.svg){kind=icon}
In no particular order:
Villanova
Four imports from the transfer portal -- TJ Bamba (Washington State), Tyler Burton (Richmond), Hakim Hart (Maryland), and Lance Ware (Kentucky) -- have bolstered the Wildcats' roster entering their second season under Kyle Neptune.
Villanova also boasts two All-Big East First-Team candidates in Justin Moore (13.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists) and Eric Dixon (15.4 points, 6.6 rebounds) along with several ancillary pieces -- Mark Armstrong, Jordan Longino, and Brendan Hausen -- who should be significantly better than they were a year ago.
After finishing 17-17 in his first season as the Wildcats' head coach, Neptune has assembled a roster that's capable of returning Villanova near the top of the Big East standings.
Colorado
The final Pac-12 season for the Buffaloes could be one to remember.
Colorado returns 76.9 percent of its scoring from last season's team that won 18 games, headlined by a pair of all-conference players in KJ Simpson (15.9 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists) and Tristan da Silva (15.9 points, 4.8 rebounds). TCU transfer Eddie Lampkin will be an immediate starter at center while five-star freshman Cody Williams is the highest-rated signee in the modern era of the Buffaloes' program.
What does it all mean? Colorado has never won a Pac-12 regular season title, but that's a realistic goal for this group before this program returns to the Big 12 in 2024.
Wisconsin
Player retention is a major key in college basketball, and the Badgers have plenty of it. Wisconsin's top five scorers --- Chucky Hepburn, Steven Crowl, Connor Essegian, Tyler Wahl, and Max Klesmit --- are back from last season's team that won 20 games and lost eight contests by five points or fewer.
St. John's transfer AJ Storr (8.8 points) should also have an immediate impact with his ability to stretch the floor after shooting 40.4 percent from three-point range a year ago as a freshman.
The Badgers look like a team that should be capable of finishing near the top of the Big Ten standings and advancing in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
St. John's
The Red Storm haven't won an NCAA Tournament game since 2000, but that could change in 2024. Rick Pitino's first season as St. John's head coach has bonafide expectations thanks to a massive recruiting haul that saw the Hall-of-Fame head coach bring in 12 new players.
A pair of Ivy League transfers --- Jordan Dingle (Penn) and Chris Ledlum (Harvard) --- headline an impressive recruiting class that also features former North Carolina commit Simeon Wilcher. 6-11 big man Joel Soriano (15.2 points, 11.9 rebounds) is the lone holdover of significance.
The Big East is a monster, but so is Pitino. St. John's has the requisites to be a single-digit seed in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
New Mexico
Returning guards are the foundation for what normally leads to a breakthrough season. That's why there is so much hope in Albuquerque.
The Lobos' returning duo of Jaelen House (16.9 points, 4.7 assists, 3.9 rebounds, 2.7 steals) and Jamal Mashburn Jr. (19.1 points, 3.2 rebounds) is the best backcourt in the Mountain West and rising sophomore Donovan Dent averaged 9.3 points last season as a freshman in games where he logged 25 minutes or more.
A pair of quality transfers -- Mustapha Amzil (Dayton) and Nelly Junior Joseph (Iona) -- should round out the frontcourt.
After 22 wins a season ago, New Mexico seems primed to push for its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2014.
