9. Kentucky Wildcats
Previous: 19Entering the offseason, it was clear John Calipari wanted to make major changes within the program. With the dust presumably settled, both the roster and staff have undergone a complete overhaul. Out went Brandon Boston Jr., Olivier Sarr, Isaiah Jackson and Devin Askew. In came three more transfers and another five-star prospect. Two assistant coaches left, replaced by two assistants from Illinois. But the team as a whole is in much better shape than it was last season. The team lacked consistent shooting and capable playmakers a year ago; that's been solved. Sahvir Wheeler led the SEC in assists at Georgia, while TyTy Washington was one of the premier point guards at the high school level. Kellan Grady made at least 50 3-pointers in all four seasons at Davidson, and Iowa transfer CJ Fredrick might have been the best pure shooter in the portal, making better than 46% of his 3-point attempts. Next season's lineups should have better balance, the team should have better depth -- and more experience. The return of Davion Mintz could boost this ranking even higher.
Projected starting lineup:
Sahvir Wheeler (14.0 PPG, 7.4 APG at Georgia)
TyTy Washington (No. 12 in ESPN 100)
Kellan Grady (17.1 PPG at Davidson)
Keion Brooks Jr. (10.3 PPG, 6.8 RPG)
Oscar Tshiebwe (8.5 PPG, 7.8 RPG at West Virginia)
Kansas, Kentucky on rise in Way-Too-Early Top 25 college basketball rankings for 2021-22
A pair of men's college basketball blue bloods will enter 2021-22 with sky-high expectations.
www.espn.com