a bad lineup/roster at all. The guards are just not what you win with. Their forwards are good. 6th man is a question mark; and that leaves them still needing both a center and a decent freshman. That still probably doesn’t take them from vin ordinaire to vin extraordinaire.
Post-draft Add(s): They added Jeff Woodward, a center from Colgate. All I can say is: Hmm, very interesting…I’m not sure, since he currently comes off the bench, how much impact Alston can consistently make, but, going forward he could be an impact player, so, good long-term pick-up for them.
Virginia Gentlemen: Another team that had some massive personnel losses. Almost worse is there are big question marks regarding four of their returnees (Cleveland, Cross, Wilborn, Smith).
G-
G-
F-Evans
F-
C-
6th-
FR-Sorber?
Summary: They need to practically add a whole team. What are they waiting for?
Post-draft Add(s): None.
Crum Division
Last year the Driesell was the class of the “Big “O” and this year it will be the Crum Division that kicks ass between the two.
Maize and Blue Bloods: Loaded up like one of those sandwiches on “Triple D” that you can’t figure out how to bite into because it’s humongous.
G-Harris
G-Sandfort
F-Omier
F-Martin
C-Kalkbrenner
6th-Haggerty
FR-Newell
Summary: If you don’t have a Dickinson, you get the next best thing. That would be a Kalkbrenner. 26 fppg last season while only getting 7.6 rpg. That figures to go up. He is joined by another stud in Omier. Martin was 24+fppg last season. Harris was merely the BPA in the draft and averaged 29 fppg in conference play-aka our playoff time. Sandfort was just under 23 fppg-and should be even better this year. I don’t think that Haggerty will do any less at Memphis than he did at Tulsa. All that means they have the strongest trio of guards in the league. Newell will impact at Georgia. And, yes, they’ve got bench. This team WILL be one of the two finalists.
Post-draft Add(s): MBB have made 2 transactions already. “Stealing” center Javonte Brown (Rhode Island). They also dropped a freshman & added quality depth to that slot with center Matas Vokietaitis (FAU).
Psychos: They drafted well and have a good team. But, even if these guys bump up and/or max out they would need some help from MBB-that’s not a knock on the Psychos, it’s just how good those other guys are.
G-Watkins
G-Clifford
F-Brown
F-Reese
C-Stanley
6th-Bonham
FR-Maluach
Summary: Just to have a chance of pulling off the upset vs. MBB they will need both guards to bump up, plus an upgrade at center. Maluach should give them production.
Post-draft Add(s): None.
Gator Bait: Performed a major post-draft frontcourt reconstruction.
G-Devries
G-
F-Coles
F-Degenhart
C-Joseph
6th-Davidson
FR-Edgecombe
Summary: They now have a team. They can use an upgrade at guard and some quality depth.
Post-draft Add(s): Nelly Joseph-bam! Nick Davidson-bang! Jakobe Coles-boom! In order, they made 3 adds that got them 3 potential studs (25+fppg).
Hillbilly Maulers: A step or two forward counters a step or two back. I don’t think they have changed their status quo all that much. They have the most interesting roster because it has the greatest number of players who could either have a good season (flip), or not so good season (flop).
G-
G-
F-Hamilton
F-Porter
C-Kidd
6th-
FR-Queen
Summary: Big gamble on Morgan. His sample size is miniscule, but it was impressive. He’s a home run or a strikeout. Questions about all 3 centers. Kidd probably the best. They are listed here as the worst team but if everything clicks and they add the right pieces they could move up to the 2nd slot behind MBB.
Post-draft Add(s): None.
McGuire Conference
Olson Division
Simply the most competitive of all MML divisions this year from top to bottom.
KC Warthogs: Despite the loss of Edey, the roster is still packed with way more hogs than warts.
G-Lee
G-Buchanan
F-Karaban
F-Traore
C-Wolf
6th-Shumate
FR-Harper
Summary: Lee & Buchanan should kill and form one of the best backcourts in fantasy basketball. Karaban’s numbers should bump up. Hard to say how transferring to Louisville will affect Traore-that’s one possible minus. Harper will impact. And, going from Yale to Michigan and moving to power forward could affect Wolf’s numbers a tad but it’s a pretty good lineup…no weaknesses.
Post-draft Add(s): Purdue 7’3 frosh Daniel Jacobsen. Because after all, if you’ve had the Edey, you want his future successor.
Deep Valley Grouchos: As usual, the guard play will determine how far the DVG’s can go as they are strong upfront.
G-Richmond
G-Coward/Abdul-Hakim
F-Broome
F-Noel
C-Kaufman-Renn
6th-Freeman/Coward/Abdul-Hakim
FR-Ivisic
Summary: The DVG’s have tremendous lineup flexibility as all but 4 players play more than one position. They’ll need it as they have already lost their second-best player statistically, Owusu-Anane to a season ending injury. On the plus side, this is the best rebounding roster from top to bottom in their history. They did not have a player who averaged fewer than 6.6 rpg on the entire roster until they made a post-draft add or two.
