NCAA Basketball: Rui Hachimura the favorite in National Player of the Year race

The NCAA Basketball National Player of the Year race finally has a clear frontrunner in Gonzaga’s Rui Hachimura. Which players have proven to be his biggest competition?

It took a full month into the NCAA Basketball season, but Rui Hachimura has finally given us a clear leader at the front of the National Player of the Year race.

2018-19 started has the rare year where there was no consensus favorite or group of favorites to eventually be named the country’s best player and, for a while, no one was stepping up to fill the void.

Duke’s Zion Williamson was the name everyone knew but he may not even be the best player on his own team. Veterans like Carsen Edwards and Luke Maye have played well but have not been at Player of the Year level.

Then Hachimura, who entered the season as a projected NBA lottery pick because of his upside, outplayed Williamson as he led Gonzaga to win over Duke. Then he put forth a key 22-point, 11-rebound performance at Creighton. Then he dropped 26 points against Washington – including the game-winner with 0.6 seconds left.

That shot not only cemented Hachimura as a superstar who is already starting to live up to his potential but also as the clear favorite in this race.

He’s the clear best player on the best team in the country and already has a pair of signature moments that often play a role in these awards.

Of course, it’s still early and many other players are having great seasons as well. Who are Hachimura’s biggest challengers? Here are the current top 10 in the National Player of the Year race:

Narrowly missed: Ja Morant, Carsen Edwards, Ignas Brazdeikis, Luguentz Dort,  Jarrett Culver