In the past couple of seasons, there has been a relative lack of high-end talent and depth at the top of the freshman classes. Two seasons ago, Alabama’s Brandon Miller was the lone freshman All-American. Last season, there wasn’t a single freshman on All-American teams. That will very likely change this season — and, in fact, we’re tracking one of the best freshman classes in recent memory
It’s similar from an NBA perspective. Miller was the only college player chosen in the top five of the 2023 NBA draft, while last year featured just two college players — freshmen Reed Sheppard and Stephon Castle — in the top six. June’s NBA draft could feature four or five freshmen in a row at the top of the board.
Here’s some context. Entering the week, there were 24 players ranked in the ESPN 100 for 2024 who are now averaging double figures in scoring on their college team. At this point last season, there were just 16 hitting that mark. That group of 24 also doesn’t include Illinois’ Kasparas Jakucionis, BYU’s Egor Demin and SMU’s Samet Yigitoglu, all of whom are freshmen and would be considered elite recruits had they not been playing professionally overseas before coming to college.
The top of the class is living up to the hype, with 21 of those 24 double-figure scorers ranked in the top 45 coming out of high school. More than 20 players from this class would have been shoo-ins for top-10 freshmen rankings in years past.
Of course, roles will change as the season progresses; some freshmen will get more comfortable with the college game while others will hit a wall. But things are looking awfully rosy for the current freshman class. Let’s take stock of the group.
Stats through Dec. 9 games
1. Cooper Flagg, Duke Blue Devils
Flagg isn’t putting up Zion numbers during his first several weeks at Duke, but he’s still been the best freshman — and one of the best players, period — in the country. He’s averaging 17.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists, and he’s played his best basketball in big games: 26 points and 11 rebounds vs. Kentucky; 24 points vs. Arizona; 22 points and 11 rebounds vs. Auburn; 20 points and 12 boards vs. Louisville. Flagg also ranks No. 2 in KenPom’s Player of the Year standings.
2. Dylan Harper, Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Harper has been sensational at Rutgers, firmly positioning himself as the best guard in the 2025 NBA draft. He was incredible in Las Vegas at the Players Era Festival, posting a two-game total of 73 points, eight rebounds and eight assists while getting to the free throw line 30 times. Harper has been nearly impossible to stop when he goes to the basket. He is averaging 23.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.6 assists.
3. Kasparas Jakucionis, Illinois Fighting Illini
Jakucionis has surged to No. 3 in these rankings a terrific four-game stretch. He entered Tuesday averaging 14.4 points, 6.5 rebounds and 6.1 assists, while shooting nearly 43% from 3-point range — but after going for 24 points, six rebounds and five assists against Wisconsin, he’s now averaging 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.3 assists over his last four games — making nearly 56% of his 3-point attempts. The Lithuania native entered college with plenty of hype, and he’s living up to it.
4. Derik Queen, Maryland Terrapins
A skilled 6-foot-10 big man from Baltimore, Queen stayed home for college, and Kevin Willard has to be grateful every day for that decision. Queen is averaging 17.5 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists, also adding more than one steal and one block per game. He opened his career with 22 points and 20 rebounds against Manhattan and has barely slowed down since then. Queen is coming off a 26-point, 12-rebound effort against Purdue, in which he also hit his first two 3s of the campaign.
5. Ace Bailey, Rutgers
Bailey came into college as the most likely player to push Flagg for the No. 1 pick in the draft. While Bailey’s teammate, Harper, has been better through the first month-plus of the season, Bailey has shown otherworldly flashes, especially when it comes to making tough shots. The 6-foot-10 small forward is averaging 17.5 points and 7.1 rebounds, shooting 36.7% from 3. In two games against Alabama and Texas A&M, he totaled 46 points and 14 rebounds. Bailey also had 15 and 15 on Tuesday night against Penn State.
6. Tre Johnson, Texas Longhorns
Johnson developed a reputation in high school for being maybe the best pure scorer in the 2025 class, in terms of being able to score at all three levels and possessing deep range and supreme confidence. It’s played out that way in Austin. He’s averaging 21.1 points, shooting nearly 44% from 3-point range. He had 29 points and four assists against Ohio State and 24 points and four assists against UConn, leading the Longhorns in scoring in seven of nine games.
7. Jeremiah Fears, Oklahoma Sooners
Oklahoma is one of the eight remaining unbeaten teams in college basketball, emerging as the surprise winner of the Battle 4 Atlantis last month. And Fears, who reclassified and committed to Oklahoma over the summer, has been a major catalyst. He’s averaging 16.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 4.7 assists and was terrific in some of the Sooners’ biggest games. He had 26 points and five assists against Arizona and 20 points and seven assists vs. Providence.
