College Basketball Teams Best Set Up for Consistent Success Ahead of 2014-15
Is it too early to start thinking about the 2019 NCAA men's basketball tournament?
Yeah, probably.
But what would you do if you received this unique offer?
Pick 20 teams who you think will make the NCAA tournament in each of the next five seasons. For every team you pick correctly, you win $X; but for every incorrect pick, you owe $2X.
Easy money, right? It's the same darn teams in the tournament every year!
Well, actually, only 11 teams in the country have been to each of the past five NCAA tournaments. Had you made that bet five years ago, your best-case scenario is minus-$7X—and that's assuming you somehow had the foresight to know that Kansas State and San Diego State would suddenly dance five years in a row.
But if you found yourself unable to turn down that offer, these are the 20 teams best positioned to make every NCAA tournament from 2015-19.
Teams are ranked by how unlikely they are to miss a tournament in the next half-decade.
Recruiting information on the following slides courtesy of 247Sports.com.
20. Auburn Tigers
1 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: K.T. Harrell, Antoine Mason, K.C. Ross-Miller
2014-15 Freshmen: Trayvon Reed (No. 77)
2015-16 Seniors: Cinmeon Bowers
2015-16 Freshmen: Horace Spencer (No. 49), Danjel Purifoy (No. 63)
2015-16 Transfers: Kareem Canty (Marshall)
Within hours of being allowed to recruit again, Bruce Pearl had already landed two 4-star players from the class of 2015.
This after spending the first half of the offseason getting around the recruiting restrictions by dominating the transfer market in acquiring Bowers, Mason and Ross-Miller.
And when Maryland decided to dismiss Reed from the roster due to petty theft, Pearl was able to acquire a Top 100 player in this year's class that he otherwise never would have had access to.
What keeps Auburn from ranking higher on the list is that the Tigers are far more likely to comfortably make the 2016-19 tournaments than they are to make it this coming March.
We believe Auburn will sneak in, but even a recruiting mastermind like Pearl could take a couple of years to turn around a program that has been below .500 the past five seasons.
19. Texas Longhorns
2 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Jonathan Holmes
2014-15 Freshmen: Myles Turner (No. 6)
2015-16 Seniors: Cameron Ridley, Javan Felix, Demarcus Holland, Prince Ibeh, Connor Lammert
2015-16 Freshmen: Eric Davis (No. 41)
2015-16 Transfers: Shaquille Cleare (Maryland)
The Longhorns are a mortal lock for the next two NCAA tournaments. They have one of the deepest and most talented rotations in the country, and Holmes is the only noteworthy player who definitely has to leave after this season.
But the 2016-17 roster would seem to be a bit overreliant on yet-to-be-determined freshmen and sophomores—especially when Turner leaves for the NBA after either one or two years at Texas.
The Longhorns will still have solid guard play that year with Kendal Yancy, Martez Walker and Isaiah Taylor all theoretically playing out their senior years in Austin. But until Rick Barnes lands a few talented big men to replace all of the ones graduating in 2016, it's hard to argue they're a guarantee to survive in the Big 12.
18. San Diego State Aztecs
3 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Dwayne Polee II, JJ O'Brien
2014-15 Freshmen: Malik Pope (No. 52), Zylan Cheatham (No. 71), Trey Kell (No. 84)
2015-16 Seniors: Winston Shepard, Skylar Spencer
2015-16 Freshmen: Jeremy Hemsley (No. 64)
2015-16 Transfers: None
San Diego State has been to five straight NCAA tournaments and is in pretty good shape to extend that streak to 10.
SDSU didn't get any Top 50 guys from this year's class, but three 4-star recruits is pretty doggone respectable in the Mountain West Conference. Boise State has signed just one in the past decade. Wyoming hasn't had any.
Because of this year's freshmen and talented sophomores like Dakarai Allen and Matt Shrigley, the Aztecs should be dancing for the foreseeable future.
Playing this season without Xavier Thames and Josh Davis could be a challenge. Same goes for each of the next two years, as the Aztecs seem to lose two key players every year. And at some point in the next five years, there's a better-than-average chance that 69-year-old Steve Fisher calls it a career.
In the Pac-12, all of those things would be serious cause for concern. In the MWC, however, they should maintain more than enough talent to remain one of the conference's three best teams until further notice.
