The 2017-18 preseason Newcomer of the Year was selected for the Big 12. Who earned the coveted honor?
Last season, the preseason Newcomer of the Year in the Big 12 was Manu Lacomte of the Baylor Bears, and, as with Josh Jackson and the preseason Freshman of the Year award, Lacomte would end the season by proving everyone right.
Lacomte would finish second on the team in scoring, with 12.2 points per game over 30.1 minutes per game. He also led the team with 3.8 assists per game and in free throw percentage over any player except Jonathan Davis who only appeared in 12 games.
He would help lead the Bears to a trip to the Sweet 16 where they would lose to eventually Final Four team the South Carolina Gamecocks.
Hoping to have that same type of impact will be the 2017-18 preseason Newcomer of the Year, Malik Newman with the Kansas Jayhawks.
Newman, who transferred from the Mississippi State Bulldogs, has been on fire for Kansas overseas and will likely continue that streak into next season. Newman was expected to be a one-and-done player who headed off to the NBA after one season and surprised many by choosing to transfer and continue his collegiate career.
However, he is a phenomenal talent and, while Devontae Graham has been pegged as the favorite to take home Player of the Year, Newman could easily take that honor out of his teammate’s hands.
Next: Check out the rest of the Big 12 preseason award winners
Kansas should once again be the favorite to win the Big 12, and Newman will be a massive part of their ultimate success or failure – the latter of which I do not see happening.