8. Boogie Fland, Arkansas Razorbacks
John Calipari knows how to recruit high-level point guards and Fland — who initially committed to Calipari at Kentucky — is the latest one in that assembly line. He’s also been the best guard on a team that hasn’t quite clicked on the perimeter yet. The New York native was averaging 15.0 points, 3.8 rebounds and 5.2 assists, shooting better than 40% from 3, entering Tuesday night. He then had 20 points and seven assists against Michigan. He’s scored at least 20 points three times and more than held his own against veteran guards from Baylor, Miami and Michigan.
9. Egor Demin, BYU Cougars
From an NBA perspective, Demin would be much higher on this list, given his 6-foot-9 size and ability to shoot, pass and handle the ball. But he’s been a little more inconsistent than some of the other players in this elite tier, including an 0-for-10 showing against Providence earlier this month. But Demin is still an incredible talent, and he’s shown the full arsenal at times this season, including a career-opening 18-point, 11-assist game against Central Arkansas. He’s averaging 13.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and 5.8 assists.
10. Asa Newell, Georgia Bulldogs
Newell was overshadowed at Montverde Academy (Florida) by Flagg and Queen, but he was still a five-star prospect — and he’s now stepped into the limelight in Athens. He started his career with 26 points and 11 rebounds against Tennessee Tech and is averaging 15.9 points and 6.6 rebounds. Newell has scored in double-figures in all but one game this season and had 20 points and 11 rebounds earlier this month against Notre Dame.
Edgecombe has been bothered by a hamstring injury the past couple of weeks, which has slowed his first-month performance. But after a rocky start against Gonzaga, he began to right the ship before getting hurt. He had the best game of his young career against Tennessee in the Bahamas, finishing with 20 points and three 3-pointers. He’s averaging 11.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
Will Riley, Illinois
Riley has taken a back seat on the offensive end to Jakucionis over the past couple of weeks, but he had one of the best single-game performances of any freshman this season when he scored 31 points and went 5-for-6 from 3 against Eastern Illinois to open the season. He’s still averaging 15.0 points, and the 6-foot-8 Canada native is shooting nearly 43% from 3-point range.
Thomas Sorber, Georgetown Hoyas
There was considerable buzz coming out of the nation’s capital in the preseason about Sorber, and it looks warranted. He’s putting up 15.4 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists, adding 1.7 blocks and 1.6 steals. Sorber opened the season with 20 points and 13 rebounds against Lehigh and has tallied a pair of double-doubles since then — while also scoring 20-plus points three times.
While McNeeley’s outside shot has been inconsistent — including an 0-for-9 game against Dayton — he’s continued to make an impact in a variety of ways. He opened his college career with two double-doubles and has also scored 20 points against Colorado and 17 against Baylor. He’s averaging 12.4 points and 5.9 rebounds this season.
Donnie Freeman, Syracuse Orange
Through eight games, Freeman already has four double-doubles, including a pair of 20-10 games. He had 23 points and 12 boards against Cornell and finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds against Notre Dame. He’s a terrific athlete with a nose for the ball when it comes off the glass. The Washington D.C. native is averaging 12.8 points and 8.8 rebounds.
Joson Sanon and Jayden Quaintance, Arizona State Sun Devils
Since a loss to Gonzaga on Nov. 10 — when Sanon took just four shots and finished with three points — the New England native has been on a tear. Over his past six games, he’s averaging 19.7 points and 4.3 rebounds, shooting nearly 59% from 3-point range. Quaintance, meanwhile, is not putting up anything close to those scoring numbers, but he has two double-doubles and is averaging 3.4 blocks per game.
Kon Knueppel, Duke
When Knueppel opened the season with 22 points on 8-for-14 shooting against Maine, it seemed like the October buzz about the Milwaukee native was playing out as expected. And while he’s been more inconsistent on the offensive end since then, he’s shown more playmaking ability, dishing out eight assists against Kansas and six against Louisville. He’s averaging 12.4 points and 3.6 assists.
John Mobley Jr., Ohio State Buckeyes
Mobley hasn’t started a game for Ohio State yet, but he’s established himself as one of the premier 3-point shooters in the country. He opened his career going 4-for-4 against Texas and has hit multiple 3s in all but two games this season. Through nine games, Mobley is averaging 12.9 points and shooting nearly 56% from 3-point range.
Robert Wright III, Baylor
Another player who has been exclusively coming off the bench this season, Wright looks like a future star in Waco. He’s hit double figures in all but one game, including 17 points against St. John’s in the Bahamas and 22 points and four assists against UConn. He’s averaging 13.1 points and 4.6 assists, showing the same toughness and aggressiveness that made him so effective at Montverde.
Robert Hinton, Harvard Crimson
Hinton has been the best mid-major freshman in the country, which shouldn’t come as a surprise given he was an ESPN 100 prospect coming out of high school and drew rave reviews all preseason. He’s averaging 16.0 points and 4.9 rebounds, and the Los Angeles native opened his career with 27 points against Marist and 26 points against Navy.