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17. Villanova Wildcats
4 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Darrun Hilliard, JayVaughn Pinkston
2014-15 Freshmen: Phil Booth (No. 75), Mikal Bridges (No. 81)
2015-16 Seniors: Daniel Ochefu, Dylan Ennis, Ryan Arcidiacono
2015-16 Freshmen: Jalen Brunson (No. 18)
2015-16 Transfers: None
Can you remember a time in the past few years when a recruit didn't work out for Jay Wright and Villanova? Ty Johnson and Markus Kennedy both left after a disappointing 2011-12 freshman year, but they ended up having strong 2013-14 seasons for South Carolina and SMU respectively.
He isn't often mentioned in the same breath as John Calipari and Sean Miller on the list of top recruiting coaches, but few in the country are better at recognizing and acquiring talent than Wright.
So, no, we're not concerned that Villanova is losing two key players next summer and three more the following year. By the time those guys need to go, Booth, Bridges, Josh Hart and Kris Jenkins will be ready to take the lead.
In a world where most top coaches are hoping to capitalize on one-and-done talent, Wright has perfected the art of finding and developing four-year studs.
Because of that—as well as the decrease in talent in the Big East from two years ago—it's hard not to like Villanova's chances of remaining a staple in the NCAA tournament.
16. VCU Rams
5 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Briante Weber, Treveon Graham
2014-15 Freshmen: Terry Larrier (No. 34)
2015-16 Seniors: Melvin Johnson
2015-16 Freshmen: Kenny Williams (No. 88)
2015-16 Transfers: None
Similar to the argument made earlier for San Diego State, the Rams should remain dominant based solely on the fact that they have a better pipeline for talent than anyone else in their conference.
247Sports ranks VCU's 2014 class as the 27th-best in the country. No other A-10 school ranks in the top 50. Rhode Island is next best at No. 55, and it's going to take more than a couple 3-star recruits to fix a team that's 34 games below .500 over the past three years.
Not only do they have the best 2014 class, but the Rams are also the only A-10 team that has landed a Top 150 recruit in the class of 2015.
VCU is already the best in its conference and is consistently adding the most promise for the future.
It's the equivalent of figuring out which of your friends is best at GoldenEye and allowing only that person to use the golden gun. Or, if you prefer your video game references to come from the past 15 years, letting the best Halo player have a rocket launcher and giving everyone else a plasma pistol.
Feel free to pencil "HAVOC" into the NCAA tournament for the next five years.
15. Seton Hall Pirates
6 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Brandon Mobley, Patrik Auda
2014-15 Freshmen: Isaiah Whitehead (No. 13), Angel Delgado (No. 47)
2015-16 Seniors: Sterling Gibbs
2015-16 Freshmen: None
2015-16 Transfers: Chier Ajou (Northwestern)
It's bold/insane to suggest that a team with three tournament appearances in the past 20 years is a candidate to pull off five straight, but this is a tipping year for the perennially average Pirates.
From 2007-13, Seton Hall added precisely zero 4-star recruits—let alone 5-star players. Jaren Sina was very close this past season. With a composite rating of 0.9194, he was the highest-rated 3-star recruit in the country.
He was also Seton Hall's highest-rated recruit since Eugene Harvey in the summer of 2006.
But Kevin Willard finally struck gold with Whitehead (5-star) and Delgado (4-star). Khadeen Carrington deserves mentioning too, as the Pirates also signed the No. 142 overall recruit in this year's class.
Is it an anomaly or a sign of things to come?
Whitehead may well be a one-and-done player. If his one season results in a tournament bid for Seton Hall, though, it could finally put the Pirates back on the radar to land some of that homegrown talent in the New York/New Jersey area.
Having learned how to recruit during his years as an assistant to Rick Pitino, a foot in the door could be all the more Willard needs to turn Seton Hall into a legitimate contender.
14. Indiana Hoosiers
7 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: None
2014-15 Freshmen: James Blackmon Jr. (No. 20), Robert Johnson (No. 50)
2015-16 Seniors: Yogi Ferrell
2015-16 Freshmen: Juwan Morgan (No. 89)
2015-16 Transfers: Nick Zeisloft (Illinois State)
Few coaches in the country are as hated by their own fanbase as Tom Crean. There's even a Twitter handle devoted solely to getting Crean fired—with more than 1,200 tweets in the past 2.5 years.
As someone who neither lives in Indiana nor passionately roots for the Hoosiers, I don't get it.
