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College basketball rankings: Elliot Cadeau reclassifies to 2023, puts North Carolina in early Top 25 And 1 – CBS Sports
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A good offseason for North Carolina got even better Tuesday when Elliot Cadeau, a five-star prospect in the Class of 2024, announced he’s reclassifying to the Class of 2023 and planning to play for the Tar Heels next season. That means a possible starting lineup for UNC now looks like this:
That’s a lineup with experience, talent and everything it should take for North Carolina to return to the 2024 NCAA Tournament after a disappointing season in which the Tar Heels became the first team to miss the Big Dance (in the modern era) after being ranked No. 1 in the preseason Associated Press Top 25 poll. Is it possible they’ll underachieve again relative to the roster? Sure, I guess. But, make no mistake, this roster is talented enough to accomplish big things, and that’s why I’ve moved North Carolina from unranked to No. 24 in Version 15.0 of the 2023-24 CBS Sports preseason Top 25 And 1 college basketball rankings.
(The addition of UNC pushed Auburn out of the Top 25 And 1. Bruce Pearl’s Tigers are now what amounts to No. 27.)
The only other movement in Version 15.0 is connected to Marquette and Arizona, both of which had notable roster moves in recent days. Last Friday, Marquette’s Olivier-Maxence Prosper announced his intention to remain in the 2023 NBA Draft, meaning the Golden Eagles will no longer return every relevant player from a team that won the Big East regular-season title and Big East Tournament. Instead, they’re now losing their third-leading scorer (12.5 points per game) and second-leading rebounder (4.7 boards per game), which is why the Golden Eagles are down to No. 7 in the Top 25 And 1. Meantime, on Tuesday, former North Carolina standout Caleb Love announced his intention to transfer to Arizona. where he’ll join an already talented backcourt featuring Jaden Bradley and Kylan Boswell. That addition compelled me to move the Wildcats up to No. 16 in the Top 25 And 1, where Kansas remains No. 1 thanks largely to the addition of former Michigan All-American Hunter Dickinson and the return of two-time Naismith Memorial Defensive Player of the Year semifinalist Kevin McCullar.
A possible KU starting lineup now looks like this:
That’s a lineup with size, shooting and experience, one so strong that former five-star prospects like Elmarko Jackson and Arterio Morris will likely begin games on the bench. Combine that with the fact that Naismith Memorial Hall of Famer Bill Self — a man who has made 24 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and earned No. 1 seeds in 10 of the past 16 — will be the person developing the roster and coaching the team, and it’s pretty clear to me that Kansas will probably begin the season at No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll for the first time since 2018.
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