It's been a long offseason, but it's always music to our ears when college basketball is officially back.
With the new season set to begin on Monday, Nov. 4, I'm providing you with seven college basketball storylines to get your blood pumping for the hardwood over the gridiron.
And trust me, they're especially juicy this year.
Changing of the Guard
Years ago, if you told me California would be playing in the ACC, Arizona would be in the Big 12 and UCLA would be in the Big Ten in 2024, I would've said you were crazy.
Football (and money) has always ruled collegiate sports, but television deals, NIL money, conference realignment and the transfer portal have also resulted in dramatic changes to the college basketball landscape.
The Pac-12 is dead (for now…), and there are many teams that will be racking up some serious miles on their private charters. Just look at all these changes heading into the new campaign:
- Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah the Big 12.
- California, Stanford and SMU have joined the ACC.
- Oklahoma and Texas have joined the SEC.
- Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington have joined the Big Ten.
- Oregon State and Washington have joined the WCC (for now…).
- Chicago State is no longer an independent, and now resides in the NEC.
- Kennesaw State joined the CUSA, Merrimack and Sacred Heart joined the MAAC and Stephen F. Austin and UTRGV joined the Southland.
- D-I has two new members as Mercyhurst gets added to the NEC and West Georgia is an ASUN addition.
That's 20 schools that are moving conferences … 20. That's not a typo.
Not only does this break up some long-standing conference rivalries, but it also results in differing league schedules, massive time zone jumps and new opponents to scout.
Will this be a good thing for the future of college basketball and the NCAA Tournament? At this point, that remains unknown, which creates a massive storyline to start the season.
Cooper Flagg: Must-See TV
March is the best month in sports and the NCAA Tournament is the best betting event, but college basketball has been sorely lacking a true, attention-grabbing star player over the last couple of seasons.
No offense to Zach Edey, but there hasn't been a player that casuals needed to tune in to watch in November, December and January, when football has the nation's attention.
But that all ends in 2024-25.
For the first time since Zion Williamson, there's a star freshman who will draw some serious national eyes.
That player is Cooper Flagg, a five-star, one-and-done talent who will play for Jon Scheyer at Duke and look to lead the Blue Devils to their first national title since 2015. Flagg is widely projected as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft and is expected to be an All-American and Player of the Year candidate this season.
In fact, Flagg has already grown his stock immensely before stepping foot on the floor at Cameron Indoor. He worked out with the USA Select team in Vegas this summer, and Duke assistant Chris Carrawell told Blue Ribbon that there were three or four minutes where he was the best player on the floor.
That's saying something considering the players on Team USA's roster included future Hall of Famers.
SEC Rivalry
We know one date that's circled on every college hoops junkie's calender: February 1. That's the day that John Calipari returns to Rupp Arena as the head coach of the Arkansas Razorbacks.
After 15 seasons in Lexington that featured four Final Fours and a national title, Calipari jumped ship in the SEC, creating a juicy rivalry for years to come.
The Kentucky fan base soured on Cal (the Wildcats have won one NCAA Tournament game since 2019), so it's not like the head coach bailed on the program out of nowhere. However, this is still one of the most intriguing dates of the new season.
If the projections for both of these teams turn out, this will be more than just a storyline.
Calipari's club brings back junior forward Trevon Brazile while adding experienced transfers like Johnell Davis (FAU) and Jonas Aidoo (Tennessee). He also brought D.J. Wagner, Adou Thiero and Zvonimir Ivisic over with him from Kentucky, and added quality freshmen like Boogie Fland and Karter Knox.
Meanwhile, Mark Pope takes over at Kentucky. He was a team captain on the Wildcats' 1996 national title team and had a successful coaching career at BYU.
Like Calipari, Pope's team is filled with talented newcomers like Jaxson Robinson (BYU), Lamont Butler (San Diego State), Kerr Kriisa (West Virginia), among other key transfers.
UConn Three Peat?
It's saying something that it took us this long to touch on the back-to-back national champion UConn Huskies.
Dan Hurley rejected a six-year, $70 million offer from the Los Angeles Lakers this offseason, deciding to return to Storrs in search of becoming the first head coach to guide a school to three straight national titles since John Wooden did so with UCLA in the early 1970s.
The Big East is loaded again this year, with Marquette and Creighton in the top 25 and Xavier, St. John's, Providence, Butler and Villanova having true NCAA Tournament hopes.
The Huskies also lost four of their top five scorers, including Donovan Clingan and Tristen Newton.
But as long as Hurley is patrolling the sidelines the Huskies have a chance.
And it's not like the roster isn't talented. Alex Karaban is ready for a leading role, while newcomers Aidan Mahaney (Saint Mary's) and Liam McNeeley (freshman) top the backcourt.
Former Teammates Take Over Sport
Returning players will always be more important than newcomers. That's good news for North Carolina and Arizona, because they have two of the best players in the sport back.
The Tar Heels have questions in the frontcourt after Armando Bacot's departure, but RJ Davis is one of the best scorers and shot creators in the nation. The 2024 ACC Player of the Year helped guide the Heels to the National Championship game in 2022, and could do so again in 2025.
Out west, Davis' former teammate — Caleb Love — is gearing up for another starring role with the Wildcats. Like Davis, the fifth-year talent can score and create shots with the best of them and also was a member of that 2022 runner-up team.
The guard receives a lot of criticism and attention based on his previous fumbles on big stages and his inefficiencies, but he was the Pac-12 Player of the Year last season and improved his defense.
Blue Bloods Back From Dead
8 National Championships and 18 Final Fours.
Indiana and Louisville are two of the most historic programs in college basketball history, but they haven't lived up to their blue blood status in the modern day.
The Hoosiers haven't reached the Sweet 16 since 2016 and the Final Four since 2002, and the Cardinals have won 25 games total in the past three seasons.
Both programs have different expectations entering 2024-25, but the common theme is there: College basketball is better when these teams are interesting.
Indiana is a top-25 squad with talented newcomers (like Oumar Ballo) and experienced returning players (like Malik Reneau and Mackenzie Mgbako). Mike Woodson is almost certainly on the hot seat, but the Hoosiers are expected to be an NCAA Tournament team (… and beyond).
Meanwhile, the Cardinals are in Year 1 of the Pat Kelsey era and will be a factor in the ACC this season.
Kelsey's teams always play hard, and this roster has plenty of experience from Chucky Hepburn (Wisconsin), Koren Johnson (Washington), Terrence Edwards Jr. (James Madison), among others.
It's not out of the realm of possibility that the Cardinals can challenge for a bubble spot.
Are these blue bloods both back? We'll soon find out.
Don't Miss December 14
The Champions Classic (Tuesday, Nov. 12) and Feast Week are the highlights of the non-conference slate, but Dec. 14 isn't far behind.
Here are the marquee games on that Saturday:
- Gonzaga vs. UConn
- Creighton vs. Alabama
- Texas A&M vs. Purdue
- Tennessee vs. Illinois
- Louisville vs. Kentucky
- Auburn vs. Ohio State
- NC State vs. Kansas
- Memphis vs. Clemson
I mean, holy smokes. And that's without even mentioning Arizona vs. UCLA, Xavier vs. Cincinnati, Seton Hall vs. Rutgers, Oklahoma vs. Oklahoma State, Wisconsin vs. Butler, Marquette vs. Dayton and Georgetown vs. Syracuse.
That is an absolutely LOADED slate that can't be missed, regardless of your football needs.
