Busting Brackets
Fansided

Big East Basketball: Way-too-early 2019-20 preseason Power Rankings

By Brian Foley

VILLANOVA, PA - FEBRUARY 27: Collin Gillespie #2 of the Villanova Wildcats drives to the basket against Markus Howard #0 of the Marquette Golden Eagles in the first half at Finneran Pavilion on February 27, 2019 in Villanova, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
VILLANOVA, PA - FEBRUARY 27: Collin Gillespie #2 of the Villanova Wildcats drives to the basket against Markus Howard #0 of the Marquette Golden Eagles in the first half at Finneran Pavilion on February 27, 2019 in Villanova, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – MARCH 02: Kamar Baldwin #3 of the Butler Bulldogs drives to the basket against Jermaine Samuels #23 of the Villanova Wildcats in the first half at the Wells Fargo Center on March 2, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – MARCH 02: Kamar Baldwin #3 of the Butler Bulldogs drives to the basket against Jermaine Samuels #23 of the Villanova Wildcats in the first half at the Wells Fargo Center on March 2, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

8. Butler Bulldogs

Last season: 16-17, 7-11 (five seed NIT, first round)
Key departures: G Paul Jorgensen (11.7 ppg), C Nate Fowler (5.5 ppg), C Joey Brunk (7.6 ppg)
Key additions: F Bryce Nze, F Markeese Hastings
Recruiting Class (5th): G Khalif Battle, C John-Michael Mulloy
2019-20 National Projection: 83rd
Joker Says: “In their last moments, people show you who they really are.”

Butler features one of the oldest teams in the conference, as the top six players in the Bulldogs projected rotation are slated to all be juniors or seniors.

All-Big East second-team member  – and captain of the “how did that crooked jump shot go in?” squad – Kamar Baldwin will once again lead the way for Butler. Baldwin is a tested defender and a versatile offensive threat (17 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 3.1 apg), but his poor efficiency has held him back from being a true no. 1 option. Of the 35 high-major players who posted a usage rate north of 25 and played at least 80 percent of their team’s minutes last season, Baldwin ranked just 28th in offensive rating.

Butler has some interesting players next to Baldwin, but they are all seemingly one skill short of a full arsenal. Sean McDermott can shoot, but doesn’t dribble. Aaron Thompson can dribble, but doesn’t shoot. Jordan Tucker can theoretically do both things on the wing, but instead plays more like a poor man’s Jayson Tatum, content to simply fire off-the-bounce threes rather than use his enviable 6-foot-7 frame to get to the hoop and draw fouls.

None of the four aforementioned players, Baldwin, McDermott, Thompson, and Tucker, are finished products yet, so there is still some room for improvement. Tucker has only started nine games in his career after transferring following a semester at Duke in 2017-18, and he might have the highest ceiling of anyone on the roster. But with absolutely no size on the roster in 2019-20, the Bulldogs are going to need stellar perimeter play if they have any chance of returning to the NCAA tournament.

Butler has not missed the dance in consecutive seasons since the Todd Lickliter era, nor have the Bulldogs finished with sub-.500 conference records in back-to-back years since the early ’90s. It’s never wise to bet against the perennially overachieving ‘Dawgs, but it’s going to be tough sledding in 2019-20, especially with so many Big East squads taking a step forward.

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