Men's College Basketball Top 25: If All Players Had To Stay Four Years

What if all players that played NCAA basketball were required to stay four years with their respective universities before entering the NBA draft?

How amazing would it be to see the likes of Kevin Durant, D.J Augustine, and A.J Abrams of Texas taking on the likes of Michael Beasley and Bill Walker of Kansas State? Or Mario Chalmers, Darrell Arthur and Julian Wright of Kansas?

How about Greg Oden and Mike Conley still dominating the Big 10?

If players were required to stay all four years, NCAA basketball would be the most exciting sport to watch (if it isn't already) because the amount of talent playing on the floor on some of these teams would be through the roof.

Granted, the chances of a Tyreke Evans joining Memphis without guaranteed minutes is slim, but for the sake of looking at my top 25 teams, let's assume that players want to play for teams based on prestige alone, and minutes do not matter.

Here are my top 25 teams if all players were required to play through their senior season:

1. Memphis Tigers

Starters
Guard: Derrick Rose Sophomore
14.9 ppg 4.5 reb 4.7 ast 1.2 stl 0.4 blk

Guard Chris Douglas-Roberts Senior
18.1 ppg 4.1 reb 1.8 ast 1.2 stl .5 blk

Guard: Antonio Anderson Senior
10.4 ppg 4.3 reb 4.3 ast 1.5 stl 0.5 blk

Forward: Robert Dozier Senior
12.5 ppg 6.8 reb 1.6 ast 1.2 stl 1.6 blk

Forward: Shawne Williams Senior
13.2 ppg 6.2 reb 1.9 ast 1.4 stl 1.4 blk

Bench
Guard: Tyreke Evans Freshman
16.9 ppg 5.3 reb 3.6 ast 2.2 stl 0.5 blk

Analysis:
Guards Derrick Rose and Chris Douglas-Roberts return for the sophomore and senior years to lead the Memphis Tigers to number one in my rankings.

Forward Shawne Williams, who left after his 05-06' freshman year for the NBA Draft returns to provide stability up front with current big man Robert Dozier.

G/F Antonio Anderson reprises his role as swing man while freshman guard Tyreke Evans gets relegated to sixth man duties.

2. UCLA Bruins

Starters
Guard: Russell Westbrook Junior
12.7 ppg 3.9 reb 4.3 ast 1.6 stl .2 blk

Guard: Darren Collison Senior
14.8 ppg 2.3 reb 4.8 ast 1.7 stl 0.2 blk

Forward: Kevin Love Sophomore
17.5 ppg 10.6 reb 1.9 ast 0.7 stl 1.4 blk

Forward: L.R Mbah a Moute Junior
8.8 ppg 6.0 reb 1.5 ast 1.0 stl 0.5 blk

Forward: Josh Shipp Senior
12.7 ppg 2.7 reb 1.4 ast 1.4 stl 0.4 blk

Bench
Guard: Jrue Holiday Freshman
9.4 ppg 3.9 reb 3.5 ast 1.6 stl 0.5 blk

Analysis:
Forward Kevin Love returns from his 07-08 Final Four campaign as a sophomore, along with junior forward L.R Mbah a Moute and junior guard Russell Westbrook.

They would pair with current guard Darren Collison and forward Josh Shipp to give UCLA one of the most balanced teams in the nation.

Freshman sensation Jrue Holiday takes the backup guard role behind Westbrook and Collison.

3. Texas Longhorns

Starters
Guard: Kevin Durant Junior
25.8 ppg 11.1 reb 1.3 ast 1.9 stl 1.9 blk

Guard: DJ Augustin Junior
19.2 ppg 2.9 reb 5.8 ast 1,2 stl 0.0 blk

Guard: AJ Abrams Senior
17.3 ppg 2.2 reb 1.5 ast 1.3 stl 2.1 blk

Forward: Damion James Junior
15.5 ppg 8.9 reb 1.3 ast 1.2 stl 0.8 blk

Forward: Gary Johnson Sophomore
11.2 ppg 5.9 reb 0.6 ast 0.5 stl 0.9 blk

Bench
Center: Dexter Pittman Junior
8.7 ppg 4.3 reb 0.2 ast 0.5 stl 0.8 blk

Analysis:
Kevin Durant enters his junior season as one of NCAA basketball's all-time leading scorers.

He has guards AJ Abrams and DJ Augustine creating shots for him and current forwards Damion James and Gary Johnson clearing room for him in the lane.

