Who’s College Basketball’s Best In 2026?

One in all NCAA faculty basketball’s primary storylines in a 2024-25 season stuffed with them was the hotly contested battle between Duke’s Cooper Flagg and Auburn’s Johni Broome for the assorted nationwide participant of the yr awards throughout the nation. Finally, Flagg swept every thing however the Sporting Information Participant of the Yr Award, which went to Broome. It was an attention-grabbing dynamic to match the 18-year-old phenom Flagg with the 23-year-old stalwart Broome all through the season.

With an incoming freshman class that features two doubtlessly generational prospects in Darryn Peterson and A.J. Dybantsa, in addition to a returning crop of gamers that features 2025 Massive Ten Participant of the Yr Braden Smith and the highest goal within the switch portal this offseason in Michigan’s Yaxel Lendeborg, the nationwide participant of the yr debate figures to be extra wide-ranging this yr with a superb crop of high-end expertise. 

To not point out gamers like Texas Tech’s JT Toppin, who’s contemporary off an Elite 8 look with the Pink Raiders, or his star ex-teammate Darrion Williams, who elected to switch to Will Wade’s operation at NC State with a hefty price ticket included. Then you will have gamers like UCLA’s Donovan Dent, who commanded a reported $3 million NIL deal throughout switch portal negotiations. Or Duke freshman Cameron Boozer, who’s arguably probably the most achieved prep basketball participant of all time.

This two-part sequence will break down the eight gamers in faculty basketball this season who’re within the operating for the hypothetical “Greatest Participant In Faculty Basketball” superlatives forward of this upcoming season.

Braden Smith, Purdue (6-0, PG, Jr.) Age: 22 

Braden Smith is presently the odds-on favourite to brush the Nationwide Participant of the Yr Awards. Frankly, that’s exhausting to argue given his significance to the Purdue Boilermakers all through his time with this system. Smith is coming off a banner marketing campaign in 2024-25 that noticed him earn Massive Ten Participant of the Yr and first-team All-American honors after averaging 15.7 factors and eight.7 assists per sport, the latter of which was good for second within the nation behind present Dallas Mavericks rookie level guard Andrew Nembhard (Gonzaga). 

Smith is the definition of a real level guard and is arguably one of the best passer in all of faculty basketball, already having carved his place on the highest of the all-time assists leaderboard for Purdue’s storied basketball program. Smith’s sturdy 6’0 body additionally permits him to complete successfully on the rim and he’s virtually a profession 40 % shooter from beyond-the-arc, besides.

Smith has one other Participant of the Yr contender in Trey Kaufman-Renn alongside him in Purdue’s beginning lineup, however Las Vegas clearly sees that as beneficiary for his Participant of the Yr Award odds versus the other.

Darryn Peterson, Kansas (6-5, CG, Fr.) Age: 18

Kansas’ Darryn Peterson goes to change into a family identify amongst basketball followers sooner slightly than later. The projected No. 1 total decide within the 2026 NBA Draft has been thought of by some to be a generational guard prospect, together with coach Invoice Self, who mentioned Peterson is “one of the best participant he’s recruited” since he’s been the pinnacle man in Lawrence. 

Peterson, a 6’5 combo guard, was the 2025 Naismith Excessive College Participant of the Yr, and the runner-up to Cam Boozer for Mr. Basketball USA, out of Prolific Prep in Napa, California. He averaged eye-popping numbers throughout his senior season, scoring 30.4 factors whereas grabbing 7.4 rebounds and seven.4 assists per sport. Though Peterson has been considerably missed in comparison with the opposite high 2025 highschool prospects due to his late-stage emergence over AJ Dybantsa, he’s arguably probably the most polished guard prospect on this facet of the 2020s.

Peterson is a Cade Cunningham-esque jack-of-all-trades guard with elite driving and ending potential, together with a strong capturing stroke from past the arc. He makes the offensive sport look straightforward and enters faculty as arguably probably the most gifted playmaker within the nation and will have little to no bother placing collectively a balanced spotlight reel with the Jayhawks this season. He’s going to be requested to do quite a bit for one of the vital seen packages in faculty athletics, and every thing we’ve seen from him suggests he’s up for the duty.

A.J. Dybantsa, BYU (6-9, SF, Fr.) Age: 18

Peterson has emerged because the No. 1 2026 draft prospect in latest months, but it surely was BYU’s A.J. Dybantsa who was the quantity one-ranked recruit within the nation for many of the 2025 class cycle whereas being one of the vital wanted prep abilities of the final decade. Dybantsa’s odds to win the Picket Award are literally extra favorable than Peterson’s in the intervening time, and given the latest trajectory of their respective packages, it’s not exhausting to see a state of affairs the place BYU is the premier staff within the Massive 12 this season with Dybantsa main the best way. 

Dybantsa is a 6’9 freak of nature wing with a guard-like deal with and a constant potential to attain in any respect three ranges. He could make pictures off the dribble, hit pull-ups, and end above the rim, and he hardly ever forces issues or play uncontrolled. Dybantsa strikes properly sufficient defensively to successfully guard the perimeter at his top and he’s athletic and lengthy sufficient to successfully guard forwards, too. He’s not a rim protector by any means, however his prolonged fellow freshman,  6-11 Xavion Staton, might be counted on in that space for the Cougs.

Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan (6-9, PF, Sr.) Age: 22

Yaxel Lendeborg would have been a assured first-round decide if he had saved his identify within the NBA Draft this spring, however the UAB switch made it recognized he was going to play for Dusty Might’s Michigan Wolverines if he didn’t obtain a assure from a staff within the high 20. Because it seems, that assure by no means got here, as a result of Lendeborg withdrew his identify from the sphere and elected to take his abilities to play for a Michigan staff that received the Massive Ten Match whereas he was nonetheless in Birmingham this previous March. 

Lendeborg’s 2024-25 marketing campaign has just one historic parallel, as he grew to become the second participant in Division I historical past (alongside Indiana State’s Larry Hen) to document 600-plus factors, 400-plus rebounds and 150+ assists in a single season. He averaged 17.7 factors, 11.4 rebounds (fourth nationally) and three.4 assists per sport, main UAB to an AAC event championship sport. Lendeborg was additionally a nuisance on the defensive finish, averaging 3.5 shares (1.7 steals, 1.8 blocks) per sport.

One benefit he does have over the others is expertise, as this might be his sixth season of faculty basketball at some stage, having began off within the junior faculty ranks in 2020-21.