Post-draft Add(s): DVG’s have made 5 transactions already. McBride (guard from Oral Roberts) had an unimpressive overall fantasy average last year. But when you go inside the numbers, he averaged 26+fppg in conference play. They added their first freshmen in Ivisic-Illinois & Haskins-St. Joseph’s. Lastly, since nobody wanted a guy who will constantly be fed the ball, they had no choice and had to add f/c Trey Kaufman-Renn from Purdue. Owuse-Anane got red-shirted and they added Hasan Abdul-Hakim from UT Rio Grande Valley.
Hardwood Heroes: They had a really nice draft. Added 4 starters.
G-Grant-Foster
G-T. Johnson
F-Clark
F-
C-Nelson
6th-Milton
FR-Flagg
Summary: Maybe Efton Reid or Hamilton can start at center so Nelson can fill that forward slot. I think frosh Tre Johnson will impact so I have him at a guard position since quality forwards are easier to find after the draft. In any event, what was a hot mess of a roster, pre-draft, now has the potential to be very interesting.
Post-draft Add(s): None.
Saluki YRD’s: Most players who transfer up are doomed to suffer but the YRD’s should see Saint Thomas do pretty much what he did for Northern Colorado at USC.
G-Durugordon
G-
F-Thomas
F-Brzovic
C-Bittle
6th-
FR-Philon
Summary: Ajayi is not starting for Gonzaga, Aidoo not starting for Arkansas. They have a lot of concerns and/or things that need to go right, so, yeah, they need a guard, a forward, maybe a center. And they need Thomas & Durugordon to approach their previous fantasy averages or they are toast as their roster currently stands.
Post-draft Add(s): Added two starters in Brzovic & Philon, a talented frosh. Bittle may be good enough to start.
Tark Division
Prozac Pups would be on another level from their division rivals if they had guards. This is the most interesting division to watch this year. Sort of like the NFC North in the NFL.
Prozac Pups: Strong frontcourt will be the backbone of this team.
G-Dent
G-E. Taylor
F-Reneau
F-Toppin
C-Raynaud
6th-Dixon
FR-Bailey
Summary: Only the lack of really good guards keeps the Pups from being an elite team. Could Malik Reneau finally fulfill his potential and be a force? I think that he could possibly be a stud! Toppin just needs to approach his New Mexico numbers in Lubbock-he doesn’t need to best them. Bailey could be a stud (25+fppg) frosh. Dixon is underrated. He should bump up this year-a lot.
Post-draft Add(s): Added Ethan Taylor which wouldn’t have helped him last year but that was last year. Taylor is talented and maybe it’s his time.
The Hoop Guru: Loaded guard group. They definitely need to add a starting caliber forward & another forward for quality depth.
G-Sears
G-Love
F-Jihad
F-
C-Garcia
6th-Davis/Felton
FR-Quaintance
Summary: They do have what I call a “base” of guys who can get 20-21 fppg in Davis, Felton and Garcia. That’s the good news, plus Sears (good for 23-25 fppg), so, the guard group is solid. The forward position is the concerns/questions position. Especially Huff, who can legitimately score but is part of maybe the most loaded offensive lineup in college basketball this year, along with Kansas.
Post-draft Add(s): Dropping Huff for Fidler (Michigan State transfer whom I loved at Omaha) does not seem to be a plus.
Sam Jacobson Went To Class: One guard and one forward (the presence of Traore notwithstanding) do not a good lineup make despite the presence of two bonafide studs in Timberlake & Pierce. Avila was great last year. Can he move up a level in play (under his new HC-who was his HC @Indiana State)? Will he be 20-21 fppg good, or, 22-24 fppg good?
G-Timberlake
G-
F-Pierce
F-Traore
C-Avila
6th-
FR-Demin
Summary: Some good bodies and a couple of intriguing freshmen, particularly Demin. Traore has not yet achieved what has been expected given his talent and has transferred to a new program with a lot of first-time teammates-so, while I like him, the jury is out on him. If they’re smart, they can really build well around Timberlake, Pierce, and, Avila. This is probably the best roster the Sams have ever started with, post-draft.
Post-draft Add(s): None.
House of Sparky: Right now, you can call them “House of Cards,” since it wouldn’t take much of anything for them to crumble.
G-
G-
F-Lendeborg
F-
C-Saxen/Cook
6th-
FR-
Summary: Lendeborg is a stud. Saxen/Cook are decent. At the moment they are relying on two juco transfers to go big, in Amar Augillard & Raysean Seamster. Asking for two juco transfers to come in together and get 20+fppg in their first year of DI ball…I don’t know if that’s ever been seen before.
Post-draft Add(s): They added Sebastian Thomas.