Kansas basketball maintained its spot at No. 1 in the most recent ESPN Bracketology from Joe Lunardi.
The Kansas Jayhawks are on track to be the preseason No. 1 team for the fourth time in program history. The addition of Hunter Dickinson and Kevin McCullar returning for his final year of eligibility vaulted KU to the top of ESPN’s latest edition of way too early bracketology.
Kansas moved up from the No. 3 one-seed to No. 1 overall after McCullar announced that he’d come back. The Texas Tech transfer had been expected to keep his name in the NBA Draft pool after averaging 10.7 points and 7.0 rebounds per game as a senior. As great as Dickinson is, an argument can be made that McCullar’s return is the most impactful move of the offseason.
College basketball expert and self-proclaimed “bracketologist” Joe Lunardi had this to say about Kansas and Purdue, who recently moved to No. 2 in the overall rankings.
"“Kansas remains the clear preseason No. 1, but the Boilermakers have slipped in behind the Jayhawks as a probable repeat 1-seed with serious revenge on their minds.”"
The Boilermakers landed just one spot behind Kansas, and the other projected No. 1 seeds are Duke and Michigan State. On top of acquiring the nation’s top transfer, Hall of Fame head coach Bill Self has also reeled in Towson transfer Nick Timberlake, Texas transfer Arterio Morris, and 5-star recruit Elmarko Jackson.
Lunardi is not the only analyst to hold this sentiment, as KU is the consensus top team in the nation ahead of the 2023-24 season. An exciting year is in store for the Kansas basketball program.
To view the complete bracketology projections, click here.
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