NCAA basketball rankings: Gonzaga, Villanova, Virginia headline Top 25

5. Kansas

The Kansas Jayhawks have to replace their top two scorers after Devon Dotson decided to forgo his junior season and enter the NBA Draft. Kansas is not like other college basketball teams. They regularly have players taken in the top five of the NBA Draft, so they have to replace their top talent every season.

Kansas has a lot of depth. Starters Ochai Agbaji and Marcus Garrett are returning and should be primed to take a step in the right direction. David McCormack and Christian Braun are also primed to take another step.

This team is all about Bryce Thompson. The incoming freshman will immediately be the best player on the team, and make fans immediately forget what’s his name that went to the NBA Draft. The 6-foot-5 guard has a great combination of scoring and playmaking. The scoring is what many will focus on, and they should. Thompson can score from anywhere and is near impossible to defend since his shot could come at any time.

The reason Kansas isn’t higher on this list is the defense. Thompson and Garrett might give the Jayhawks the best defense in the Big 12, a huge gesture for a team in the same conference as WVU. They are primed to make plays at the top of the key, which will lead to turnovers.

Kansas is supremely talented, and if everything goes right, they will once again be in the conversation for a No. 1 seed.