Tahaad Pettiford, Auburn Tigers
Pettiford was expected to make an impact, but perhaps not to this extent and perhaps not this quickly. The New Jersey native hasn’t started a game yet, but he’s averaging 11.3 points and 2.8 assists, shooting nearly 43% from 3. He’s also been one of the most electric big-game players in the country, scoring 21 points in a win over Houston and 20 in the loss at Duke.
Labaron Philon, Alabama Crimson Tide
The former Kansas commit flipped to Alabama in the spring, and his play in the preseason catapulted him directly into Nate Oats’ starting lineup. He’s been terrific all season, highlighted by a 16-point, 7-rebound, 9-assist effort against Illinois and 15 points and four assists on the road at North Carolina. He’s averaging 11.0 points and 4.0 assists.
Samet Yigitoglu, SMU Mustangs
Yigitoglu arrived at SMU with a significant amount of hype, given his 7-foot-2 size and overseas production. The Turkey native wasn’t cleared right away, but Andy Enfield wasted no time getting Yigitoglu onto the floor once he was allowed to play. He’s averaging 11.6 points and 6.5 rebounds, going for 16 points and six rebounds against Virginia and a double-double against Washington State.
Jase Richardson, Michigan State Spartans
Like several other guards on this list, Richardson hasn’t started a game yet — but it’s only a matter of time before he’s given the keys to the Spartans. He’s scored in double figures six times en route to averaging 10.3 points — and he’s beginning to play his best basketball. He had 18 points in the Maui Invitational loss to Memphis and went for 16 points against Nebraska.
The Tigers’ sixth man, Miller started slowly, with a combined three points in 21 minutes in the first two games of his career. But he’s since scored at least 11 points in six of seven games, including 19 against Charleston Southern, and averaged 15.5 points in two notable wins over UCF and Florida State. With Jalen Reed out for the season, Matt McMahon might need more from him too.
Jaeden Mustaf, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Mustaf had developed a reputation for toughness and solid two-way ability at the high school level, and he’s starting to hit his stride with the Yellow Jackets. He wasn’t much of a factor for the first three games, totaling seven points. But he went on to score at least 16 points in three straight games, including 16 against Oklahoma. He’s averaging 9.0 through seven games.
Jeremiah Wilkinson, California Golden Bears
Wilkinson wasn’t ranked inside the top 250 on some recruiting sites and didn’t even have a full evaluation at ESPN — yet he’s averaging 10.9 points in just 18.6 minutes so far in his young career. He’s an explosive scorer, going for 23 points against Air Force, 25 points against Mercyhurst and 19 against Missouri. Wilkinson is also shooting nearly 45% from 3.
Magoon Gwath, San Diego State Aztecs
There’s a tantalizing amount of upside with Gwath, a 7-foot redshirt freshman. His numbers don’t jump off the page through eight games — 7.1 points, 3.3 rebounds — but he’s blocking more than three shots per game and just went for 25 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in a win over Fresno State. His offensive production has been otherwise uneven, but he’s blocked five shots three times.
Adrian Wooley, Kennesaw State Owls
Wooley, a Tuscaloosa, Alabama, native, has been nothing short of sensational. He’s scored double figures in all but one game, went for 28 points in a win at Georgia Southern, had 16 against CAA contender Towson — and against Rutgers and its two superstar freshmen, Wooley held his own with 10 points, seven assists and three steals. He’s averaging 15.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.0 assists.
Tyrone Riley IV, San Francisco Dons
Riley entered the campaign with potential to surprise as a freshman, and he looked the part during the first couple of weeks: 26 points in the opener against Cal Poly and 28 points and five 3s against Chicago State. His production has tapered off since then, but still went for 13 points in a win over Mercyhurst and is averaging 12.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and shooting 41.4% from 3.
Harper is making a name with consistently impressive performances in his first five weeks, starting with 16 points, four rebounds, three assists and three 3-pointers in the opener against Kansas. He also had 23 points and 10 rebounds last weekend against Cincinnati and is averaging 14.9 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists.
Rapp, a native of Australia, is developing into a fascinating prospect. He’s 6-foot-10, but takes more than six 3-point attempts per game. He’s averaging 12.1 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists, making better than 41% of those 3-point attempts. He had nine points, nine boards and five assists against Oregon and recently had 20 points and six rebounds against Denver.
Kam Williams, Tulane Green Wave
His counting stats on the offensive end aren’t overwhelming, but Williams is contributing at both ends of the floor — and his 6-foot-8 size on the wing is worth nothing. He’s putting up 9.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.2 steals and shooting nearly 40% from 3. He has season highs of 19 points against New Orleans and SE Louisiana, has at least eight rebounds on three occasions and at least three steals on five occasions.
