NCAA Basketball: Way-too-early top 25 power rankings for 2022-23 season

2021-22 season record: 28-9 (13-5 in SEC)

After back-to-back seasons of making it to the Elite 8, head coach Eric Musselman has turned Arkansas into an NCAA Basketball juggernaut. And that’s now showing on the recruiting trail, now with the No. 2 overall class for the 2022 group, bolstered by the pickup of five-star guard Anthony Black, a 6’7 ball-handler that can play all three perimeter positions.

Black joins two other five-star commits in 6’7 wing Jordan Walsh, as well as top-10 overall combo guard Nick Smith, who’ll be the team’s starting point guard next season whether or not star JD Notae comes back since Smith is more of a true ball-handler. Losing Stanley Umude in the backcourt will sting but this team also has three other top-100 guards (Banny Dunning, Joseph Pinion, Derrian Ford) that are also arriving on campus in the offseason. The competition for minutes will be stiff but there’s plenty of talent for Coach Musselman to use.

Besides Notae’s pending decision, the Razorbacks will be looking at what star big man Jaylin Williams does. His decision is 50/50 at this point but he’s one of the best passing bigs in NCAA Basketball and is a good two-way player overall. And the versatile Au’Diese Toney also could come back and his defense would be greatly needed next season as well. But just in case Toney is gone, the team already landed Missouri transfer Trevon Brazile to add to the rotation.

Only Duke has a better incoming recruiting class and if Notae and Williams both come back, Arkansas could very well be the team to beat. But as talented as they look on paper, the key newcomers are also young and unproven at the D-I level. And that’s why I give the edge to the No. 1 team on the list.