Over the past six summers, Crean has added eight 4-star recruits, four 5-star recruits and some 3-star kid named Victor Oladipo. The 2013-14 season was a disappointment, but the Hoosiers made the Sweet 16 in both 2012 and 2013, spending 10 weeks ranked No. 1 in the nation during the 2012-13 season.
A good number of those recruits either left early for the NBA or transferred elsewhere, but this is a much better team than it was when he first took over. And from the looks of things, there will be more Sweet 16 trips in the near future.
The Hoosiers might struggle to make the tournament this year, but Ferrell is the only noteworthy player graduating in the next two years. If they can dance this March, they have a great chance of continuing to dance for years to come.
13. LSU Tigers
8 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: None
2014-15 Freshmen: Elbert Robinson (No. 59)
2015-16 Seniors: Josh Gray, Keith Hornsby
2015-16 Freshmen: Ben Simmons (No. 1)
2015-16 Transfers: None
LSU's spot in these rankings hinges heavily upon how long its top big men stay in school.
Johnny O'Bryant left a year early, and who knows what Jarell Martin and Jordan Mickey plan on doing after each having an incredible freshman season in the paint last year. By all accounts, Simmons will very likely spend just one year in college before bolting for the pros.
But it hardly seems fair to penalize LSU for being too talented. If anything, it's a testament to the recruiting ability of Johnny Jones that he was able to land two Top 50 guys last summer and the No. 1 overall recruit in next year's class.
Who's to say LSU isn't quickly becoming an annual contender again?
The backcourt is more than a little untested after Anthony Hickey's decision to transfer away this summer. Tim Quarterman was a Top 100 recruit last summer, but the freshman point guard only averaged 12 minutes per game last year.
Hornsby (UNC Asheville) and Gray (JUCO) are standout transfers, but there's a pretty big difference between the SEC and the teams they've been playing against.
As long as one of those guys can figure out how to get the ball to the talented big men, though, LSU should have no problem winning 20 games per year and continuing to draw interest from top recruits.
12. Michigan Wolverines
9 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: None
2014-15 Freshmen: Kameron Chatman (No. 27)
2015-16 Seniors: Caris LeVert, Spike Albrecht
2015-16 Freshmen: None
2015-16 Transfers: None
Thanks to an outbreak of players leaving early for the NBA, Michigan doesn't really have many notable upperclassmen.
Did you know Trey Burke would just now be entering his senior year if he had stayed in school? Just imagine if the Wolverines still had him, Nik Stauskas, Glenn Robinson III and Mitch McGary!
LeVert will obviously be a pretty big loss in two years (if he actually comes back for his senior year), but he's the only junior or senior on this year's roster that they'll really need to figure out how to replace.
Even with all that John Beilein has lost in the past few offseasons, this is still a roster built to dance.
Zak Irvin and Derrick Walton Jr. were somewhat lost in the shuffle behind the rest of the talented backcourt, but those guys shone as freshmen and are ready to explode as sophomores.
If Mark Donnal is anywhere near as good as advertised after redshirting last season, not many teams are going to be able to stand in Michigan's way over the next few years. Especially once Beilein inevitably signs a talented big man or two in the class of 2015.
11. Memphis Tigers
10 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Calvin Godfrey
2014-15 Freshmen: Pookie Powell (No. 81 in 2013), Markel Crawford (No. 106 in 2013), Dominic Magee (No. 103 in 2014)
2015-16 Seniors: Shaq Goodwin
2015-16 Freshmen: KJ Lawson (No. 42), Nick Marshall (No. 59)
2015-16 Transfers: Kedren Johnson (Vanderbilt)
*Powell was ineligible to play last year, and Crawford was redshirted behind the four senior guards for Memphis, so we're treating them as if they're in the class of 2014.
Of the 2,614 points the Tigers scored last season, 1,608 came from seniors.
Memphis might be the only team in the country that loses more than 60 percent of its scoring and actually has a more successful season.
How is that even possible?
For starters, the AAC is much weaker. Louisville is gone, and Cincinnati, Connecticut and Houston each lost all sorts of talent this summer. The Tigers probably won't win the AAC, but it would be a total shock if they finished outside the top three.
More than that, though, Josh Pastner still has some great players at his disposal.