This team would almost be as good as Durant's current team in Oklahoma City.

4. Ohio State Buckeyes

Starters
Center: Greg Oden Junior
15.7 ppg 9.6 reb 0.7 ast 0.6 stl 3.3 blk

Center: Kosta Koufos Sophomore
14.4 ppg 6.7 reb 0.5 ast .4 stl 1.8 blk

Guard: Mike Conley Junior
11.3 ppg 3.4 reb 6.1 st 2.2 stl 0.3 blk

Guard Daequan Cook Junior
9.8 ppg 4.3 reb 1.0 ast 0.7 stl 0.3 blk

Forward: Evan Turner Sophomore
17.3 ppg 7.4 reb 3.3 ast 1.9 stl 0.8 blk

Bench
Guard William Buford Freshman
11.8 ppg 3.3 reb 1.1 ast 1.0 stl 0.3 blk

Analysis:
Junior center Greg Oden and sophomore center Kosta Koufos provide Ohio State with the biggest front line in the nation.

They have junior guard Mike Conley feeding them the ball. Junior Daquan Cook and current sophomore Evan Tucker create space for them on the perimeter.

Current freshman guard William Buford is relegated to sixth man duties.

5. North Carolina Tar Heels

Starters
Forward: Brandan Wright Junior
14.7 ppg 6.2 reb 1.0 ast 1.0 stl 1.8 blk

Forward: Tyler Hansbrough Senior
21.1 ppg 7.6 reb 0.8 ast 0.8 stl 0.5 blk

Guard: Ty Lawson Junior
15.9 ppg 2.6 reb 6.4 ast 2.1 stl 0.1 blk

Guard: Wayne Ellington Junior
15.0 ppg 4.8 reb 2.8 ast 1.2 stl 0.2 blk

Guard: Danny Green Junior
13.4 ppg 4.6 reb 3.1 ast 1.8 stl 1.5 blk

Bench
Forward: Deon Thompson
11.3 ppg 6.4 reb 0.6 ast 0.8 stl 1.1 blk

Analysis:
Pretty much the same team that they have playing the 08-09 season with Hansbrough, Ellington, Lawson, and Green.

Add forward Brandan Wright, who left in 06-07 as a freshman for the NBA draft, and North Carolina becomes more dominating and athletic up front.

6.) Kansas Jayhawks

Starters
Guard: Mario Chalmers Senior
12.8 ppg 3.1 reb 4.3 ast 2.5 stl 0.6 blk

Guard: Brandon Rush Senior
13.3 ppg 5.1 reb 2.1 ast 0.8 stl 0.8 blk

Forward: Julian Wright Senior
12.0 ppg 7.8 reb 2.2 ast 1.4 stl 1.3 blk

Forward: Darrell Arthur Junior
12.8 ppg 6.3 reb 0.8 ast 0.5 stl 1.3 blk

Center: Cole Aldrich Sophmore
14.6 ppg 10.2 reb 1.0 ast 0.6 stl 2.6 blk

Bench
Guard: Sherron Collins Junior
17.6 ppg 2.6 reb 5.0 ast 1.1 stl 0.0 blk

Analysis:
NCAA tourney hero Mario Chalmers returns for his senior year, along with forward Darrell Arthur for his junior and guard Brandon Rush for his senior.

Forward Julian Wright, who left after his sophomore 06-07 campaign, returns for his senior year.

Current players, guard Sherron Collins gets relegated to sixth man duties and forward Cole Aldrich rounds out the starting five.

7. Connecticut Huskies

Starters
Forward: Jeff Adrien Senior
14.0 pts 10.1 reb 1.5 ast 0.6 stl 0.9 blk

Center: Hasheem Thabeet Junior
13.5 pts 10.8 reb 0.5 ast 0.5 stl 4.4 blk

Guard: Jerome Dyson Junior
13.2 pts 4.1 reb 3.2 ast 1.8 stl 0.3 blk

Guard: AJ Price Senior
12.1 pts 3.4 reb 4.4 ast 0.6 stl 0.0 blk

Guard: Kemba Walker Freshman
8.7 pts 3.3 reb 2.7 ast 1.0 stl 0.2 blk

Bench
Guard: Craig Austrie Senior
7.9 pts 1.8 reb 1.9 ast 0.5 stl 0.3 blk

Analysis:
UConn has not lost anybody to early entry that would still be on the current roster, so therefore would retain the same team that is currently playing on the 08-09 roster.

