Looking ahead to next season, and this is a very early lookahead as so much will change between now and November, the B1G should get more experienced, deeper and hence better, as a league. That said, it remains to be seen whether not the B1G will make a a bigger and better impact on the national next season.
The Illinois Fighting Illini are the only B1G squad with a national top ten level recruiting class coming in, although the Michigan State Spartans and Purdue Boilermakers are in the top 20, top 25 tier.
Thus next season, it looks like the league will once again not be very visible in the national top 10, top 15. Purdue, the reigning league champions looks to be the favorite again as they return pretty much everybody who matters, other than Caleb “Biggie” Swanigan, who won the Pete Newell Award as national big man of the year.
It still remains to be seen whether or not Biggie will return to Purdue for his junior season, but at this point it could go either way, and we think the Boilers are the favorite regardless.
Last week the Associated Press released their top 100 rankings of all time, and 10 of the league’s 14 teams made the cut. The group is ironically enough led by No. 6 Indiana, No. 11 Illinois and No. 12 Ohio State, the three programs who were WAY down by their lofty standards this past season.
The first two of the three that we just mentioned made the required and perhaps even overdue regime changes, so they look to be on their way back now. Michigan State is 12, Michigan 13, followed by No. 17 Maryland, No. 23 Iowa, No. 24 Purdue Boilermakers, No. 37 Wisconsin and No. 43 Minnesota.
The top five of the hot 100 list is all the blue bloods: Kentucky, North Carolina, Duke, UCLA and Kansas.
The AP’s top-100 is available here.
In checking our latest Swanigan NBA Draft stock price quotes, we see that he’s in that late first round discussion, which is not “you have to go” territory.
It’s not the lottery zone, where you have no choice but to declare. While no one could fault Biggie for leaving this year, it wouldn’t hurt him to stay either. He could use another season to condition, fine tune his game by cutting down on turnovers and continuing to make further strides on defense. If Biggie is gone, then Vince Edwards is more than ready to step in and become the Purdue Boilermakers new alpha dog with Isaac Haas a pretty good potential second banana.
Go here for the 2017-18 Purdue Boilermakers season preview.
2. Michigan State Spartans
MSU could end up with a really stellar incoming class, supplementing stellar sophomores who are returning to East Lansing. Five star forward Jaren Jackson committed to Michigan State and the Spartans in the mix for two more blue chips Brandon McCoy and Brian “Tugs” Bowen. Whether or not they land one, two or zero of the nation’s top still uncommitted players, the Spartans arrow is pointed upward.
Yes, we say that knowing full well that their alpha dog, Miles Bridges is likely gone to the NBA Draft. Sparty’s talent level is still elite by B1G standards. Go here for more on Brandon McCoy, more on Tugs Bowen.
3. Northwestern Wildcats
On paper, they will only get better, and should in fact be substantially better. They also get back Aaron Falzon and Rapolas Ivanauskas, two guys with high potential who had to sit out with injuries. Incoming freshman guard Anthony Gaines will be a nice piece as well.
However, you have plenty of questions to answer-
What about having to play all of their home games next season in an arena that’s seen much better days way out by the airport?
Will Northwestern basketball be able to retain a true home court advantage, while their actual home court is getting a $110 million renovation?
Will the NU media elites act in fashion that’s at least tolerable, if not likable next year at this time? Or will they again spend the entire month of March reminding you how awesome they are at life simply because they went to NU?
Go here for the 2017-18 Northwestern season preview.
4. Michigan Wolverines
They will return three starters: Moritz Wagner, D.J. Wilson and Abdur-Rahkman, plus depth and size in the frontcourt with freshmen centers Jon Teske (7-foot) and Austin Davis (6-10).
Add in the Kentucky transfer/5-star shooting guard Charles Matthews and a more seasoned Xavier Simpson at the point, and you could have something special. They way they finished the season and postseason made me a believer for next year.
5. Minnesota Golden Gophers
Just one senior, Akeem Springs, graduates from a team that won 24 games, and he was just fifth on the team in scoring. That said, everyone slept on the Gophers this year, and rightfully so. Next year is a totally different story.