Austin Nichols was a 5-star power forward in the class of 2013. Kuran Iverson and Nick King are small forwards who didn't miss out on the 5-star designation by much. Goodwin is a surefire AAC first-teamer in the post, and the Tigers have a trio of 4-star guards from which to figure something out.
They aren't exactly the 2013-14 Arizona Wildcats, but their seven-man rotation will be among the best in the nation. And they're going to have a great rotation for a while, because Goodwin is the only upperclassman in the bunch.
We don't foresee them stringing together 30-win seasons like they did in Conference USA, but we also don't foresee them missing out on the tournament anytime soon.
10. Syracuse Orange
11 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Rakeem Christmas
2014-15 Freshmen: Chris McCullough (No. 21), Kaleb Joseph (No. 49)
2015-16 Seniors: Trevor Cooney, Michael Gbinije, DaJuan Coleman
2015-16 Freshmen: Malachi Richardson (No. 35), Moustapha Diagne (No. 61), Tyler Lydon (No. 66), Franklin Howard (No. 75)
2015-16 Transfers: None
Provided the Orange don't completely drop off a cliff and miss the tournament this year, look out.
While rebuilding can take a few years at most schools, Jim Boeheim is reloading almost overnight.
The sting of losing C.J. Fair, Tyler Ennis and Jerami Grant in one summer is lessened by the addition of five 4-star recruits and one 5-star recruit in the next two seasons.
Business as usual for Syracuse. From 2010-13, Boeheim signed four 5-star and seven 4-star players. Thanks to those players, the Orange have been ranked No. 3 or better at some point in each of the past five seasons. They have earned a No. 4 seed or better in six straight NCAA tournaments.
They'll likely break both of those streaks this year, but it's highly unlikely they'll actually miss the tournament—even if Coleman is unable to play.
Syracuse will need to bank on rarely used players like B.J. Johnson and Tyler Roberson, but a team can do much worse than needing production from a pair of 4-star recruits in the class of 2013.
9. Connecticut Huskies
12 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Ryan Boatright
2014-15 Freshmen: Daniel Hamilton (No. 18)
2015-16 Seniors: Phillip Nolan
2015-16 Freshmen: Jalen Adams (No. 29), Steve Enoch (No. 68)
2015-16 Transfers: None
It might seem like a no-brainer to include the team that has won four of the last 16 national championships, but consecutive years in the tournament aren't exactly Connecticut's forte—in men's basketball, at any rate.
While Duke, Kansas, Wisconsin, Gonzaga and Michigan State are working on streaks of at least 15 straight tournaments, Connecticut has never had a streak of more than five years.
But perhaps things will be different under Kevin Ollie.
Much like Syracuse, it would appear Connecticut will be in great shape so long as it can immediately recover from all it lost this summer. And much like Memphis, the Huskies should benefit nicely from being one of the few noteworthy programs in the AAC.
Boatright is the only returning player who averaged more than 4.1 points per game last season, but he'll hardly be a one-man team.
Amida Brimah and Terrence Samuel should have increased roles in the offense as sophomores. Hamilton, Rodney Purvis and Sam Cassell Jr. will all play important parts in the backcourt in their first season with the Huskies.
As long as Nolan can hold his own in the paint as a starter, Connecticut should be in good shape to win the AAC in 2014-15 and finally put together a string of six tournament berths.
8. UCLA Bruins
13 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Norman Powell
2014-15 Freshmen: Kevon Looney (No. 11), Jonah Bolden (No. 35), Thomas Welsh (No. 38), Isaac Hamilton (No. 20 in class of 2013)
2015-16 Seniors: Tony Parker
2015-16 Freshmen: Prince Ali (No. 38), Aaron Holiday (No. 53)
2015-16 Transfers: None
The Bruins were absolutely ravaged by the NBA this summer, losing Kyle Anderson, Jordan Adams and Zach LaVine after just five years of combined service. Throw in the graduation of the Wear brothers, and UCLA is forced to replace 66 percent of last year's scoring.
On the bright side, Steve Alford has one of the best collections of first-year players in the nation.
Hamilton was a 5-star recruit last year but was ineligible to play after breaking his signed letter of intention with UTEP. Looney is a 5-star guy in this year's class and will be joined by a pair of 4-star players in the post.
Aside from Powell, UCLA is going to be an extremely young team. However, it would be a mistake to equate inexperience with ineptitude.