Currently ranked No. 1 (but likely to drop with a loss against Pitt), UConn would fall to number seven in my rankings.

With Thabeet and Adrien though, they would have the size to compete with the Oden-led Ohio State team, or Kevin Love's UCLA team.

8.) Oklahoma Sooners

Starters
Forward: Blake Griffin Sophomore
22.8 pts 14.2 reb 2.5 ast 1.3 stl 1.3 blk

Guard: Willie Warren Freshman
14.9 pts 2.1 reb 2.8 ast 1.3 stl 0.1 blk

Guard: Tony Crocker Junior
10.0 pts 3.3 reb 1.2 ast 1.0 stl 0.1 blk

Forward: Taylor Griffin Senior
8.9 pts 5.8 reb 1.4 ast 1.3 stl 1.2 blk

Guard: Austin Johnson Senior
8.8 pts 2.8 reb 4.3 ast 1.3 stl 0.8 blk

Bench
Forward: Juan Pattillo Junior
6.2 pts 3.0 reb 0.4 ast 0.5 stl 1.3 blk

Analysis:
Oklahoma has not lost any players to early entry, and therefore has the same team that is competing in the 08-09 season.

Currently ranked No. 2 (and about to be No. 1), the fact that they have Blake Griffin dominating the middle puts them at No. 8 in my rankings.

9. Duke Blue Devils

Starters
Forward: Josh McRoberts Senior
13.0 ppg 7.9 reb 3.5 ast 1.2 stl 2.5 blk

Forward: Kyle Singler Sophomore
16.4 ppg 8.1 reb 2.6 ast 1.7 stl 0.8 blk

Guard: Gerald Henderson Junior
15.4 ppg 4.8 reb 2.2 ast 1.6 stl 0.8 blk

Guard: Jon Scheyer Junior
13.1 ppg 3.7 reb 2.9 ast 1.4 stl 0.2 blk

Guard: Greg Paulus Senior
6.0 ppg 1.7 reb 1.7 ast 1.1 stl 0.0 blk

Bench
Guard: Nolan Smith Sophomore
9.2 ppg 2.5 reb 1.7 ast 1,0 stl 0.0 blk

Analysis:
Duke retains almost everybody from its 08-09 team that is ranked No. 9 in the country. However, they add Josh McRoberts, who left after his junior year for the NBA Draft.

10. Kansas State Wildcats

Starters
Guard: Bill Walker Sophomore
16.1 pts 6.3 reb 1.9 ast 0.9 stl 0.5 blk

Forward: Michael Beasley Sophomore
26.2 pts 12.4 reb 1.2 ast 1.3 stl 1.6 blk

Guard: Denis Clemente Junior
14.8 pts 2.4 reb 3.2 ast 0.9 stl 0.0 blk

Guard: Jacob Pullen Sophomore
14.0 pts 2.4 reb 3.2 ast 1.7 stl 0.0 blk

Forward: Darren Kent Senior
9.3 pts 5.8 reb 1.4 ast 0.6 stl 0.6 blk

Bench
Guard: Fred Brown Sophomore
8.9 pts 1.6 reb 1.4 ast 0.6 stl 0.1 blk

Analysis:
Without Beasley and Walker, Kansas State sits 6-5 in the Big 12 (17-8 overall). Just imagine if both would have returned for their sophomore seasons.

11. Pittsburgh Panthers

Starters
Forward: Sam Young Senior
17.9 pts 5.8 reb 1.3 ast 1.1 stl 0.8 blk

Forward: DeJuan Blair Sophomore
15.4 pts 12.3 reb 1.2 ast 1.7 stl 0.8 blk

Guard: Levance Fields Senior
11.1 pts 2.4 reb 7.6 ast 0.9 stl 0.1 blk

Guard: Jermaine Dixon Junior
9.0 pts 2.4 reb 1.9 ast 1.6 stl 0.8 blk

Forward: Tyrell Biggs Senior
7.0 pts 4.6 reb 0.7 ast 0.5 stl 0.6 blk

Bench
Guard: Brad Wanamaker Sophomore
6.0 pts 3.2 reb 2.2 ast 0.7 stl 0.2 blk

Analysis:
Pitt has not lost anybody to early entry that would currently be on their roster, so it would trot out the same team that just upset No. 1 UConn.

