By the time March rolls around, you will start to see all the permutations that are weeding out the true national title contenders or pretenders. Depending on which side your team lies on often decides how seriously you are going to take it.
For example, not many people wanted to take stock when Kansas’ offensive firepower (or lack thereof) was tipped as a reason why they would fall apart in March, and they were right.
But as next season begins to draw near, there are already certain things you can use to predict potential national champions.
In CBS Sports’ latest article, “Why only these 25 college basketball teams can win the 2027 national championship,” David Cobb breaks down the three things that every single national champion since 2018 has done.
According to Cobb, in addition to being a high-major team in the tournament, every single title winner has at least done one of these three: enrolled a top-20 high school recruiting class, enrolled a top-20 transfer class, or returned their leading scorer.
When quickly combing through these parameters, you quickly find out that it is only Kansas’ recruiting class that ranks No. 3 in the country that is keeping them within a fighting chance of winning next season’s title.
Firstly, Bill Self and Co. have lost not just their top scorer, Darryn Peterson, who averaged slightly over 20 points per game, but also their second-top scorer, Tre White. White finished last season notching 13.5 points per game. As a matter of fact, the highest returner on next season's roster is sophomore guard Kohl Rosario, who brings back 3.4 points per game.
When you delve into their transfer class, there are still more questions than answers. As of publishing, Kansas currently holds the nation’s No. 27 overall transfer class, falling outside the requisite to win a national championship.
Kansas’ freshman class is predicted to prove vital
Next season, KU is reeling in five freshmen who are ranked inside the top 120 prospects according to 247Sports.
Below will be Kansas’ incoming freshman class listed out
Five-star small forward (No.1) Tyran Stokes
Five-star point/combo guard (No. 19) Taylen Kinney
Four-star power forward/center (No. 71) Davion Adkins
Four-star small forward (No. 93) Trent Perry
Four-star shooting guard (No. 119) Luke Barnett
Center (N/A) Grant Mordini
Small Forward (N/A) Atticus Richmond
The biggest thing this class offers is depth. Last season, what made Kansas’ offense fall apart wasn’t a lack of individual talent. On any given day, Darryn Peterson, Tre White or Melvin Council Jr could give you 20+ points, but when you move past those three, all of a sudden the production stops.
KU finished last season ranked No. 309 in the country with just 13.09 bench points per game. With Adkins, Perry and Barnett likely taking roles off the bench next season, that creates a depth of competition that did not exist last year. Combine that with Kohl Rosario and either Christian Reeves or Paul Mbiya and there is even more competition for a squad that has felt way too depleted as of late.
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