Predictions for the Upcoming Season

The season starts in about 12 hours. It's hard to imagine that it's been a full offseason since Villanova shredded its way through the Tournament, but here we are. This season seems odd to me. I really have no surefire champion pick like I did last year (although, Arizona was not the move), and I don't see any diamonds in the rough in terms of where specific teams are ranked. Outside the top 8 or 9, I don't see any title contenders. In this post, I'll share my predictions for the players and coaches of the year in the 6 major conferences, the national player and coach of the year, the winners of the six major conferences, and of course, my Final Four and national champion. As noted narrator of ESPN's "Basketball: A Love Story" Chris Cuomo would say, let's get after it.

ACC
Player of the Year: Luke Maye, North Carolina

Coach of the Year: Tony Bennett, Virginia (again)

Champion: Virginia

Big 12
Player of the Year: Dedric Lawson, Kansas

Coach of the Year: Steve Prohm, Iowa State

Champion: Take a guess. (Kansas)

Big East
Player of the Year: Kamar Baldwin, Butler

Coach of the Year: Steve Wojciechowski, Marquette

Champion: Villanova

Big Ten
Player of the Year: Carsen Edwards, Purdue

Coach of the Year: Tim Miles, Nebraska

Champion: Michigan and Michigan State tie

Pac 12
Player of the Year: Jaylen Nowell, Washington

Coach of the Year: Mike Hopkins, Washington

Champion: Oregon

SEC
Player of the Year: Tremont Waters, LSU

Coach of the Year: Will Wade, LSU

Champion: Kentucky

National Player of the Year: Luke Maye, North Carolina

National Coach of the Year: Mark Few, Gonzaga

Final Four
North Carolina- Good balance in the starting lineup and a plethora of big men to choose from.
Kentucky- They have some experience and a freshman class that has the right work ethic.
Gonzaga- So much balance and depth. Killian Tillie's injury will help them in the long run.
Marquette- They can outshoot anybody and that's such a weapon in the tournament. Also I want a sleeper pick.

National Champion: Gonzaga

Let's have a great year.

One of These 9 Teams Will Win the National Championship

The Fabbest Five (Sports Illustrated)

The biggest thing I've noticed about college basketball this year (outside of the FBI ordeal) is that there really is not a lot of depth. There are clearly some very good teams, but outside the top 8 or 9, I don't really see any sleepers that could make a big run in the Tournament. That's why I'm confident enough to say that one of these 9 teams will win the whole damn thing 6 months from now.

Kansas: Dedric Lawson
Lawson can be anything from a 3-5 on the court depending on the personnel around him. That type of versatility will be a huge asset for the Jayhawks this season. It also helps to have a lottery pick point guard in Quentin Grimes.

Kentucky: Rare Heart
Kentucky's freshmen may not be as talented as some of Calipari's previous classes, but they do have more heart and will then them. According to basically every media outlet, this Kentucky group wants to be in the gym 24/7. Even though that's seems to always be the case with these guys, I tend to buy stock into the claim this time around.

Gonzaga: They Have Everything
Seasoned point guard? Josh Perkins. Big man depth? Killian Tillie (when he comes back in January after recovering from foot surgery) and Rui Hachimura. An electric wing scorer? Zach Norvell. Impact transfer? Brandon Clarke and probably Geno Crandall. There is nothing this team lacks, which may make them the most dangerous come March.

Duke: The Fabbest Five
The new SI cover featuring Duke's most heralded recruiting class ever with RJ Barrett, Zion Williamson, Cam Reddish, Tre Jones, and Joey Baker says it all. They really might be the fabbest five.

Virginia: Revenge Tour
Don't look back. You aren't going that way. Virginia really has a fantastic group returning from last year's dominant squad. Kyle Guy and Ty Jerome make up one of the best backcourts in America. Alabama transfer Braxton Key is now eligible. And they still have the freak De'Andre Hunter who will be a first-round pick. If they can secure the front court, this team definitely can win it all.

Tennessee: They probably won't run into a Catholic buzzsaw.
If that Clayton Custer shot doesn't get some flukey bounce in the second round, we could be talking about Tennessee trying for back to back Final Fours. Instead, the Volunteers are left with having something to prove. SEC POY Grant Williams is back, as is the bully Admiral Schofield. Guard play will be key in seeing how far this team can go.

Nevada: Eric Musselman
Talk about the Martin twins all you want, if Nevada is going to make a deep run this year, it will be contingent on how head coach Eric Musselman handles a deeper and more talented team than last year. Nevada has all the pieces assuming point guard Lindsey Drew is healthy, but I trust in Musselman to make it work with whoever he has out there.

North Carolina: A Good Mix
The Tar Heels have an awesome blend of experience and youth this season as they welcome back NPOY candidate Luke Maye, Kenny Williams, and Cam Johnson, while also adding super-scorer Coby White and 2019 top 5 draft pick Nassir Little to the equation. It should be a fun season in Chapel Hill.

DARK HORSE:
Oregon: There's something in the Eugene water.
I don't know how Oregon gets all these stud recruits ($?). Bol Bol and Louis King are two five star freshman that could really make a difference for the Ducks. I have them as my Pac 12 champs, and I think they can do better than that because of veteran point guard Payton Pritchard. Pritchard was a freshman on Oregon's Final Four team in 2017 who has a chance to lead Oregon back to the promised land for the second time in 3 seasons.

Teams 10, 11, and 12
10. Villanova
11. Michigan State
12. Auburn