15. Oklahoma
It took Porter Moser four years to lead the Sooners to the NCAA Tournament and it surprisingly came in their first season in a very tough SEC. Obviously Oklahoma doesn’t want to sneak into the Tourney as a 9-seed and get knocked out in the opening round on a yearly basis and Moser has put in the work already this past month to rebuild his roster in the country’s toughest conference.
There’s plenty of scoring action coming Oklahoma’s way, namely in veteran guard Nijel Pack out of Miami and former Saint Joseph’s guard Xzayvier Brown. Pack neared 14 points a game during a lost season for the Hurricanes and has extensive history as a big-time player. Brown on the other hand was just a sophomore last season and became one of the A-10’s top scorers, with hopes of continuing his brilliance in this tougher league.
That’s not all the big scoring coming to town as Notre Dame’s Tae Davis averaged 15 points a game in the ACC last season. The Sooners definitely needed some help in the frontcourt and he’s a great addition. He’s far from the only new face, as former Alabama forward Derrion Reid recently committed to the Sooners. A former 5-star prospect, he could be the best piece of them all and he’s the only one who averaged less than 13 points a game last season.
How these players manage in the SEC and in Moser’s system obviously matters but there’s significant talent heading to Norman and the Sooners should be excited. They didn’t land the top players in the portal, but Oklahoma got some good pieces and should be in position for another trip to the NCAA Tournament if everything falls right. Moser’s job might depend on it.