Big Ten Basketball: Top 5 rising juniors for 2018-19

BOSTON, MA - MARCH 23: Carsen Edwards #3 of the Purdue Boilermakers reacts during the second half against the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament East Regional at TD Garden on March 23, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

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5. Zavier Simpson, Michigan

6-foot point guard Zavier Simpson played a pivotal role in the Michigan Wolverines run to the NCAA title game. He had quite the productive sophomore season in 2017-18, averaging 7.3 points, 3.7 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.3 steals per contest. The Wolverines won a school-record 33 victories, losing just eight contests last year.

Simpson found himself coming off the bench after starting the first four contests of the regular season, but he started the final 25 games of the season for the Wolverines. He’s got playmaking potential with the ball in his hands. He put up at least five assists in 15 contests last year. Michigan returns seven players from last year’s squad including Simpson.

Entering his junior year, look for Simpson to up his game as Michigan looks to make another deep run in the NCAA Tournament. He put up 16 points, five assists and four rebounds against Michigan State back on Jan. 13 last season. They’ll have to replace some talent in the frontcourt but their defense should remain the same.

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