<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">1. Duke Blue Devils The Devils return a pair of likely Associated Press preseason All-American first-teamers in pivot man Shelden Williams and sharpshooter J.J. Redick, the reigning ACC Player of the Year. Four others from the rotation are back, complemented by another solid recruiting class led by point guard Greg Paulus (Manlius, N.Y.) and 6-foot-11 Josh McRoberts (Carmel, Ind.) Coach K loses veteran guard Daniel Ewing, and enjoys addition by subtraction with Shavlik Randolph likely not returning to be a bench player. No program in the nation has less question marks than Duke. 2. Connecticut Huskies Four of five starters return with Ed Nelson starting the season as Charlie Villanueva's replacement. Assuming point guard Marcus Williams and redshirt frosh guard A.J. Price are cleared of alleged campus laptop thefts, the Huskies will be able to beat teams with their athleticism (Rudy Gay), size (Josh Boone) and shooting (Rashad Anderson). They can withstand Andrew Bynum's departure to the NBA -- this year, at least. 3. Villanova Wildcats Unaffected by graduation and the NBA draft, Jay Wright's primary concern will be avoiding complacency following a Sweet 16 appearance last season. A healthy Jason Fraser would not only be a career first, but a big boost towards making the guard-dominated Wildcats a more well-rounded team. Curtis Sumpter's response following a torn ACL in the NCAAs is important to monitor. No other team in the nation may match Villanova's depth at guard, with Mike Nardi, Randy Foye, Kyle Lowry and Allen Ray sharing backcourt responsibilities. 4. Michigan State Spartans If Paul Davis is not the Paul Davis he was in the NCAA tournament, then this ranking goes into freefall. Guards Shannon Brown and Maurice Ager were dynamite in March, but sophomore distributor Drew Neitzel's improvement this summer will determine if they are ready to win it all in 2006. Canadian frosh combo guard Maurice Joseph will bring the mojo -- if he's as good as advertised, the Spartans should rank high in the polls around season's start. 5. Texas Longhorns Since signee C.J. Miles has not signed with an agent, there remains a slight possibility he attends Texas should he not sign with the Utah Jazz, who made him the No. 34 pick in Tuesday night's draft. With or without Miles, Texas will have plenty of talent with the one overwhelming question mark: Will they get enough perimeter shooting from JuCo signees J.D. Lewis and Craig Winder to keep defenses honest against a huge front line featuring Brad Buckman, Mike Williams, a healthy LaMarcus Aldridge and P.J. Tucker. 6. Arizona Wildcats This may be end up being home to the best backcourt in the nation in terms of raw talent, as junior point guard Mustafa Shakur and senior Hassan Adams will lead the guard corps. If shooter Chris Rodgers improves his shot selection as a reserve, he could end up in the starting lineup. If not, Jawann McClellan will get a chance to shine from the perimeter. The question is this:who is going to take the big shot that Salim never shied away from? Maybe too many guys will want it. Will the combination of Isaiah Fox, underrated power forward Ivan Radenovic and center Kirk Walters be tough enough to do the dirty work Channing Frye handled? Will they be challenged by Oregon as the most offensively potent team in the Pac-10? 7. Maryland Terrapins More addition by subtraction here. Mercurial point guard John Gilchrist turned pro (going undrafted on Tuesday), and Sterling Ledbetter enters the summer as the starting point. D.J. Strawberry returns from injury to join eight returnees that saw extended action in the rotation last year. Simply put, Maryland has too much talent to not make the NCAA Tournament for a second straight season. Plus, the rest of the ACC this side of Duke is full of question marks and inexperienced talent. Maryland will have a strong defensive advantage on the perimeter every night in ACC play and several guys that would score in the upper teens consistently if they were on other teams. Watch out for sophomore James Gist to add a more refined half-court game to his considerable athleticism. 8. Boston College Eagles Fairly or otherwise, the Eagles snuck up on the nation last season, going 25-5 (13-3 in the Big East). That won't happen this year under the ACC microscope. BC returns four starters, including a strong front line manned by junior standout Jared Dudley and senior Craig Smith. Smith's numbers in 2005 -- 18.0 points, 8.5 boards and over 50 percent shooting from the floor -- are even more astounding considering the strength of the Big East. How he and Dudley fare against the Eric Williams- and Shelden Williams-type big men of the ACC will determine just how well Boston College fares in its inaugural season. Their backcourt is steady (with Louis Hinnant at the point) but not spectacular. Until it's proven they don't belong, BC will be recognized this time in the preseason Top 25. 9. Illinois Fighting Illini Dee Brown's withdrawal from the NBA draft and return to Champaign alone thrusts Illinois in the Top 25. Although he'll be moving over to the point, freshman Chester Frazier could emerge later in the season playing full-time aside Brown. Redshirt freshman Calvin Brock figures to be the full-time two guard after a prolific Chicago-area prep career. James Augustine headlines the frontcourt with Shuan Pruitt, Brian Randle and Warren Carter filling in major minutes after minimal roles in 2005. 10. Oklahoma Sooners The perpetual game of musical chairs in the backcourt under Kelvin Sampson is a bit of a head-scratcher. Over the last two years, De'Angelo Alexander (Charlotte), Drew Lavender (Xavier) and Lawrence McKenzie (Minnesota) have all transferred out. In for '06: Juco standouts Michael Neal (shooting guard) and Chris Walker (point guard) will look to aid senior Terrell Everett. UC-Riverside transfer forward Nate Carter is eligible. What's more, the Taj Gray-Kevin Bookout frontcourt combo is as good as any in the Big 12. Also worth mentioning: Mt. Zion Prep star Brandon Rush could also join the Sooners, though that's still up in the air.</div> Full Article
A lot better then the first preseason top 25 team article by Gregg Doyell, but I would say this is a decent 25 top. It still needs some tweaks here and there such as Kentucky being higher. Otherwise, not a bad top 25...
