NCAA Basketball: Analyzing top 10 teams for top-50 wing Kaden Cooper

Gonzaga Bulldogs

The WCC program was the first to get an official visit with Cooper and has been in the mix since the beginning. They’re one of the best NCAA Basketball programs and a consistent NCAA Tournament team. Gonzaga already has top-40 shooting guard, Dusty Stromer in the 2023 class, and Cooper would be yet another top-60 commit for the program in recent years.

The Bulldogs are likely to lose starting wing Julian Strawther after next season and former five-star guard Hunter Sallis could also be gone if he has a breakout season. But if he doesn’t leave, that could limit how much Cooper plays as a freshman. And of course, Gonzaga could very well land a key transfer as well since that’s something they’ve become famous for.

Kansas Jayhawks

The reigning national champion Jayhawks are loaded up on the wings, having a pair of five-star freshmen in Gradey Dick and MJ Rice. There’s a real strong chance that at least one of them will only be around for one season but it’s usually rare that freshmen start at Kansas anyways unless they’re ranked in the top-10 overall.

If Cooper is a multi-year player anyways, he can have a big impact long-term with the Jayhawks. He could potentially develop in the same way as Ochai Agbaji, who went from being known as just a defender into an All-American and Big 12 Player of the Year, as well as a first-round NBA Draft pick recently. Coach Bill Self has a great history of developing players, as well as winning a lot of games.