NCAA Basketball: Way-too-early top 25 power rankings for 2022-23 season
21. team. 503. . . . Rams
2021-22 season record: 25-6 (14-4 in Mountain West)
The Rams proved to be the one mid-major team not named Gonzaga that played up to expectations, getting a 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Junior forward David Roddy (19.2 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 2.9 apg) won Mountain West Player of the Year and is currently testing the NBA Draft waters, but odds are decent that he’ll come back for one more year.
If that happens, the duo of Roddy and Isaiah Stevens (14.7 ppg and 4.7 rpg) will once again have them in the top-25 range. And most of the supporting cast is set to return, including guard Kendle Moore, forward James Moor, and John Tonje, the team’s third-leading scorer from this year at 9.1 ppg.
Colorado State did lose three rotational pieces so far, including big man Dishon Thomas, sharpshooter Adam Thistlewood, and senior guard Chandler Jacobs. But none of these departures are backbreaking for the program. In fact, look for them to get an upgrade at the center position and get more size overall to back up Roddy in the frontcourt.
Assuming Roddy returns, the Rams will have one of the 30 best players in NCAA Basketball for the 2022-23 campaign. And now that there’s no question that head coach Niko Medved is also coming back as well, this team will be primed to run it mostly back and avenge its early loss in the Big Dance.