Early-season chaos brings big changes to Wooden Award rankings

The early goings of the college basketball season have been some of the most chaotic in recent memory. That’s already having an impact on the race to be college basketball’s National Player of the Year and bring home the Wooden Award.

Just when we thought the world of college basketball was going to settle into a sort of midseason lull ahead of the surely chaotic being that is conference play, we get yet another turn in the still-young season, courtesy of several upsets. We’ve also had multiple new teams appearing ranked among the nation’s best. Just like the college basketball season and corresponding rankings have been so far, our rankings for the Wooden Award have been chaotic.

The rankings have had their fair share of changes in the young season as we start to get an idea of just what kind of players we’re working with. There are a number of players who could appear on this list, but spots are a hot, selective commodity.

For that reason, the turnover is high, especially this week.

Last week we saw Tre Jones (who made an appearance on this list last week) and the Duke Blue Devils, then the No. 1 team in the country, fall to the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks, making Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s team the third top-rated team to fall in an upset already this year.

It seems like no one wants the No. 1 ranking.

There’s a ridiculous amount of changes coming to the college basketball rankings. Whether you trust the AP, or Kenneth Pomeroy to find out who is the best team in basketball, it’s been a crazy year.

As such, that is reflected in the chaos that is our Wooden Award rankings. Let’s take a look at our rankings fresh off the most recent week of college basketball action.

5. Obi Toppin

Obi Toppin has been a heavy-riser on many radars so far this college basketball season. From NBA Draft radars to National Player of the Year radars, no individual has risen higher so far this year than Dayton’s Toppin.

The young man from Brooklyn has burst onto the scene, putting the country on notice with tremendous play in dominant victories over Georgia and Virginia and narrowly losing a close game to Kansas.

The 6-foot-9 forward out-shined potential No. 1 pick Anthony Edwards in head-to-head competition in the aforementioned game against the Georgia Bulldogs, dropping 25 points while passing the all-around eye test.

Toppin may struggle to stay on this list of Player of the Year rankings, but only because Dayton has a traditional mid-major schedule, without much action other than big-stage games against Saint Mary’s and Colorado. Come the end of the year though, watch out for Toppin to be a star when March comes calling.

4. Udoka Azubuike

The Kansas big man has (to me) been in the latter half of the top-10 players for the Wooden Award rankings since about the beginning of the season, but was always expected to be a star this season. The play of Azubuike (and some help from Devon Dotson) has propelled Kansas to having one of the best offenses in the league.

Azubuike has shined on both ends of the court, and thanks to some lackluster performances, big losses and one notably huge suspension to other big men in the running for this award, he now finds himself rightfully up into the top five.

Azubuike has averaged 15.1 points, 7.6 rebounds and a ridiculous 2.8 blocks per game so far this season, with Kansas facing the 20th-toughest schedule in college basketball, according to KenPom. He’s dominated so far, and look for him to be a factor if some of the guards start to slow down down the stretch.

3. Cassius Winston

Cassius Winston was the odds-on favorite to win the Wooden Award when the season began. However, his performances have slipped just a bit thanks to a lackluster team surrounding him, which desperately relies on him for production on both ends of the court.

It’s almost a shame putting him at No. 3, especially when you consider that Winston and the Spartans have by far played the toughest schedule of anyone on this list. He’s faced numerous top teams, and been a dominant force against them despite Michigan State’s struggle to find a solid No. 2 for him. He’s putting up 17.1 points, 6.1 assists and 2.3 rebounds a night to pair with just 2.4 turnovers despite handling the majority of the play making for the Spartans.

Tom Izzo usually has his team put together nicely by March, and Winston will be a key factor in that. Don’t be surprised if he eventually rises back up.

2. Cole Anthony

I don’t think it has fully set in to most of the college basketball world how lucky we are to be watching Cole Anthony play college hoops, just one year after we got to watch generational talent Zion Williamson grace the court.

Anthony has been everything North Carolina hoped that he would be and is currently averaging 20.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game against a top-80 strength of schedule. The 6-foot-3 Tar Heels guard has starred on the national stage. His stats aren’t always the most eye-catching, but even in low-scoring games, Anthony is a coach on the court and is definitely the leader of this UNC team.

He’s a virtual lock to be a top-five pick in the NBA Draft, and he’s a virtual lock to remain in this top five in the race for the Wooden Award all year as well.

1. Myles Powell

I have to admit it — Seton Hall’s Myles Powell should’ve been higher on this list the past few weeks, but he’s officially won me over.

Powell actually has a solid claim to be at the top of this list, even when you consider how fantastic several players on (and off) this list have been this season. He’s guided the No. 16 Seton Hall Pirates to big wins so far this season, and played stride-for-stride with some of the nation’s best as well.

He has established himself as one of the country’s best so far this season, and the Pirates also sit at a 6-2 record with their only losses coming against solid, ranked teams by a combined five points. The best part is that, in those two games, Powell dropped 37 points against Michigan State and 32 against Oregon.

If you discount the unfortunate ankle sprain game against Stony Brook, Powell would be averaging almost 27 points per game, leading the nation. His 23.4 points per game aren’t bad either, however, especially when you pair them with being the unquestioned leader of the No. 13 offense in the nation, per KenPom.

He should be considered the leader of the race to be college basketball’s best player and Wooden award winner so far this season.

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