There might be some early growing pains to work out, but the Bruins are built to compete this year and built to dominate for the next few years—especially if Holiday is even half the player that his brother Jrue is.
7. Louisville Cardinals
14 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Chris Jones, Wayne Blackshear
2014-15 Freshmen: Shaqquan Aaron (No. 26), Quentin Snider (No. 39), Chinanu Onuaku (No. 67), Jaylen Johnson (No. 87)
2015-16 Seniors: Montrezl Harrell
2015-16 Freshmen: Donovan Mitchell (No. 26), Deng Adel (No. 31), Raymond Spalding (No. 37)
2015-16 Transfers: None
Not content with adding three 4-star recruits and one of the nation's best JUCO transfers last summer, Rick Pitino is adding another four 4-star recruits this summer and has already signed three in next year's class.
It's not quite as ridiculous as John Calipari's routine of adding a bunch of 5-star recruits every summer, but Louisville certainly won't be lacking in quality depth anytime soon. And unlike Calipari's model, Pitino can count on his recruits to stay for a few years.
In fact, since Pitino took over at Louisville 13 years ago, Samardo Samuels is the only player to have bolted for the NBA after less than three years. Samuels left after his sophomore season and went undrafted in 2010.
So not only is Louisville loaded with talent, but there's minimal reason to worry about many of those players leaving before required.
Harrell will very likely declare for the NBA draft after this season, but Pitino has seven Top 100 guys signed between this summer and the next. The Cardinals should get by just fine in 2015-16 with their plethora of talented freshmen and sophomores.
6. Florida Gators
15 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Jon Horford
2014-15 Freshmen: Devin Robinson (No. 17), Brandone Francis (No. 32), Chris Chiozza (No. 44)
2015-16 Seniors: Michael Frazier II, Dorian Finney-Smith
2015-16 Freshmen: KeVaughn Allen (No. 51), Noah Dickerson (No. 54)
2015-16 Transfers: John Egbunu
The Gators went into a little tailspin after winning consecutive national championships in 2006 and 2007. They missed the next two NCAA tournaments and just barely made it as a No. 10 seed in 2010.
But Billy Donovan was blindsided by early entrants to the NBA draft. He lost two seniors and four juniors in 2007 and was effectively forced to start over from scratch after starting the 2007-08 season sans 83 percent of the 2006-07 scoring.
It was enough turmoil that Donovan even decided to become the coach of the Orlando Magic for a few days.
We bring this up merely to point out that we're not worried about it happening again.
Yes, the Gators lost a ton of seniors this summer, but it's comparatively easy to prepare for departing seniors. Knowing those losses were inevitable, Donovan added two 5-star recruits (Kasey Hill and Chris Walker) last summer and another trio of Top 50 players this year.
Throw in Frazier and Finney-Smith, and the Gators are set up nicely to not only continue making the tournament, but to keep the streak of four straight Elite Eight appearances alive for a few more years.
5. North Carolina Tar Heels
16 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: None
2014-15 Freshmen: Justin Jackson (No. 9), Theo Pinson (No. 15), Joel Berry (No. 30)
2015-16 Seniors: Marcus Paige, Brice Johnson, J.P. Tokoto
2015-16 Freshmen: None
2015-16 Transfers: None
North Carolina is by far the toughest team to forecast because Roy Williams loses players like most of us lose keys.
Though he was able to hang onto Tyler Hansbrough for a full four years, Williams has had 13 players (not including P.J. Hairston) leave early for the NBA in the past decade—eight juniors, three sophomores and two freshmen.
In addition to that, Williams has also lost four 4-star players to the Pac-12. Alex Stepheson left for USC after the 2007-08 season, and Larry Drew, Travis Wear and David Wear all transferred to UCLA.
Who knows what the Tar Heels will look like two years from now, let alone in 2018-19?
What we do know is that they'll be extremely talented this year and should continue to be a popular landing spot for the nation's top high schoolers.
Despite a hiccup in 2010 after winning the 2009 national championship, North Carolina has been to 37 of the past 40 NCAA tournaments. We may not know who will actually be on the roster beyond this season, but it's a pretty safe bet that the Tar Heels will be good enough to dance for the next five years.
