NCAA Basketball: Top 25 frontcourts for 2020-21 season

For the second season in a row, Coach John Calipari has sought out strong talent via the transfer market to provide immediate production in the frontcourt. Bucknell transfer Nate Sestina didn’t pan out in a huge way last season, but the Wildcats already featured a solid frontcourt duo in EJ Montgomery and Nick Richards.

This season both have departed for the NBA Draft and Coach Cal’s options are largely limited to inexperienced, yet high upside, talent from the 2020 recruiting class. However, this year’s version in Wake Forest star Olivier Sarr may work very well.

Sarr, who is pending a waiver from the SEC after receiving immediate eligibility from the NCAA, was a workhorse for the Demon Deacons last season. More of an offensive weapon than a defensive savant, Sarr averaged 13.7 points per game dominating with moves on the block and hitting from the midrange.

His size gives him a huge advantage on the glass and as a reliable rim protector in close. His experience and production are going to be extremely valuable at a position of need in 2020.

The only frontcourt player to see the floor last season was former top-25 recruit Keion Brooks Jr. After being reduced to a more minimal rotational role, Brooks is looking to provide a much bigger involvement for Kentucky this season.

Playing next to Sarr, there’s a good chance he can thrive in the high-post and play downhill with space. There’s a lot in Brooks repertoire that didn’t get displayed in 2019 making him a solid breakout candidate this year.

Freshman Lance Ware and Isaiah Jackson are the final pieces to the Wildcats frontcourt and guard-dominated team. Both arrive as solid rebounding prospects, but Ware may have a more immediate impact with the team.

Ware already has a solid defensive floor to his skill set, but the length on this year’s team is going to only accentuate that aspect even more. Brook’s development offensively at this stage is very similar to Ware’s and the pair can expect to see many of their opportunities directly off the glass.

Since Coach Cal primarily utilized three frontcourt options, under a similar roster construction to this year’s team, Jackson and Ware are fighting for the final huge chunk of rotational minutes. However, the 2020 group has a lot of upside that can complement the best skills of the Wildcats incoming backcourt.