There are more than 4,000 men's college basketball players in Division I, and trying to identify the best 2.5% is an enormous task. But among those thousands of players, some spectacular talents stand above the rest.
The top 100 players entering the 2026-27 season feature a wide range of characters, from experienced leaders chasing one last dance to tantalizing freshmen ready to burst onto the scene to others playing thanks to a local judge.
Of course, the major conferences are home to much of the country's top talent, with Duke leading all teams with seven players on the list, followed by Florida with five.
hot seat for 2026-27
But don't overlook the mid-major standouts hoping to slide on Cinderella's slipper come March.
No matter where you look, talent is everywhere across college hoops, adding to the anticipation as the new season prepares to tip off.
College basketball top 100 players for 2026-27 season
100. Davis Fogle, Gonzaga
There's no more hiding Fogle at Gonzaga after he gave plenty of excitement in limited action during his debut season for Mark Few.
99. Jacob Cofie, USC
98. KJ Lewis, USC
97. Barrington Hargress, Colorado
96. Drew Scharnowski, Duke
95. Cam'Ron Fletcher, High Point
Fletcher found a home in High Point, and is the leading returner from a Panthers team that made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and is among the top mid-majors in the country.
94. Josiah Davis, Cal State Northridge
93. Pharrel Payne, Maryland
Payne was on pace for an all-conference season in 2025-26 before a season-ending injury in December. This season, he'll be the centerpiece of a Terps team looking to rebound from the program's worst season in a generation.
92. Jason Crowe Jr., Missouri
91. Eric Dailey Jr., UCLA
90. Markus Burton, Indiana
Burton's one of the most reliable bucket-getters in the sport, averaging 19.1 points per game in three seasons at Notre Dame. If he can stay healthy, he should be the Hoosiers' go-to offensive option in their second season under coach Darian DeVries.
89. Darrion Williams, Texas Tech
88. CJ Cox, Purdue
With all the seniors gone, Cox is the leading returner on a Purdue team still expecting to contend in the Big Ten.
87. Aiden Sherrill, Indiana
86. Seth Trimble, Louisville
The North Carolina transfer could very well be the difference between the Cardinals being a Sweet 16 team and a true national title threat. For now, it's looking like the temporary injunction he received in October will stand.
85. Somto Cyril, Miami
84. Ian Jackson, St. John's
83. Braden Frager, Nebraska
82. Kyle Evans, NC State
Arriving from UC Irvine, Evans is the reigning Big West Player of the Year after leading the country in blocks with 3.3 per game.
81. Jarin Stevenson, North Carolina
80. Cayden Boozer, Duke
While his twin brother understandably got most of the headlines, Boozer had a solid freshman season, averaging 7.7 points and three assists per game. He should have an even bigger role this season on an equally loaded Blue Devils squad.
79. Keanu Dawes, Kansas
78. Keyshawn Hall, St. John's
77. Stefan Vaaks, Illinois
76. Tyler Perkins, Villanova
75. Miles Byrd, Providence
Byrd was arguably the biggest get for Bryan Hodgson's first Friars team, an absolute menace on the perimeter who was the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year last season at San Diego State.
74. Nikola Kusturica, UCLA
The 17-year-old Serbian has made waves as a possible top NBA draft pick when he's eligible in 2028.
73. Moustapha Thiam, Michigan
72. Alijah Arenas, USC
Just a small sample size from last season is enough to assume Arenas is set for a breakout campaign where he lives up to his potential as a five-star recruit.
71. Derrion Reid, Oklahoma
70. Killyan Toure, Iowa State
69. Xavier Edmonds, TCU
68. Caleb Foster, Duke
67. Chance Mallory, Virginia
66. Quinn Ellis, St. John's
Coaching in a city famous for its point guards, Rick Pitino went across the pond for his team's next floor general. Ellis is worth it. The 6-5 England native earned MVP honors last season after leading Olimpia Milano to the Italian Basketball SuperCup title.
65. Trey Kaufman-Renn, Kansas
The former Purdue forward was granted a sixth year through a temporary restraining order, bringing experience with 147 games played and coming off his best season.
64. Malik Reneau, Miami
63. Trent Perry, UCLA
62. Isaiah Johnson, Texas
61. Acaden Lewis, Miami
60. Shelton Henderson, Miami
Henderson was a key supporting player on a Hurricanes team that enjoyed a 19-win improvement in its first season under Jai Lucas. As a sophomore, the former five-star recruit could be one of the sport's breakout stars nationally for a team with viable ACC title hopes.