Im not surprise that Duke is in the #1 slot they are my early favorite to win it all next year with their starting 5 and a deep bench.
The more and more I think about it, it could be a good season for Memphis this year. They are in a very easy conference, so their record is going to look very good, unless they play as bad as they did last season in the beginning. They return Darius who started to score towards the end of the season. At the beginning he was too patient on offense. When he started to score, they started to be more competitve. And I'm also looking for a good senior season for Carney. Last season, he pretty much disapeared after a couple good first few games. He can't have games like he did against Louisville when he went scoreless. Shawnee Williams, an All-American is coming in and should be put in the starting lineup right away. They also return Hunt, an efficient scorer, and Dorsey, a big body inside. Winning the C-USA should be easy for them. I think without a doubt, Duke should be ranked number one on everyone's preseason rankings. They bring back two POY candidates, and the best recruiting class in the nation.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting CUSA Fan:</div><div class="quote_post">The more and more I think about it, it could be a good season for Memphis this year. They are in a very easy conference, so their record is going to look very good, unless they play as bad as they did last season in the beginning. They return Darius who started to score towards the end of the season. At the beginning he was too patient on offense. When he started to score, they started to be more competitve. And I'm also looking for a good senior season for Carney. Last season, he pretty much disapeared after a couple good first few games. He can't have games like he did against Louisville when he went scoreless. Shawnee Williams, an All-American is coming in and should be put in the starting lineup right away. They also return Hunt, an efficient scorer, and Dorsey, a big body inside. Winning the C-USA should be easy for them. </div> I've been saying the same thing. Conference USA will be very easy for the Tigers to win, and I can see them playing a very cupcake non-conference schedule to go along with it. As for the rest of the rankings, I'm glad to see teams like Maryland, Alabama, Oregon, and George Washington up there, because I've been trying to convince certain people how good they will be next season. () It's also good to see Michigan State ranked #4 overall, because CBS's rankings, although horrible, really scared me; Doyell should be fired.
Wow I didn't think that UM would be cinsidered a top 20 team by anyone, but I guess they are. Duke is no suprise with such an incredible recruiting class with Paulis and McRoberts. I think that Louisville should be in the top ten with returning starters Dean and Palacios.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting playmaker31:</div><div class="quote_post">Wow I didn't think that UM would be cinsidered a top 20 team by anyone, but I guess they are. Duke is no suprise with such an incredible recruiting class with Paulis and McRoberts. I think that Louisville should be in the top ten with returning starters Dean and Palacios.</div> Well, Louisville should definitely be in the top ten is Amir Johnson wasn't such of an idiot. Seriously, the frontcourt would have been amazing with Johnson here. It still is good now with Palacios and Padgett (don't forget about him transferring).
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Terminator-X:</div><div class="quote_post">kentucky may suprise also</div> Tubby will have the boys playing to the best of their abilities. People doesn't understand the depth this team has; this team can go 12 deep. Rondo, Crawford, Sparks, and Morris is a nice core of players with Ramel Bradley, Ravi Moss, Bobby Perry, Rekalin Sims, and Sheray Thomas being the key players off the bench. I'm telling you all right now- this team will not suck just because they lost Azubuike and Hayes. Crawford who will replace Azubuike finally woke up toward the end of his freshman year last season showing why he is a McDonalds All-American and we have 3 PF's(Jr's- Perry, Thomas, and Sims) who should fill in just fine at PF.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Voodoo Child:</div><div class="quote_post"> Doyell should be fired.</div> the best thing I've heard in a long time these rankings were pretty solid. I think it's bold to have placed Illinois at #9, but who knows? They've got two very good players back in Dee and Augustine, and they've got young role players who were there for their run last year and will benefit from it. They could surprise...