12. Washington Huskies

Starters
Center: Spencer Hawes Junior
14.9 pts 6.4 reb 1.9 ast 0.5 stl 1.7 blk

Guard: Isaiah Thomas Freshman
16.5 pts 2.8 reb 2.7 ast 1.1 stl 0.1 blk

Guard: Justin Dentmon Senior
15.8 pts 2.8 reb 2.5 ast 1.4 stl 0.2 blk

Forward: Jon Brockman Senior
14.9 pts 11.1 reb 1.2 ast 0.9 stl 0.1 blk

Forward: Quincy Pondexter Junior
11.1 pts 5.6 reb 1.8 ast 07 stl 0.3 blk

Bench
Forward: Matthew Bryan-Amaning Soph
7.0 pts 4.6 reb 0.5 ast 0.7 stl 0.0 blk

Analysis:
The Huskies would be the same team as in the 08-09 season, but would add Spencer Hawes, who left after his 06-07 freshman campaign. He would provide the Huskies with a huge presence in the middle.

13. Michigan State Spartans

Starters
Guard: Kalin Lucas Sophomore
14.8 pts 2.2 reb 4.8 ast 1.0 stl 0.2 blk

Forward: Raymar Morgan Junior
12.3 pts 6.0 reb 1.5 ast 0.6 stl 0.3 blk

Forward: Durrell Summers Sophomore
9.6 pts 3.3 reb 0.8 ast 0.7 stl 0.5 blk

Forward: Goran Suton Senior
9.4 pts 7.4 reb 1.4 ast 1.2 stl 0.3 blk

Guard: Chris Allen Sophomore
9.3 pts 2.3 reb 1.3 ast 0.5 stl 0.0 blk

Bench
Forward: Travis Walton Senior
5.6 pts 2.7 reb 3.2 ast 1.3 stl 0.0 blk

Analysis:
Michigan State would be the same team that is on the floor in the 08-09 season. They would be battling with Ohio State for the top spot in the Big 10.

14. USC Trojans

Starters
Guard: OJ Mayo Sophomore
20.7 pts 4.5 reb 3.3 ast 1.5 stl 0.4 blk

Guard: Dwight Lewis Junior
15.5 pts 3.1 reb 1.9 ast 1.2 stl 0.1 blk

Forward: Taj Gibson Junior
13.9 pts 9.6 reb 1.1 ast 0.9 stl 2.8 blk

Forward: DeMar DeRozan Freshman
13.0 pts 5.5 reb 1.2 ast 1.0 stl 0.3 blk

Guard: Daniel Hackett Junior
11.6 pts 4.0 reb 4.8 ast 1.4 stl 0.3 blk

Bench
Forward: Leonard Washington Freshman
6.9 pts 4.6 reb 0.9 ast 0.7 stl 0.4 bk

Analysis:
Star guard OJ Mayo teams up with the current 08-09 Trojan team for his sophomore season.

15. Syracuse Orange

Starters
Forward: Donte Green Sophomore
17.7 pts 7.2 reb 2.0 ast 1.3 stl 1.6 blk

Guard: Jonny Flynn Sophomore
17.5 pts 3.0 reb 6.1 ast 1.4 stl 0.1 blk

Guard: Eric Devendorf Junior
15.6 pts 1.6 reb 2.8 ast 1.0 stl 0.3 blk

Forward: Paul Harris Junior
12.6 pts 8.0 reb 2.2 ast 1.0 stl 0.9 blk

Forward: Arinze Onuaku Junior
11.0 pts 7.7 reb 0.5 ast 0.6 stl 1.5 blk

Bench
Guard: Andy Rautins Junior
10.1 pts 3.0 reb 2.8 ast 1.4 stl 0.0 blk

Analysis:
The Orange would retain the same team in its 08-09 campaign, but receive a huge boost up front from returning forward Donte Green in his sophomore season.

Rounding Out the Top 25

These are the teams that would round out my top 25. They all did not have any players that left for the draft early, so would retain the same teams that they currently have in the 08-09 season.

16.) Marquette Golden Eagles
17.) Louisville Cardinals
18.) Wake Forest Demon Deacons
19.) Clemson Tigers
20.) Arizona State Sun Devils
21.) Villanova Wildcats
22.) Missouri Tigers
23.) Gonzaga Bulldogs
24.) Illinois Fighting Illini
25.) Xavier Musketeers