With commitments and transfer portal decisions nearly at a wrap, Ryan Andrade takes an early look at the top-25 projected college basketball teams, highlighting all the important personnel and roster changes.
Miss the start of our rankings columns? You can check our rankings out from the beginning here:
Top-25 College Basketball Teams for the 2024-25 Season (No. 21-25)
Top-25 College Basketball Teams for the 2024-25 Season (No. 16-20)
15. Tennessee
Many people thought Dalton Knecht was a solid pickup when he elected to transfer to Knoxville following a strong season at Northern Colorado, but I don’t think anyone could have predicted the season he ended up having. Knecht was named SEC Player of the Year and First Team All-American averaging 21.7 PPG. That will be a lot of production to replace, but coach Rick Barnes decided to go to the mid-major well again to add Chaz Lanier, Darlinstone Dubar and Igor Milicic, all of which could potentially start this coming season. Lanier is perhaps the most interesting add after ranking eighth nationally in three-pointers per game (3.3) and fifth in three-point percentage (44 percent) at North Florida. Milicic, on the other hand, is a player who has a strong chance to be drafted next year. The 6-10 power forward is very skilled, with the ability to rebound at a high rate and hit outside shots consistently.
The heart and soul of this team is Zakai Zeigler, who led the SEC in assists last season and is a menace on the defensive end. Jahmai Mashack, Jordan Gainey and JP Estrella make up a strong group of returning players who will contribute again in 2024-25. Center was also a point of emphasis in the offseason after Jonas Aidoo left for Arkansas, but the Vols arguably got a better player in Felix Okpara from Ohio State. I could see Tennessee being higher than this ranking, but losing senior leaders like Josiah-Jordan James (8.4 PPG) and Santiago Vescovi (6.3 PPG), along with Knecht, will be a challenge. If these mid-major transfers struggle to score, Tennessee could be back as another middling offensive team, similar to how it was before Knecht came to Knoxville.
Projected Starting Lineup:
PG: Zakai Zeigler (11.8 PPG, 6.1 APG)
SG: Chaz Lanier (19.7 PPG at North Florida)
SF: Darlinstone Dubar (17.8 PPG, 6.8 RPG at Hofstra)
PF: Igor Milicic (12.8 PPG, 8.5 RPG at Charlotte)
C: Felix Okpara (6.6 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 2.3 BPG at Ohio State)
Key Reserves: Jahmai Mashack (4.5 PPG), Jordan Gainey (6.8 PPG), Bishop Boswell (No. 61 ESPN 100), JP Estrella (1.6 PPG), Cameron Carr (1.6 PPG), Cade Phillips (0.9 PPG)
14. Arizona 
Caleb Love deciding to return for a fifth season certainly gave Arizona a boost after losing its next four leading scorers from last season. Love is coming of his best campaign, setting career highs in scoring, rebounding, steals, three-pointers and field-goal percentage. Jaden Bradley will join Love in the backcourt and should get his chance to be a full-time starter at PG after coming off the bench last season.
Arizona also got key commitments from forwards Anthony Dell’Orso and Trey Townsend. Both players will be called upon to help Love in the scoring department right out of the gate. Motiejus Krivas should be the starter at center with Oumar Ballo leaving for Indiana. Coach Tommy Lloyd has been known to have a lot of length on his teams, and the 7-2 Krivas certainly fits that bill. Carter Bryant is the team’s highest rated recruit and should see plenty of action. Bryant has three-point shooting upside and a 7-foot-wingspan. He very well could find himself in the starting lineup quickly. Tobe Awaka was a solid pickup from Tennessee to provide more frontcourt depth and KJ Lewis should be even better following a solid freshman season.
Coach Lloyd will certainly be looking to halt the narrative of early exits in the NCAA Tournament. Maybe going through the gauntlet that is the Big 12 will better prepare his team for March.
Projected Starting Lineup:
PG: Jaden Bradley (7.0 PPG)
SG: Caleb Love (18.0 PPG, 3.4 APG)
SF: Anthony Dell’Orso (19.5 PPG, 6.5 RPG at Campbell)
PF: Trey Townsend (17.3 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 3.1 APG at Oakland)
C: Motiejus Krivas (5.4 PPG)
Key Reserves: Carter Bryant (No. 19 ESPN 100), KJ Lewis (6.1 PPG), Tobe Awaka (5.1 PPG at Tennessee), Emmanuel Stephen (No. 93 ESPN 100), Conrad Martinez (0.9 PPG), Henri Veesaar (Redshirt)
13. Texas A&M 
Last season, Texas A&M was the best offensive rebounding team in the country, and given its roster for 2024-25, there is little doubt they won’t be near the top again. Andersson Garcia led the SEC in rebounding last season at 9.1 RPG despite starting just four games. With Henry Coleman and Solomon Washington returning, as well and adding in Pharrel Payne from Minnesota into the mix, this is not going to be a team that anyone in the SEC wants to play.