4. Arizona Wildcats
17 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: T.J. McConnell
2014-15 Freshmen: Stanley Johnson (No. 4), Craig Victor (No. 41), Parker Jackson-Cartwright (No. 51)
2015-16 Seniors: Brandon Ashley, Kaleb Tarczewski, Kadeem Allen, Gabe York, Ryan Anderson
2015-16 Freshmen: Allonzo Trier (No. 11), Ray Smith (No. 13), Justin Simon (No. 22), Chance Comanche (No. 52)
2015-16 Transfers: Anderson (Boston College)
Only nine of the 5-star players in the class of 2015 have committed to a school, but three of them have signed up to play for Arizona.
Sean Miller has added at least one 5-star recruit every year since 2011. He now has a total of 11 under his belt from 2011-15. Anyone who doesn't recognize Miller as one of the best recruiters in the business is insane.
Arizona is already going to be one of the top teams in 2014-15, and it could continue to improve in subsequent seasons.
The Wildcats are scheduled to lose a ton of key players next summer, but you can just about take it to the bank that they'll be reloading with topnotch talent on an annual basis.
Arizona probably won't be stringing together a streak of Pac-12 titles like Kansas has in the Big 12 for the past decade, but there's little question this is the best team on the West Coast until further notice.
3. Duke Blue Devils
18 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: Quinn Cook
2014-15 Freshmen: Jahlil Okafor (No. 1), Tyus Jones (No. 8), Justise Winslow (No. 14), Grayson Allen (No. 25)
2015-16 Seniors: Rasheed Sulaimon, Amile Jefferson, Marshall Plumlee
2015-16 Freshmen: Chase Jeter (No. 8), Luke Kennard (No. 21)
2015-16 Transfers: Sean Obi (Rice)
They might get upset in the first round to some school you've never heard of before, but the Blue Devils don't miss the NCAA tournament.
Mike Krzyzewski has led this team to the tournament in 30 of the last 31 seasons—and Duke might be more talented this year than it has been in the past decade.
Coach K wasn't able to convince Jabari Parker to stay, but he's still in great shape with three 5-star freshmen this year and another two already signed in next year's class.
Regardless of whether Duke is getting an unfair amount of recruiting exposure by allowing Krzyzewski to coach the U.S. national team, this is a program that consistently corrals top talent and spends the majority of every season ranked in the Top 10.
There will eventually be some sort of fall from grace, but it's hard to see it happening in the next five years.
2. Kansas Jayhawks
19 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: None
2014-15 Freshmen: Cliff Alexander (No. 3), Kelly Oubre (No. 7), Devonte Graham (No. 100)
2015-16 Seniors: Perry Ellis, Jamari Traylor
2015-16 Freshmen: None
2015-16 Transfers: None
Kansas has already been to 25 consecutive NCAA tournaments. The record is 27, set by North Carolina from 1975-2001.
Yet, we're pretty confident the Jayhawks will have no problem extending that streak to 30 and beyond.
Bill Self lost a number of key players this summer—foremost among them Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid—but he's also getting back some studs to go along with two of the top seven freshmen in the nation.
Wayne Selden was expected by most last summer to be a one-and-done player, but a bum knee kept him from reaching anything close to his full potential. He'll be much healthier to start this season and will be joined in the backcourt by 4-star sophomores Brannen Greene and Conner Frankamp.
Kansas should easily be one of the 10-best teams in the nation this year and doesn't have a single noteworthy player graduating next summer.
Not only will the Jayhawks make the tournament for the next five years, but they could even conceivably push their streak of Big 12 titles to 15 in a row.
1. Kentucky Wildcats
20 of 20
2014-15 Seniors: None
2014-15 Freshmen: Karl Towns Jr. (No. 5), Trey Lyles (No. 10), Tyler Ulis (No. 19), Devin Booker (No. 22)
2015-16 Seniors: Willie Cauley-Stein, Alex Poythress
2015-16 Freshmen: Charles Matthews (No. 55)
2015-16 Transfers: None
We can argue about who Kentucky should/will have in the starting lineup when the season begins, but here's a disgusting fact: John Calipari will have a minimum of four McDonald's All-Americans on the bench at all times this season.
Calipari's recruiting system was designed for players who want to go pro after just one season, but the roster hasn't exactly been hampered by the "backlog" of players deciding to stay for multiple years.
Somewhere down the road, the multiyear studs will keep Kentucky from landing multiple 5-star recruits on an annual basis.
Until then, though, it's full speed ahead for what ought to be the most talented roster in the country for the next few years.
Kerry Miller covers college basketball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @kerrancejames.
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