It's almost time for college hoops! Jay Bilas picks his top players to watch
Jay BilasOct 21, 2026, 08:30 AM ET
- College basketball analyst for ESPN and ESPN Insider
- Played and coached at Duke
- Practicing attorney
Do you remember the players who were honored with Preseason All-America last season? And, please -- don't cheat and look at the walls of the arena for the elaborate Preseason All-America plaques or the Preseason All-America banners hanging from the rafters.
You can't, and neither can I -- and I named the team myself.
The last player selected in the NFL draft is called Mr. Irrelevant. (Of course, that is ridiculous. Those undrafted should be considered far more irrelevant, but I digress.) In that vein, perhaps Preseason All-America picks should be rebranded as Irrelevant All-America. Ugh. That sounds like a tough sell.
Look, I get it. The naming of this team is part prognostication, part primer for an exciting upcoming season and part sales vehicle. It is the player equivalent of the preseason Top 25, a projection that doesn't mean anything beyond our excitement and anticipation of the great things to come in a couple of short weeks. It's just fun.
This has the chance to be an extraordinary college basketball season. Over the past several years, the level of play and the overall talent in the game have never been better. While those "in charge" are on Capitol Hill crying chaos over conditions surrounding the game that are all of their own making through rules they have passed or their own negligence, the college game has never been healthier, better across the board or more popular and higher rated among fans. If this is chaos, bring on more of it. Players are staying in school longer and the talent level continues to be jaw-dropping.
So, as the drum roll begins and craftspeople around the country ready themselves to carve these names into stone for posterity, here are my 2027 Preseason All-America teams.
First team
Jeremy Fears Jr., Michigan State
Key stat: Recorded 328 assists last year, the sixth-best mark in college basketball history.
Key stat: Only player in the nation to average 19 PPG, 5.0 APG and 2.0 SPG.
Key stat: Recorded 12 points, three assists, two blocked shots and a game-high nine rebounds at McDonald's All American Game.
Key stat: Scored at least 20 points 13 times last season, including 27 in the season opener against Arizona and against Auburn in January.
Key stat: Led the Big 12 in blocks (91) and blocks per game (2.6), ranking fourth and fifth in the country.
Second team
Third team
Silas Demary Jr., UConn
John Blackwell, Duke
Honorable mentions
Trey McKenney, Michigan
Josh Hubbard, Mississippi State
Preseason All-Defensive picks
Joseph Tugler, Houston
Ivan Kharchenkov, Arizona
Flory Bidunga, Louisville
Dame Sarr, Duke
Rueben Chinyelu, Florida
Killyan Toure, Iowa State
Silas Demary Jr., UConn
Preseason All-Freshman picks
Tyran Stokes, Kansas
Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, Duke
Jordan Smith Jr., Arkansas
Caleb Holt, Arizona
Marcus Spears Jr., Texas
Bruce Branch III, BYU
Quentin Coleman, Illinois
Preseason All-Transfer picks
Milan Momcilovic, Kentucky
John Blackwell, Duke
PJ Haggerty, Texas A&M
Flory Bidunga, Louisville
Juke Harris, Tennessee
Tounde Yessoufou, St. John's
Terrence Brown, North Carolina
All-Coach Newcomer picks
Luke Murray, Boston College
Michael Malone, North Carolina
Bryan Hodgson, Providence
Ronald Nored, Butler
Alan Huss, Creighton
Randy Bennett, Arizona State
Ben Jacobson, Utah State
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