NCAA Basketball: Preseason top-25 mid-major power rankings for 2021-22 season

24. Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns

Louisiana finished 4th in the Sun Belt last season and saw both of their two best scorers (Cedric Russell and Mylik Wilson) transfer to Ohio State and Texas Tech respectfully this offseason as well. So the fact that they managed to still claim a top-25 spot speaks of the talent they were not only able to keep, but also bring into the program.

The biggest newsworthy move for the Cajuns was bringing in Jordan Brown, a former five-star prospect and High School McDonald’s All-American whose father was a Hall of Fame player at Louisiana. He averaged 9.4 and 5.2 rpg at Arizona and was the Pac-12 6th Man of the Year. The funny thing is he might not even start at Louisiana either.

That’s because the Cajuns return both Theo Akwuba and Don Gueye for another year. Akwuba averaged nearly a double-double and was the Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year at the center position. Gueye averaged 9.9 ppg and 8.2 rpg at the forward spot and is one of the better offensive rebounders in the conference.

The backcourt is the big question but there’s some depth there at least. Trajan Wesley is back after missing all of last season with a foot injury, while Ty Harper is looking for a breakout sophomore campaign. There also are three transfer guards in Antwann Jones (Creighton), Jalen Dalcourt (San Jose State), and Greg Williams (St. John’s) and if just one of them can become a lead guard, Louisiana will be in great shape as a contender in the Sun Belt.