Ranking men's college basketball impact newcomers: The top 50 transfers, freshmen

Given the expanding deficiency of continuity successful assemblage basketball, projecting the first-year interaction of newcomers is much hard than ever. Freshmen person ever been volatile, but that's particularly existent present that they are 4 to 5 years younger than galore of the upperclassmen they are up against. And though transfers are perceived to beryllium much of a definite thing, determination is nary warrant their accumulation volition transportation implicit from 1 programme to the next.

The pursuing ranking of interaction newcomers isn't a mock draft, nor is it a rehash of the 2025 recruiting oregon transfer rankings. It is weighted astir wholly connected expected interaction during the 2025-26 assemblage hoops season.

To travel up with this list, we spoke with assemblage coaches and NBA scouts, looked astatine container scores of accumulation games and "secret" scrimmages, and projected rotations and roles for hundreds of newcomers. Still, it precise overmuch remains an inexact science.

In 2020, we didn't person then-freshman Moses Moody ranked arsenic Arkansas loaded up with acquisition via the transportation portal. He ended up averaging 16.8 points and was an NBA lottery prime successful 2021. In 2022, overmuch of the aboriginal buzz surrounding Duke's Kyle Filipowski was that the then-freshman mightiness request clip to afloat acclimate to the assemblage game. He averaged 15.1 points and 9.0 rebounds successful that archetypal season. We volition undoubtedly miss connected definite players this year, too, but pursuing the aboriginal drumbeat has proved to beryllium much close than incorrect overall.

With that said, present are the apical 50 newcomers we're expecting to person the biggest interaction implicit the adjacent 5 months, positive 16 much to watch.

Note: Freshmen are marked "Fr.," transfers are marked "T," and planetary players are marked "Intl."

TOP 50 IMPACT NEWCOMERS

1. Darryn Peterson, G, Kansas (Fr.)

Peterson's poise and attack to the crippled are beyond his years. As a operation guard, his calling paper is operating successful shot screens and speechmaking back-line antiaircraft coverages. He has immoderate similarities to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, similar getting to his spots to people oregon marque plays. Peterson volition person an accidental for immense on-ball usage successful Lawrence and, on with AJ Dybantsa, is simply a front-runner to beryllium the No. 1 NBA draught prime successful 2026. -- Paul Biancardi

2. Cameron Boozer, F, Duke (Fr.)

Boozer is 1 of th...