Tennessee has made a substantial leap in the latest Top 25 and 1 college basketball rankings from CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish following this week’s commitment from five-star Julian Parrish, who explained his decision on CBS Sports HQ. The Volunteers are one of six teams from the SEC slotted inside the poll, coming in at No. 10 as a widely-accepted preseason contender next fall.
“I picked Tennessee because I have a great relationship with coach (Rick) Barnes, (assistant) coach (Justin) Gainey and the rest of their staff,” Phillips said. “I took my visit down there a few months ago. The campus and everything is beautiful. In their system, I can do well next year. That’s why I chose them.”
With the addition of Phillips, Tennessee currently holds the No. 22 class for 2022, per the 247Sports Composite. Anchored by several five-stars, Duke is currently in the top spot followed by Arkansas at No. 2.
Here’s a look at the full Top 25 and 1 from CBS Sports entering the summer ahead of the 2022-23 college basketball season.
26. Saint Louis Billikens
25 Ohio State Buckeyes
24. Dayton Flyers
23. Purdue Boilermakers
22. Alabama Crimson Tide
CBS Sports:”The Buckeyes’ ranking is based on Zed Key and Justice Sueing returning and being joined by a top-five recruiting class featuring four top-65 prospects. Transfers Sean McNeil (West Virginia), Isaac Likekele (Oklahoma State) and Tanner Holden (Wright State) will provide Chris Holtmann with a nice trio of veteran newcomers.”
247Sports’ take: Perhaps the most important player “addition” of this group is Purdue being able to retain 7-foot-4 center Zach Edey, a second-team All-Big Ten big man who is returning for his junior season. Edey’s decision to skip the NBA Draft is a huge win for the Boilermakers, who rely on his rim protection and production — 14.4 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game.
21. Colorado State Rams
20 Michigan State Spartans
19. Texas A&M Aggies
18. Indiana Hoosiers
17. Villanova Wildcats
CBS Sports: “The Aggies’ ranking is based on Texas A&M returning every relevant player — besides Quenton Jackson — who helped the Aggies make the championship game of the NIT. Buzz Williams made the NCAA Tournament in Year 4 at both Marquette and Virginia Tech and should do the same at Texas A&M.”
247Sports’ take: Michigan State recently landed Carson Cooper, a 6-foot-11 center who joins a 2022 signing class that includes four-star big man Jaxon Kohler and four-star point guard Tre Holloman, two top-75 prospects who inked their letters of intent last November during the early signing period, per Spartan Tailgate.
16. Texas Longhorns
15. Arizona Wildcats
14. TCU Horned Frogs
13 Auburn Tigers
CBS Sports:”The Longhorns’ ranking is based on Texas returning the top two scorers from a team that finished 15th at KenPom – namely Timmy Allen and Marcus Carr, each of whom is using a fifth year of eligibility. Chris Beard is adding to that core a top-15 recruiting class highlighted by five-star prospects Dillon Mitchell and Arterio Morris.”
247Sports’ take: Despite a pair of notable losses to the NBA Draft, Auburn is still expected to return four of its top six scorers and Bruce Pearl likes the makeup of his 2022-23 team. Keep an eye on five-star freshman center Yohan Traore, who could be the SEC’s next big impact player.
12 Michigan Wolverines
11 Creighton Blue Jays
CBS Sports:”The Wolverines’ ranking is based on a returning core of Hunter Dickinson and Moussa Diabate being joined by an incoming class highlighted by Princeton transfer Jaelin Llewellyn and top-40 prospect Jett Howard.”
247Sports’ take: Considering Ryan Nembhard, Trey Alexander, Arthur Kaluma and Rati Andronikashvili will all be sophomore this fall after impactful freshman seasons, there’s reason to believe Creighton will be even better than last year’s team that took eventual national champion Kansas to the brink of elimination in the NCAA Tournament’s second round.
Tennessee landing the aforementioned five-star is a much-needed pull for the Volunteers in this 2022 recruiting cycle. Per GoVols247’s Grant Ramey, The 6-foot-8, 200-pound Phillips is the No. 12 overall prospect in the 2022 class according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite. He’s ranked no. 4 among small forwards and no. 1 overall in Missouri, where he attends Link Academy. He took his official visit to Tennessee in September, after a visit from Barnes and his staff. Tennessee coaches made another trip to see Phillips this spring after his recruitment reopened. Phillips decommitted from LSU on March 18, following the firing of Will Wade. Since getting back on the market, he has visited Auburn, South Carolina and the Overtime Elite league, while also showing interest in the G-League.
Those expecting Duke to level off after the Blue Devils’ legendary coach retired, think again. First-year coach and former program star John Scheyer holds the nation’s top-ranked recruiting class for 2022 and is currently no. 1 for 2023, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. Four five-star prospects should make up most of the starting lineup for a Duke team that replaces Paolo Banchero, Mark Williams and Wendell Moore, among others, off last season’s Final Four squad. Dick Vitale’s third for “Diaper Dandies” should be quenched when he sees the lineup Scheyer puts on the court later this fall as a preseason top 10 team.
The defending national champions replace Christian Braun, but 247Sports insiders expect the Jayhawks to have a deep roster and several under-utilized players to see increased minutes with development next season, including Bobby Pettiford. Notes 247Sports national analyst Kevin Flaherty, Pettiford “could start to show why the staff was so high on him earlier this year and push for time behind and next to Dajuan Harris and Joseph Yesufu. And while Zach Clemence’s experience gives him the leg up here over incoming big men Ernest Udeh or Zuby Ejiofor, Bill Self will be spoiled for choice in options. and rim protector.”
After losing Kendall Brown and James Akinjo to the NBA Draft, Baylor’s Scott Drew needed Flo Thamba back as a potential cornerstone piece to next year’s success and got his wish last month. Thamba is taking advantage of his extra year of eligibility and will lead the charge for the Bears after a career campaign where he averaged 6.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, including averaging 9.8 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game once Jonathon Tchamwa-Tchatchoua was lost for the season, according to Bears Illustrated. In our way-too-early view, the Bears and Jayhawks look to be the teams to beat in the Big 12.
The Bruins will be without Johnny Juzang next fall, but UCLA guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. will be returning for his senior season after opting not to enter the 2022 NBA Draft, resulting in a major win for the program. And with Jaylen Clark and Peyton Watson on hand, the Bruins are more than equipped to deal with the absence of Juzang. Bailey is the no. 7 overall player in the 247Sports Composite, and he can add some athletic oomph and shot creation to a team that could use it. Adem Bona is a five-star big man with terrific athleticism as well, and could be a key to this team’s national title hopes as he continues to develop. Also, don’t forget about former top-50 big man Mac Etienne, who could form a high-upside platoon with Bona.
After losing All-Americans Drew Timme and Chet Holmgren to the NBA Draft, Mark Few’s Gonzaga team will look vastly different next season, yet still should be considered one of the early frontrunners. Keep an eye on that backcourt, which also includes…
Source: 247sports.com