College basketball has had the pleasure of witnessing many of the brightest young talents that the sport has seen in recent memory. Watching some of these legends make the jump from college to the next level of stardom is always amazing to witness. However, there are players who change the landscape and history of hoops every season, yet certain "NBA-only" fans never get to experience the thrill of watching them in action. Then, of course, there are the names that all basketball fans eventually come to know.
CBS Sports columnists and hosts of the network's Eye on College Basketball podcast, Matt Norlander and Gary Parrish, recently surveyed 100 anonymous coaches across the country about an assortment of topics. One of the main questions asked was essentially: "Who's going to be the best player this season?"
Two players from the 2024-25 NCAA All-American teams were mentioned by those 100 coaches, and naturally, they were the top two vote-getters on this list. One of these men got 51% of the votes and was obviously far above his fellow competitors. That guy is Purdue's senior point guard, Braden Smith, who clearly seems like the early favorite to win the 2025-26 NCAA Men's National Player of the Year award. The other All-American on this list that received the second-most votes is the reigning Big 12 player of the year, JT Toppin. The Texas Tech center obtained 14% of the votes and is expected to make a big push for another Big 12 player of the year award after shockingly electing to return for an additional season in Lubbock.
We now get to the third-most popular name among the nation's coaches, and it's one that Jayhawk nation will certainly approve of. If you have kept up with any stage of basketball recently, whether it's the NBA, college, or high school, then you've probably heard the name Darryn Peterson. The projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft and the face of this year's Kansas basketball team acquired 9% of the votes from the poll. "Bucket Jones" will undeniably have the brightest spotlight on him throughout the entire season, and we'll see what he can do leading an ambitious KU squad.
One anonymous coach had this to say when explaining why he picked Peterson as the best player in the country, "Give me the number one pick and let's go from there. Especially a lead guard. Guards always affect winning more." Another coach who also chose Peterson said: "He will have the ball in his hands and he will prove to be a little more steady and consistent than Dybantsa, although AJ will have more loud moments." It seems as coaches are expecting Peterson to be a more consistent and straightforward player, one who focuses on what his team needs, rather than on flashy plays or the unpredictable traits that top recruits often carry.
Peterson's high school-turned-conference rival, AJ Dybantsa, was next on the list, receving 7% of the coaches' vote. The BYU forward is projected to be the No. 2 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft and, like Peterson, will have the nations eyes on him all season. On January 31, we'll get the delight of witnessing a matchup between these generational talents when Dybantsa and BYU travel to Lawrence, Kansas, to take on Peterson and the Jayhawks. The lights will surely be brighter than imaginable for this one, so mark your calendars.
A few other names included on this list: Donovan Dent (UCLA, 5% of the votes), Cam Boozer (Duke, 4% of the votes), Yaxel Lendeborg (Michigan, 4% of the votes), PJ Haggerty (Kansas State, 2% of the votes), Bennett Stirtz (Iowa, 2% of the votes), and Milos Uzan (Houston, 2% of the votes).
There will be players not on this list who will make us question how we forgot about them when it's all said and done. One of those hoopers could very well be a fellow Jayhawk, and if that's the case, then the team probably fared pretty well. Only time will tell if these players live up to the hype surrounding them in the preseason. With under 40 days to go until the season tips off, the wait to find out who the nation's real "studs" are is almost over.