College Basketball Preview Part I

By Marshall Weber

My Old Kentucky Home:

In addition to having sophomores Alex Poythress and Willie Cauley-Stein returning, Kentucky will once again have (very likely) one-and-done phenoms in Andrew Harrison and crown jewel Julius Randle to lead them to their second title in three years. At this point, it’s not really a question of if Randle will be good…but how good. More importantly…what unique/signature intangible will he bring? Wall had his own dance, Anthony Davis had his Frida Kahlo inspired uni-brow, and most recently Nerlens had his flat-top fade…what will Randle bring? 

Staying somewhat quiet in comparison to their hyped rival...

Louisville comes into this season fully loaded. With a squad of experienced and skillful players, Hall of Famer and newly tatted Rick Pitino has a very good chance to do what only two coaches since 1973 have done…win back to back National Titles (Duke 91-92, Florida 06-07). Led by Pre-Season All-American Russ Smith, Final Four MVP Luke Hancock, rebounding machine Chane Behanan, and sleeper Montrezl Harrell, the Cardinals have the depth and talent to enter this elite category. 

Bottom line---If both Louisville and Kentucky stay relatively healthy and can check the respective egos at the door, we may be in store for the one of the most heated (and possibly greatest) National Championship games of all time.

A Kingslayer in the Big 12?

Not unlike the Targaeryns dominating the Iron Throne for nearly 300 years, the Kansas Jayhawks have won 9 consecutive Big 12 titles and with Canadian wunderkind Andrew Wiggins they’ll more than likely get their tenth this year. In addition to making up for the loss of Ben McLemore and making Kansas a legit title contender, Wiggins, the number No. 1 Prospect in his class, is the the choice for the Newcomer of the Year, Conference MVP, and Player of the Year.

Baylor will also be making some noise this year. Not unlike their football team, the Bears can put up points, and were second in both Scoring Offense and Points Per Possession in the 2012-13 season. In addition to bringing back court-specs and looking like Morpheus, Isiah Austin is the Big 12’s best Center. Despite recovering from a torn labrum he suffered in April, and thus having to forgo the 2013 NBA Draft, Austin is the spark the Bears need to claim the throne and win what could be their second Big 12 athletic title this year.

Don’t sleep on TCU either. 

Maybe I should rephrase---I have a better shot at weaseling a date with Anna Kendrick in the Tuscan summer than the Frogs have at winning the Big 12 this year---but TCU could end up playing spoiler this season for a lot of teams. The Frogs may have only won two Big 12 games last year, one of which being against Kansas in Fort Worth, but the additions of 4-Star Center Karviar Shepard and Forward Brandon Parish could lead to some dramatic improvements for Frogs in 2013-14. The Frogs may only make the NIT, but there’s no denying that Head Coach Trent Johnson has his team moving in the right direction. Maybe the disappointment of the Frogs’ football team will echo in a pleasant surprise by their basketball team.

Not sure why Marcus Smart decided to stay at Oklahoma State, but whatever it is---I love it. With Smart back, and everything listed above, the Big 12 has a very good chance to make up for it’s rather lackluster football season (yes it’s lackluster)… and produce one of the more exciting conferences in college hoops this year.

Heroes and Villains:

In addition to Pinterest, Arcade Fire, and juice cleanses, Creighton’s Doug McDermott is one of the whitest things in America. It doesn't help that McDermott plays for a Jesuit school in Nebraska or that he stole Bill Murray's undershirt-swag from Space Jam. McDermott’s (or Heavy D as I call him), brilliant career will end the same way it began…as a walk-on. After Creighton Guard Grant Gibbs was granted a sixth year of eligibility, Heavy D gave up his scholarship to Gibbs and thus will have "walk-on" status for his senior year. Also---after extensive research, he has seemingly no relation to the fantastic actor Dylan McDermott.

One GIF. So much class. 

Not sure how I feel about sharing a name with Marshall Henderson. He tweeted out “White Girl Wednesday” the night before his arrest. No, he wasn’t referring to actual women. It also shouldn’t surprise anyone he was once at Texas Tech. But regardless of (‘possibly’) loving cocaine more than Bolivian nightclub owner, Henderson actually seems to be a decent guy and may just be faking this Kenny Powers-persona in order to stir up the other teams in the SEC. Regardless of whether or not this is just a Prestige-illusion, he’s undeniably entertaining and will be a lot of fun to watch this season.

Tournament Heroes Spike Albrecht and Kevin Ware, of Michigan and Louisville respectively, will both be returning. Albrecht made himself famous for scoring 23 points in both of Michigan’s Final Four games and almost put Louisville away early. Not bad for a kid who averaged less than 3 points per game all season. He also tweeted at Bro-goddess Kate Upton after the game. Pretty sure he got shut down, but you gotta give the kid credit for trying.

With his leg no longer looking like something from the first twenty minutes of Saving Private Ryan, Kevin Ware will be back the Cardinals and will compliment All-American Russ Smith and Luke Hancock quite nicely. If anything, it should be a great comeback story for Ware.