Fansided

College basketball rankings: Way-too-early Top 25 for 2019-20

By Connor Muldowney

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 06: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans talks with Cassius Winston #5 in the second half against the Texas Tech Red Raiders during the 2019 NCAA Final Four semifinal at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 6, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 06: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans talks with Cassius Winston #5 in the second half against the Texas Tech Red Raiders during the 2019 NCAA Final Four semifinal at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 6, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
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WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 29: Tremont Waters #3 of the LSU Tigers celebrates a basket against the Michigan State Spartans during the first half in the East Regional game of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Capital One Arena on March 29, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 29: Tremont Waters #3 of the LSU Tigers celebrates a basket against the Michigan State Spartans during the first half in the East Regional game of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Capital One Arena on March 29, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

One of the trickiest teams to rank ahead of the 2019-20 season has to be LSU. The Tigers are in the middle of an investigation into potentially illegally paying players as well as potentially losing three players with eligibility left to the NBA.

If one or two return, the Tigers could be atop the preseason SEC standings which was the opposite of this season when no one picked LSU to win the regular season title.

Those departing players are Naz Reid, Tremont Waters and Skylar Mayes. Reid is almost surely gone and is projected as a potential lottery pick. Mays and Waters may not remain in the draft, especially after they get their feedback, because they aren’t projected as first-round picks and barely even in the second round.

Waters is the most important piece to the puzzle. If he’s back, this team is an SEC favorite and he’s a serious Player of the Year candidate.

Still, there’s a good chance Mays or Waters will return and Javonte Smart and Emmitt Williams could become stars. This team is teetering on the contender line, but I’m going to rank the Tigers assuming Mays, and maybe Waters, return.