4. Oklahoma Sooners
The Sooners have a completely new roster, adding four transfers this offseason. One of them is Pittsburgh center John Hugley, who is more of a back-to-the-basket guy. It’s hard to judge this roster on paper because of all the new pieces but the hope is that with head coach Porter Moser, they’re going to have a team good enough to compete in the Big 12.
The concern here is that there are simply many more questions as to both fit the team potential for Johnson at Oklahoma compared to the other three options. He may or may not work well with Hugley in the frontcourt and could either be a focal point or an afterthought in the offense. Plus, it’s the least likely of the remaining four to make the NCAA Tournament.
3. Arizona Wildcats
This is under the belief that star forward and last year’s leading scorer Azuolas Tubelis is indeed gone and off to the NBA Draft. That leaves the power forward spot wide open unless the program is confident that Henri Veesar is able to take over as a breakout sophomore candidate.
A frontcourt dup of Johnson and returning center Oumar Ballo would instantly be one of the best defensive duos in all of NCAA Basketball next season. And with how potent the offenses have been under head coach Tommy Lloyd, there’s a chance we see the best from the former Aztec on that level.