NCAA Basketball: Way-too-early rankings of 2022 PK85 Invitational teams

2. Oregon Ducks

The Ducks have rebounded from a miserable start to the season to get on the bubble but this is a roster that looks like a double-digit seed instead of a threat to make a run. It’s a fairly old roster but it features a lot of good but not great pieces. They’re likely losing start point guard Will Richardson and second-leading scorer Jacob Young but very well could return the rest of the roster, including key pieces Quincy Gurrier, DeVion Harmon and N’Faly Dante.

What helps Oregon is a pair of five-star commits for next season in top-20 big man Kel’el Ware and Dior Johnson, a top-10 overall point guard prospect that raises the team’s ceiling. These two along with the returning supporting cast should be top-15 good in 2021-22 and a favorite to win this bracket.

1. Alabama Crimson Tide

The roster scenarios for Alabama will be intriguing, as there aren’t any clear-cut projected 1st rounders. But odds are that leading scorer Jaden Shackelford will be gone, along with senior guard Keon Ellis. Freshman JD Davison and junior Jahvon Quinerly are both pro candidates but odds are good that one of them will return, although who is currently unknown.

What they do have coming in are a pair of five-star prospects in guard Jaden Bradley and wing Brandon Miller, two guys with surefire NBA potential. And with Texas Tech transfer Nimari Burnett set to return from injury and big man Charles Bediako likely returning, this team is going to be loaded for 2022-23, even if the worst-case scenario of departures occur.