59. Donovan Dent, LSU
58. Cruz Davis, Texas Tech
57. John Mobley Jr., Ohio State
56. Aden Holloway, Alabama
Holloway is back for Nate Oats' team after marijuana possession charges that kept him out of last season's NCAA tournament were dropped. He should yet again be the best shooter on an offensively potent team that doesn't hesitate to chuck it up from beyond the arc.
55. Paul McNeil, NC State
54. Terrence Hill Jr., Tennessee
53. Malachi Moreno, Kentucky
52. Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, Duke
There's maybe no player more intriguing, and with a wider variety of possible outcomes, than Boumtje Boumtje, a 7-2, 17-year-old with a tantalizing skillset. If he develops in the way some believe he can, he might be the best player on a No. 1 seed come March.
51. Massamba Diop, Gonzaga
50. Paulius Murauskas, Arizona State
Randy Bennett arrives with his best player from Saint Mary's, a double-double machine who can bully inside the paint.
49. Jordan Smith Jr., Arkansas
48. Boogie Fland, Florida
47. Neoklis Avdalas, North Carolina
46. Jake Hall, New Mexico
Hall's a rarity in modern college basketball: the freshman of the year in a conference outside the five major leagues who stayed at his school. Hall's school-record 117 3-pointers helped the Lobos win 26 games in coach Eric Olen's first season and this year, the Mountain West preseason favorite should be even better.
45. Tounde Yessoufou, St. John's
44. Nolan Winter, Wisconsin
43. Dedan Thomas, Houston
42. Tomislav Ivisic, Illinois
41. Tamin Lipsey, Iowa State
The Cyclones get one of their best guards ever back, as Lipsey is a three-time all-Big 12 pick and a chance to break several school records by season's end.
40. Billy Richmond III, Arkansas
39. Coen Carr, Michigan State
38. PJ Haggerty, Texas A&M
There's no question about Haggerty's scoring ability after he averaged 22.1 points per game over the past three seasons. But after starring last season for a 20-loss Kansas State team, can he be a winning player for the Aggies, his fifth school in five years?
37. David Punch, Texas
36. Dame Sarr, Duke
35. Andrej Stojakovic, Illinois
The son of NBA sharpshooter Peja Stojakovic has made a name for himself with his hustle, poised to take on a larger role with Illinois.
34. Jackson Shelstad, Louisville
33. Mason Falslev, Utah State
The reigning Mountain West Player of the Year stuck with Utah State to make the Aggies a threat in the new Pac-12 and continue making the tournament under his third coach.
32. Ivan Kharchenkov, Arizona
31. Amari Allen, Alabama
Nate Oats' offensive strategy will continue to help Allen thrive after an impressive freshman campaign.
30. Rodney Rice, USC
29. Matas Vokietaitis, Texas
28. Robbie Avila, Saint Louis
Thanks to a restraining order from a Missouri judge, college basketball may not be done with Cream Abdul-Jabbar just yet. If the do-everything star big man plays for most of the season, the Billikens could be close to as good as they were last season, when they won a program-record 29 games.
27. Nigel James, Marquette
26. Tahaad Pettiford, Auburn
25. JoJo Tugler, Houston
24. Josh Hubbard, Mississippi State
The heart and soul of the Bulldogs, Hubbard has carried Mississippi State on his back and will try to get the Bulldogs back to March Madness.
23. Pryce Sandfort, Nebraska
The best season in Nebraska history was thanks to the elite shooting of Sandfort, who's deadly from 3-point range.
22. Braylon Mullins, Connecticut
21. Trey McKenney, Michigan
McKenney's one of the most obvious breakout candidates in years after a freshman season in which he averaged 9.9 points per game and shot 39.1% from 3 for a national championship team. With the top three scorers from that squad now in the NBA, McKenney is due for a significant, perhaps even All-American-worthy jump.
20. Braden Huff, Gonzaga
19. Elliot Cadeau, Michigan
18. Juke Harris, Tennessee
Rick Barnes is banking on Harris to improve the offense, as he was an ironman at Wake Forest for having the best scoring improvement in the country, going from 6.1 points per game in 2024-25 to 15.3 last season.
17. Caleb Holt, Arizona
16. Milan Momcilovic, Kentucky
The Wildcats were able to land the best 3-point shooter in the country at 48.8%, expected to revolutionize Mark Pope's offense.