2017-18 though is like Jay-Z rapped in “Do you Believe (Hova Interlude)”:
“When you’re expected to win, they ain’t surprised no more.”
6. Wisconsin Badgers
It feels so weird to see “too early next season top 25 rankings” articles, and not see Wisconsin. It’s unnatural. The Badgers return Ethan Happ (here’s a link to more on him) and they have a track record that’s second to none. In my book, it’s enough to keep them in the league’s upper division.
7. Illinois Fighting Illini
It won’t be easy, and it won’t happen overnight of course, because this is the very definition of a “rebuilding year” for the Illini basketball program. Illinois now has exactly what they need, a program builder, in Brad Underwood.
They also have a very special incoming freshman class in guard Da’Monte Williams, guard Trent Frazier, wing Javon Pickett and center Jeremiah Tilmon.
https://twitter.com/PaulMBanks/status/844003960285511680
What #TheMovement was to Indiana and #TheClass was to Michigan State, this group is rated nationally as high as #9 by some, and top 12 by pretty much everybody.
Frazier gives Illini basketball a second true point guard (those have been rare in recent years) and Williams is the son of Illinois legend Frank Williams.
Pickett is a highly rated talent who could contribute at the two or three and Tilmon is the highest rated recruit the program has landed since Jereme Richmond.
Here’s a link to more on this class.
Go here for the 2017-18 Very Early Illini Season Preview
https://twitter.com/PaulMBanks/status/848373645261107201
Go here for more on Underwood and the brand identity that he brings to Illini basketball.
Go here for more on how A.D. Josh Whitman has totally remade UI athletics from the top down.
8. Maryland
Hindsight is 20/20 but Melo Trimble would have been better off leaving the Terps after his freshman season since he would have likely been a first round pick. He regressed during his sophomore season and didn’t do enough as a junior to be a first round pick. Still, it doesn’t seem like another year would have helped him very much, so he’s probably making the right call.
Maryland, arguably the worst 24 win team in history, now takes a step back without him.
9. Indiana
Archie Millerball will change this team and the once proud program, but it’s going to take time. You will see noticeable improvements in year one though. Right after Dayton lost to Northwestern at the United Center in mid-December, Archie Miller’s wife made this ALL CAPS tweet absolutely shredding the Wildcats and their program. It has since been deleted, but now the Millers move to the B1G, where they’ll get to face NU at least once, often twice, and maybe even three times a season on rare occasions.
Thus, you already have a built-in rivalry for those games.
10. Penn State
Losing Payton Banks really hurts, but they have plenty returning in Tony Carr, Lamar Stevens and Mike Watkins. PSU will take a step forward next season, but I’m afraid we’re going to have cut this entry short…because demand for Penn State basketball coverage is very low, and thus we can’t invest a whole lot time on it.
There isn’t much return on investment with that.
11. Iowa
Sophomores Jordan Bohannon, Tyler Cook, Ryan Kriener, Isaiah Moss and Cordell Pemsl form next year’s nucleus, and on paper they should get better.
The Hawkeyes also add two four-star recruits, making them the sexy sleeper pick for some pundits. I just don’t see it though. Yes, they will have some talent, but I can’t really see them surpassing too many of the team ahead of them.
12. Ohio State
Looks like another down year for Thad Matta and company could be in the works. That said, if and when its time for him to go, it should be on his own terms. Matta has accomplished so much during his time in Columbus that he’s truly earned that right.
13. Nebraska
Nebrasketball is now the only power five conference school never to win a NCAA Tournament game. Tim Miles will perhaps be feeling his seat warm up very soon. Luckily, his sense of humor is among the very best in all the sporting landscape, so he will handle it with aplomb.
14. Rutgers
Everything you need to know, want to know or would care to know about Rutgers athletics was covered in 15 seconds in the HBO Vice episode on college sports “amateurism.”
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times and NBC Chicago.com, contributes to Chicago Tribune.com, Bold, WGN CLTV and KOZN.
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