Texas rises, Gonzaga and St. John's fall in updated preseason top 25 power ranking for 2026-27 season

Barring the NCAA winning some of these appeals, it's looking likely to happen, which will cause havoc throughout the sport. For us, that means we'll need to do regular updates as to who the teams to beat are for the upcoming season.

Here's an updated look at the top-25 power rankings, including some movement up and down after some offseason updates.

It's the beginning of August and fewer than 100 days until the start of the 2026-27 college basketball season. And still, there's a ton to decide when it comes to each team's roster. Thanks to multiple ongoing lawsuits challenging the new 5-for-5 age-based eligibility rule, we could see hundreds of players who ran out of eligibility after last season get one more year. 

1. Florida Gators

With four starters returning, including the reigning SEC Defensive Player of the Year (Rueben Chinyelu), all Kentucky has been waiting for is Denzel Aberdeen, who was a key guard off the bench for the national title team a couple of years ago. If he’s cleared to go, he could be an upgrade over Lee in the starting lineup. But with everyone else back from a team that earned a 1-seed in the last NCAA Tournament, it’s hard to see a team better than Florida to open the season.

2. Duke Blue Devils

Duke isn’t likely to add to its already stacked roster for next season, having already done its work early on. John Blackwell is one of the best transfers from the transfer portal, while Boumte-Boumtje, who isn’t able to leave for the NBA Draft until 2028, had a strong offseason and could be in the rotation as another depth piece in the frontcourt. They remain the clear favorite in the ACC and possibly the entire nation.

3. Illinois Fighting Illini

Besides returning all of the rotation pieces eligible, Illinois made two big moves this offseason. One was landing Stefan Vaaks after a big freshman campaign at Providence, while the other was landing Quentin Coleman after he decommitted from Wake Forest early in the offseason. After a great run with the U19 Team USA squad, he looks every bit of a star freshman to watch for the team. Hence why they’re unlikely to make any additional moves.

4. Texas Longhorns

Texas big move of late wasn’t with an expected transfer but rather Marcus Spears Jr., a five-star prospect who elected to reclass and join the program for the next two years. For a team that already had some of the best frontcourt depth, Spears only makes them better if he can have a significant impact. The rest of the roster is set, led by returning star big man Vokietatis. 

5. UConn Huskies

UConn made many of its big moves early in the offseason, including landing Najai Hines and Nikolas Khamenia in the frontcourt. They also filled out the depth chart with big man Oscar Giltay and Nils Machowski, a quality shooter from Wofford. We’ll see if they look to add a guard with Ball set to miss next season, but they should also be set for 2026-27.

6. Tennessee Volunteers

It’s hard to see what else the Vols could do this offseason, considering how much talent they added in the past few months. They have several lead scorers from different teams, led by former All-ACC forward Juke Harris. It’s possible they look to add another big man that’s proven at the high-major level, but Tennessee should be fine in the backcourt.

7. Houston Cougars

After losing its entire backcourt this offseason, Houston did a good job in landing two of the top perimeter transfers in the portal in Dedan Jr. Thomas and Corey Hadnot. Delrecco Gillespie will be the projected starting center, with Tugler reportedly sliding to the four-spot. The Cougars likely won’t add much to the roster, which is set to compete for another Big 12 championship. 

8. Michigan Wolverines

The biggest coaching carousel move of the offseason came late, with national champion Dusty May leaving Michigan for the NBA's Dallas Mavericks. Assistant Mike Boynton Jr. takes over, bringing everyone back except LJ Cason. It’s still a top-10 caliber roster, especially if Trey McKenney takes a leap as a sophomore breakout candidate. But there’s now a question as to whether the coach is good enough to maximize the talent.

9. Arkansas Razorbacks

Arkansas’ work to finish out the roster has been via the high school pipeline. Both Davion Thompson and Caleb Ourigou not only committed in the past month or so, but they also elected to reclass to join them for the upcoming season. That likely takes them out of the running for any possible transfer. Now, they’re hoping to get Miikia Muurinen cleared by the NCAA to compete.

10. Virginia Cavaliers

One of two high-major teams (Purdue) to not lose a single player to the transfer portal, Virginia brought back star big man Thijs De Ridder, along with sophomore breakout candidate Chance Mallory. Guards Christian Harmon and Jurian Dixon add to the perimeter depth, while the frontcourt depth is up there among the best. 

11. Louisville Cardinals

Louisville was one of the earliest teams to strike in the transfer portal, landing Jackson Shelstad and Flory Bidunga in the same weekend at the beginning. Is there a chance they could add another ball-handler or wing to have a clear-cut 10-man rotation? Sure. But the Cardinals are likely done for the time being unless they can find someone who won’t be overly expensive. 