Martin Somerville, UMass Lowell River Hawks
After struggling shooting the ball in early road games against Gonzaga and Washington, Somerville has really found his rhythm as the schedule has lightened up. Over his past six games, the 6-foot-3 guard is averaging 16.7 points while shooting nearly 46% from 3-point range. That stretch includes 22 points and five assists in a road win at UMass and 21 points at Saint Louis.
Mister Dean, South Carolina Upstate Spartans
The Miami native generated some buzz in the opening weeks by going for 20 points at Virginia Tech and 24 points at Wake Forest, and he’s scored in double figures in all but two games this season. A 6-foot-6 wing, Dean is averaging 15.7 points and 5.7 rebounds, and his performances against high-major competition are promising.
Gabriel Pozzato, Evansville Purple Aces
One of the top freshman scorers in the country, Pozzato opened his career with 28 points on 16 shots against North Texas and has only failed to reach double figures in one game (at Ohio State). He also had 20 points against Radford and finished with 19 points and seven boards against Western Kentucky. The Italy native is averaging 15.8 points and 3.8 rebounds.
Julius Thedford, Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
A 6-foot-4 guard from Memphis, Tennessee, Thedford has really come on strong in the past couple of weeks. He had 18 points on the road at Kentucky, then followed it with 19 points in a win over Marshall and 16 points on the road at Evansville. He’s averaging 13.8 points and shooting 50% from 3-point range despite playing just 21.1 minutes and coming off the bench in all eight games.
Mikey Lewis, Saint Mary’s Gaels
We’ll have to see whether Lewis’ first four games or his past six contests are more indicative of his role moving forward, but the top-100 recruit is averaging 10.1 points and shooting 39% from 3. He scored in double figures in each of his first four games, including 23 points, four rebounds, three assists, four steals and five 3-pointers in a win over Nebraska in mid-November.
Jalil Bethea, Miami Hurricanes
One of the elite scorers in the 2024 class, Bethea’s role has been one of the most interesting to monitor in the first month. Despite Miami’s struggles, he’s started just one game this season. He had 13 points in his second game, but hadn’t hit double figures again until this past weekend against Clemson. Unfortunately, he then played seven scoreless minutes against Tennessee.
Carter Bryant, Arizona Wildcats
Bryant’s size (6-8, 220 pounds) and ability to make shots from the perimeter made him a top-20 prospect entering Arizona. But with three veterans returning on the perimeter and Tommy Lloyd opting to go with two veteran bigs down low earlier in the season, Bryant took some time to carve out a consistent role. He might not have to wait much longer, though. He’s started the past two games and had a well-rounded five points, nine boards and four assists last weekend against Southern Utah.
Aiden Sherrell, Alabama
This one shouldn’t come as a surprise given how loaded Alabama is in the frontcourt. Sherrell played double figures in minutes in the first two games, but hasn’t hit that mark in the seven games since. With Cliff Omoruyi and Grant Nelson, both seniors, Sherrell’s path to a significant role next season should be much smoother.
Darren Harris and Patrick Ngongba II, Duke
The two Duke freshmen are coming off offseason injuries, with Ngongba dealing with foot injuries that he suffered in high school and Harris breaking his non-shooting hand in June. The Blue Devils are also well-stocked in their positions, although as we saw with Isaiah Evans against Auburn, Jon Scheyer might call on one of these players at any time.
Rakease Passmore, Kansas Jayhawks
Passmore made an impression in the preseason, to the point that Kansas opted to redshirt sophomore guard Jamari McDowell instead of the freshman from Florida. His energy and defensive toughness bode well for his Kansas future, but there’s simply a logjam on the wings in Lawrence after the transfer haul Bill Self landed last spring. There’s a role for him to play, though.
Ahmad Nowell, UConn
Nowell’s role is also partially injury-related, as he currently has a shoulder issue and missed UConn’s game against Texas and could be out against Gonzaga this weekend. He’s also playing behind Hassan Diarra, a veteran leader and two-time national champion — an immediate starring role was always going to be difficult. With Diarra gone next season, though, Nowell will make a bigger impact.
Phillips flipped his commitment from Arizona to Oregon last spring, joining a loaded perimeter group that featured star point guard Jackson Shelstad and several veteran shotmakers, ranging from TJ Bamba to Keeshawn Barthelemy to Jadrian Tracy to Ra’Heim Moss. There are simply not enough minutes to go around. That entire group besides Shelstad is gone after this season, though.
Paul McNeil, NC State Wolfpack
McNeil just snuck inside the top 50 of the 2024 class, and like so many of the players on this list, there’s just a glut of veteran players ahead of him on the perimeter. Kevin Keatts brought back Michael O’Connell, Jayden Taylor and Breon Pass from last season, then added Marcus Hill from the portal. McNeil needed some physical development upon arriving in Raleigh, too.
