The 2026-27 college basketball season is just over a week away, and the top players entering this year have been identified.
The Associated Press released its preseason All-America team, led by Michigan State guard Jeremy Fears Jr. and Florida forward Thomas Haugh, who were near-unanimous selections from the 58-person media panel. The full team is as follows:
- Jeremy Fears Jr., G, Michigan State (57 votes)
- Thomas Haugh, F, Florida (56 votes)
- Tyler Tanner, G, Vanderbilt (43 votes)
- David Mirkovic, F, Illinois (24 votes)
- Motiejus Krivas, C, Arizona (17 votes)
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Fears is coming off a stellar redshirt sophomore season in which he averaged 15.2 points and a nation-leading 9.4 assists per game. While he likely would've been a first-round NBA draft pick, he returned to school in hopes of leading Michigan State to its first national championship in 27 years.
"I think we have the pieces," Fears said. "We've kind of got a lot of everything, and my job is to get them the ball."
Haugh helped Florida win the 2025 national title and led the Gators with 17.1 points per game last season on his way to earning third-team AP All-America honors. He also likely would've been a 2026 first-round draft pick, but he wanted to add a second national title to his resume.
"It's national championship or bust for this team," Haugh said. "But we're mature enough. We have a really old group now, so I think we're going to be really comfortable coming in this season."
Tanner also earned third-team AP All-America honors after averaging 19.5 points and 5.1 assists. Mirkovic averaged 13.3 points, a team-high 8.0 rebounds and 2.6 assists for an Illinois team that reached the Final Four for the first time since 2005. Krivas averaged 10.4 points and a team-leading 8.2 rebounds to help lead Arizona to its first Final Four run in 25 years.
It will be exciting to see if these players live up to expectations and which other players emerge as top talents throughout the upcoming season.
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