12. Michigan State Spartans

There might not be a coach less interested in adding a transfer to their team at this stage in the offseason than Tom Izzo. Yet even if he doesn’t, this is still a roster with the potential to go deep in March, led by returning starting point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. Anton Bonke was the lone transfer pickup this offseason at center, while several other underclassmen have the chance to break out next season. 

13. Arizona Wildcats

Arizona is one of the first teams to get a commitment from the “new” transfer portal, landing RJ Godfrey (12 ppg and 5.3 rpg) from Clemson. He fills a need in the frontcourt after losing Koa Peat to the NBA Draft, with the rest of the roster settled. If Godfrey doesn’t get cleared to play, they’ll need Jarusevicius to have a big impact after missing all of last season at Nebraska.

14. Alabama Crimson Tide

The most notable news for the Crimson Tide in the past couple of months has been Holloway’s plea deal to end his legal situation. That should allow him to get on the court in November, big for a team that needs its SEC Preseason POY candidate. Alabama could also continue building its frontcourt depth after last year’s issues to ensure it’s not a weak spot.

15. Vanderbilt Commodores

Vanderbilt will continue celebrating all offseason with the return of star guard Tanner, making them legit SEC title contenders. To bolster the roster, they got top-30 prospect Gabe Nesmith to reclass to join the roster, giving them more depth on the wings. They likely won’t add another big-name transfer, but the main work has already been done.

16. Miami Hurricanes

The Hurricanes landed LJ Cason a few weeks ago, the lone player to leave Michigan after the coaching change. He’s likely to miss all of next season while he recovers from injury but he still will be a key piece for the future. Otherwise, Miami’s roster is already top-25 and should be as good as the first year of Coach Jai Lucas’ reign with the program. 

17. Iowa State Cyclones

Similar to Louisville, Iowa State did most of its offseason work early on, landing all five impact transfers in the first few weeks. Ultimately, the Cyclones' fate will come down to the breakout campaign potential of returning guards Batemon and Toure. If that happens to at least one of them, Iowa State won’t suffer any kind of letdown season.

18. Kansas Jayhawks

Kansas will be in the headlines for the next few weeks, with multiple seniors potentially in play. One is possibly getting Council back for another year, as he’s suing separately from the 5-for-5 players. They’re also reportedly after Jaxon Kohler, a former starter at Michigan State looking to get another year. Either way, it’s clear that the Jayhawks aren’t satisfied with their roster.

19. Indiana Hoosiers

The big news with the Hoosiers is that they could bring back Alexis, who committed to the program this weekend after winning an early legal battle. While he wouldn’t be a starter, he’d be great depth in the frontcourt, which was a major area of weakness for the program last season. 

20. Kentucky Wildcats

Kentucky has been a main team to watch during the early days of the portal, and they could be a name to watch in the coming weeks, as they do have an open roster spot. Wing Kam Williams is recovering from foot surgery, and they've reportedly been in the mix with several high-profile names and likely will get one of them to bolster a roster already with plenty of potential. 

21. Gonzaga Bulldogs

No team is more in need of the 5th-year seniors being eligible than Gonzaga, which lost its starting point guard Mario Saint-Supery to Valencia in Spain less than a month ago. Right now, they don’t have a clear lead guard on the roster, but expect them to fix that shortly. By the time their roster is set, this could easily be a top-10 caliber unit. 

22. North Carolina Tar Heels

Can North Carolina find a way to add another piece to the roster? The frontcourt, especially at center, could be an issue with the lack of D-I experience. Otherwise, the backcourt looks to be set, and they have depth on the wings, with Able returning from the NBA Draft process in June. 

23. St. John’s Red Storm

St. John’s received bad news with star free agent Freeman suffering a torn ACL, setting him to miss all of next season. That means the frontcourt will be filled with unknown international players, with Yessoufou as the projected lead offensive option on the roster. Look for the Red Storm to be active in trying to get one of the potential 5th-year seniors.

24. USC Trojans

With potentially hundreds of players available for next season, it’s hard to see Coach Eric Musselman and USC staying on the sidelines. Still, their roster is already filled with talent, thanks to Arenas and Rice coming back, along with a bunch of notable transfers. Time will tell whether the Trojans stay put or add at least one more piece.

25. Nebraska Cornhuskers

It’s rare to see Nebraska as a top-25 team, but that’s what happens when you bring back a Big Ten Player of the Year candidate in Sandfort. The rest of the roster is balanced and strong, including several capable frontcourt pieces and Leonhardt, one of the top passers among the mid-major ranks.

Honorable mentions to watch in the coming weeks includes Texas Tech, Purdue, UCLA, and Ohio State.

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