15. JT Toppin, Texas Tech
If he weren't coming off a torn ACL, Toppin may very well have been the No. 1 player on this list. Even with an unclear return date, the All-American forward is still an absolute force and could be the difference in whether the preseason No. 16 team gets to the Final Four.
14. Robert Wright III, BYU
13. John Blackwell, Duke
The experience Duke needed, Blackwell was a bucket machine at Wisconsin that can knock down critical shots in key moments and be the missing piece to Jon Scheyer's first title as coach.
12. Rueben Chinyelu, Florida
11. Silas Demary, Connecticut
10. David Mirkovic, Illinois
For a team returning plenty of pieces from a Final Four, Mirkovic stands out above the rest. He finds way to score across the floor, but his ability to command the boards (team-high 8 rebounds per game) played a huge role in him being named to NCAA all-South Region team. He's coming off foot surgery and when he's back, he'll be the focal point of the offense.
9. Thijs De Ridder, Virginia
For all of Duke's firepower, the best player in the ACC may very well be in Charlottesville. De Ridder was the catalyst of Virginia's 15-win improvement under first-year coach Ryan Odom in 2025-26, averaging 15.6 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. The Cavaliers bring back most of their key players from that 30-win squad, with the 23-year-old Belgian sophomore the centerpiece of that group.
8. Tyran Stokes, Kansas
After a prep career that saw him bounce between three high schools, Stokes will spend his first and almost certainly only college season at Kansas, where the Jayhawks will have what should be the best freshman in the sport. Last season, the nation's No. 1 overall recruit averaged 31 points, 13 rebounds, six assists, and four steals per game while leading Rainier Beach High School in Seattle to a 29-1 record and a state title.
7. Patrick Ngongba II, Duke
When healthy and not in foul trouble, Ngongba is a sight to behold. The center didn't play heavily last season, but you couldn't ignore his impact when on the court, a defensive nightmare that led Duke in blocked shots. Now with an expanded role, he has the ability to be a double-double machine every night and lead the Blue Devils in scoring.
6. Flory Bidunga, Louisville
After frontcourt woes prevented the Cardinals from living up to massive preseason expectations last season, they addressed it by adding the best big man in the transfer portal. There are few, if any, better rim protectors in the sport than the 6-9 Bidunga, who averaged 2.6 blocks per game last season at Kansas on his way to winning Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year honors. He's a solid offensive player, too, averaging 13.3 points per game and shooting 64% from the field as a sophomore in 2025-26.
5. Alex Condon, Florida
There may be no one as versatile as Condon, entering his fourth season in Gainesville. He can score, rebound, assist and block shots at an extremely high clip, making it nearly impossible to figure out how to limit him. He's only gotten better with experience, and is a shoe-in to be all-SEC for the fourth straight season.
4. Motiejus Krivas, Arizona
Lost in the guard play of Arizona's Final Four run was the dominance inside from Krivas. He bounced back from injury in a big way, averaging 10.4 points and 8.2 rebound per game while his presence on the defensive end resulted in opponents shooting 36.7% from the field when he's on the court. He sets the tone for Tommy Lloyd's club with a great chance to be the player of the year in the Big 12.
3. Jeremy Fears Jr., Michigan State
Fears was the nation's assist leader last season, dishing out 9.4 dimes per game for a 27-win Spartans team that narrowly missed out on the Elite Eight. Though it occasionally gets him into trouble, he's a hard-nosed, opportunistic defender who excels offensively at getting to the line, where he made 88.5% of his free throws last season. He and Michigan State are primed for what could be a special season, with the 2027 Final Four in nearby Detroit.
2. Tyler Tanner, Vanderbilt
The rise of the Commodores is thanks to Tanner. The guard is a master floor general that dishes it out at a high clip but his defensive IQ is off the charts, disrupting offenses with 2.4 steals per game (10th in Division I). What separates him is how he stepped up his scoring tremendously, averaging a team-high 19.5 points per game by driving down the lane and shooting the ball at a high clip from the perimeter. Don't let the 6-foot frame you from this assassin.
1. Thomas Haugh, Florida
Gators coach Todd Golden is spoiled with the best frontcourt in the country led by the best player in the sport. With the rare combination of elite skill and experience, Haugh stands out above all with his knack to defend anyone on the court and a be a lethal offensive machine, coming off a team-high 17.1 points per game. He could've been a high NBA draft pick, but he's back as a player of the year favorite and the main reason why Florida can win two titles in three seasons.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Top 100 college basketball players for 2026-27: Who ranks No. 1?
