Entering the season, there was more anticipation around the level of talent in college basketball than we've seen in years. A handful of AP All-Americans returning to their programs instead of entering the draft, elite freshmen headlining the incoming class and an influx of pro-level international players made for a loaded Top 100 player ranking back in October.
The big debate then was about the No. 1 player. Should it be North Carolina's RJ Davis, the first ACC Player of the Year to return to school since 2008? Or the ballyhooed freshman Cooper Flagg, the prohibitive favorite to go first in the NBA draft since he reclassified back in August 2023?