Since UConn cut down the nets at the men's Final Four in Houston in April, there's been a good deal of change in the sport.
Rick Pitino is back in the Big East, a league he first graced as an up-and-coming head coach 38 years ago. Thanks to an NCAA rule change, players can now wear any number they want on their jerseys from 0 to 99. The USC roster now includes a 6-foot-4 first-year guard with a rather storied name. Hunter Dickinson spent the offseason being hailed as "the best transfer of the portal era." He was named a first-team preseason All-American as a member of the AP poll's No. 1 team (see below). It was a nice offseason for him.
Now comes the basketball. Before the 2023-24 season officially tips off, we're forecasting the highest feasible highs and the lowest possible lows for each team in the AP preseason Top 25.
If we learned anything from the 2022-23 preseason No. 1 -- North Carolina -- missing the NCAA tournament entirely, it's that surprises do happen. Here's one sketch of what's possible for the nation's top 25 teams.
1. Kansas Jayhawks
Best case: Everything works out just like you'd expect from a reigning Big 12 champion with three returning starters and the nation's top transfer. A veteran rotation headlined by Dickinson (newly arrived from Michigan), Dajuan Harris Jr., Kevin McCullar Jr. and K.J. Adams Jr. proves that age is a valuable asset in the portal era. Dickinson, Harris and McCullar will all be 23 come tournament time.