The electric Wade Taylor returns to College Station for his fourth season, but will have to do it this time without his former partner-in-crime Tyrece Radford (16.5 PPG). The good news is that Taylor will get a new reliable scoring threat in the backcourt after bringing in Zhuric Phelps from SMU, a player who averaged 17.5 and 14.8 PPG the last two seasons. Manny Obaski and Nebraska transfer C.J. Wilcher are two floor spacers for coach Buzz Williams to use.
This was one of the deepest teams in the country last year, and it has that same feel again going into this season. The key will be making Wade Taylor not feel like he has to play hero-ball every game. His 16.3 shot attempts per game last season were T13 nationally, and the Aggies would likely be a better team if that came down a bit and his efficiency improved from just 36.6 percent from the field.
Projected Starting Lineup:
PG: Wade Taylor (19.1 PPG, 4.0 APG)
SG: Manny Obaseki (7.0 PPG)
SF: Zhuric Phelps (14.8 PPG at SMU)
PF: Henry Coleman (8.8 PPG, 5.6 RPG)
C: Pharrel Payne (10.0 PPG, 6.1 RPG at Minnesota)
Key Reserves: Andersson Garcia (6.0 PPG, 9.1 RPG), Solomon Washington (7.4 PPG, 5.7 RPG), C.J. Wilcher (7.7 PPG at Nebraska), Jace Carter (6.9 PPG), Hayden Hefner (5.0 PPG), Andre Mills (4-star Freshman)
12. Arkansas 
The John Calipari era has begun in Fayettevillem and it shouldn’t take long to get up to speed. Coach Cal was able to bring over D.J. Wagner, Adou Thiero and Zvonimir Ivisic from last year’s Kentucky squad along with a trio of top-40 recruits who were previously committed to Kentucky in Boogie Fland, Karter Knox and Billy Richmond. He was also able to convince Trevon Brazile to stay in Arkansas for a third straight season, along with adding one of the top options in the transfer portal in Johnell Davis from FAU and a very solid center in Jonas Aidoo from Tennessee. It will be fun to see how Davis adapts to playing in the SEC after being named a co-Player of the Year in the AAC.
It wasn’t a pretty last few seasons for Calipari at Kentucky, with so much NBA talent and not enough wins to show for it. Arkansas should be a nice reset for him with less pressure and a team that should fit together well. The one thing to watch is how do they compete on the defensive end. Cal’s teams the last few seasons at Kentucky could certainly score the ball, but they struggled to win a lot of close games because they couldn’t defend. Aidoo, Brazile and Davis should help a lot in that regard.
Projected Starting Lineup:
PG: D.J. Wagner (9.9 PPG, 3.3 APG at Kentucky)
SG: Johnell Davis (18.2 PPG, 6.3 RPG at FAU)
SF: Adou Thiero (7.2 PPG, 5.0 RPG at Kentucky)
PF: Trevon Brazile (8.6 PPG, 5.9 RPG)
C: Jonas Aidoo (11.4 PPG, 7.3 RPG at Tennessee)
Key Reserves: Boogie Fland (No. 15 ESPN 100), Karter Knox (No. 26 ESPN 100), Zvonimir Ivisic (5.5 PPG at Kentucky), Billy Richmond (No. 38 ESPN 100)
11. North Carolina 
RJ Davis will be one of the top candidates for Naismith Player of the Year after putting together a First Team All-American campaign a season ago that saw the Tar Heels win the ACC title and earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Davis will be asked to do it this time without Armando Bacot who last season became the third UNC player to record 2,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds.
Coach Hubert Davis struck out on a lot of the top center options in the transfer portal, but was able to land Ven-Allen Lubin, who had a strong sophomore season at Vanderbilt. Lubin is a bit undersized for a center, so the pressure will be on returning players like Jae’Lyn Withers and Jalen Washington to step up to help out in the frontcourt this season.
Elliot Cadeau was the team’s highest ranked recruit prior to last season. While Cadeau showed great ball-distributing skills and allowed Davis to focus more on his scoring, he was also a liability throughout much of the season due to his poor three-point shooting (18.9 percent). He needs to really improve that area of his game to keep defenders honest and allow for more spacing on the floor.
One man that will help with three-point shooting is Cade Tyson (46.5 percent) from Belmont. The 6-7 forward is likely best served playing the four and creating matchup problems on the offensive end. The Tar Heels will also add a pair of five-star recruits in Ian Jackson and Drake Powell, who they will certainly need to contribute right away.
Projected Starting Lineup:
PG: Elliot Cadeau (7.3 PPG, 4.1 APG)
SG: RJ Davis (21.2 PPG)
SF: Ian Jackson (No. 7 ESPN 100)
PF: Cade Tyson (16.2 PPG, 5.9 RPG at Belmont)
C: Ven-Allen Lubin (12.3 PPG, 6.3 RPG at Vanderbilt)
Key Reserves: Seth Trimble (5.2 PPG), Jae’Lyn Withers (4.2 PPG), Drake Powell (No. 13 ESPN 100), Jalen Washington (3.9 PPG), James Brown (No. 66 ESPN 100), Zayden High (0.8 PPG)
We’ll continue with our top-25 countdown on Monday, August 12.
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