Ranking the Most Dynamic Freshmen to Watch in the 2015-16 NCAA Basketball Season

The influx of talent that comes into college basketball each season is like a shot of espresso to get you going on a Monday after a long and weary weekend. It's what keeps us looking forward throughout the long offseason, knowing that all of the great players who graduated or turned pro early will surely be forgotten not long after seeing the next great crop of young superstars.

And the 2015 class of freshmen is as good as ever, as evidenced by the fact that 15 players who have yet to log a minute in college are part of NBADraft.net's projected 2016 draft selections. Eight of those are slotted as lottery picks, including the top four overall selections, but that's become the standard since college freshmen made up 14 of the 30 first-round picks in June.

At this point, though, the hype freshmen are receiving is based mostly on how they looked playing against other high school players the past few years. We'll see just how good they are in less than two weeks when the 2015-16 season gets going, though past history indicates most of these guys will be as good as advertised.

Which ones stand out the most when it comes to being must-see players? We've ranked the 10 most dynamic freshmen to watch, based on their expected contributions this winter as well as how that will impact their team's chance to succeed.

10. Caleb Swanigan, Purdue

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Position: Forward

Height, weight: 6'9", 250 lbs

On most teams, someone of Caleb Swanigan's size and pedigree as an imposing figure would make him not just an instant starter as a freshman but also one of the team's go-to players. But Purdue has well-established 7'0" senior A.J. Hammons and 7'2" sophomore Isaac Haas, who combined for 19.5 points and 10.7 rebounds per game last season.

Still, Swanigan isn't the kind of player who will just sit back and wait his turn, nor will he expect things to be handed to him. He's been through enough in his life to know that you carve your own path.

"I remember what it's like to not be on top," Swanigan told Bleacher Report's Jason King, eluding to his past that involved weighing 360 pounds in eighth grade and being homeless for a time.

Known as "Biggie," Swanigan is a massive force inside who will make his mark with a fierce approach to rebounding and defense that will translate into scoring as he progresses. He's in a great situation where he doesn't have to try to dominate, but that doesn't mean he won't do so from time to time.

9. Jalen Brunson, Villanova

Matt Rourke/Associated Press

Position: Guard

Height, weight: 6'2", 199 lbs

Great guard play is nothing new at Villanova, as that's been a staple of the successful teams that Jay Wright has had over the past 15 seasons. Jalen Brunson could be the best he's had in terms of being both a floor leader and a dynamic scorer.

Brunson averaged 23.3 points, 5.3 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 2.6 steals per game as a senior in Illinois, where he was a two-time state player of the year.

"If Jalen can transform everything he's been able to do in high school to the next level [college], he can probably be a lottery pick," Chicago Public Schools Regional Athletic Director Joel Bullock told ESPN's Scoop Jackson.

Brunson joins an already strong backcourt, one that has senior Ryan Arcidiacono and junior Josh Hart, but he'll be the featured player in that three-guard lineup as the Wildcats push for a third straight Big East title.

8. Thomas Bryant, Indiana

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Position: Center

Height, weight: 6'10", 245 lbs

Indiana shot 40.6 percent from three-point range in draining more than 300 deep shots last season, and they are our choice for the top outside shooting team in the country for 2015-16. But the player who could put the Hoosiers over the top and—more importantly—back among the elite is the heralded big man they snared out of upstate New York (via Huntington Prep in West Virginia).

Thomas Bryant's addition to the Hoosiers "gives them sort of the missing piece inside," ESPN's Jeff Borzello tweeted in April when he committed. He measured at a 7'4" wingspan during a 2013 skills academy, per NBADraft.net, and has grown even more since then, so he'll be a presence both on offense and defense who can take up a lot of space.

Bryant will prevent opponents from overloading the perimeter with defenders since he could easily score on entry passes from the guards. And if they get too close to him he'll be able to kick it out to an open shooter.

7. Malik Newman, Mississippi State

Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports

Position: Guard

Height, weight: 6'3", 190 lbs

Mississippi State hasn't been very relevant in college basketball for a while, having not made the NCAA tournament since 2009 and having not finished above .500 since 2012. The hiring of ex-UCLA coach Ben Howland was the first step in getting the Bulldogs back on track, and the next piece came with the signing of elite guard Malik Newman.

And if Howland lets him, Newman could easily be the highest-scoring freshman in the country this year based on how he fared at the prep level. According to his online bio, Newman scored 3,108 points in high school in Jackson, Mississippi, and averaged 29.7 points per game as a senior.

"Howland hasn't hesitated to say that Newman will be a focal point of the offense immediately," wrote the Associated Press' David Brandt (h/t Yahoo Sports).

Because of Newman, a team that tied for 11th in the 14-team SEC was picked eighth (and just one point out of seventh) by the conference media.

6. Brandon Ingram, Duke

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Position: Forward

Height, weight: 6'9", 190 lbs

The most heralded of Duke's four five-star freshmen that were signed this season, Brandon Ingram was the third-best player in the 2015 class, per 247Sports. He's also the one that's most likely to be a dominant force for the defending national champion Blue Devils, who need some go-to players after four starters graduated or turned pro.

Ingram might seem frail and thin with his lanky frame, but that just makes it easier for him to blow by people with his drives or shoot over smaller defenders. It also makes him a dangerous defender who can disrupt passing lanes, and he's shown the ability to run the offense by spending some time at point guard in Duke's exhibition game on Oct. 30.

Somewhat of a combination between departed Duke stars Justise Winslow and Quinn Cook, Ingram will be the main attraction on a team overloaded with stars.

5. Skal Labissiere, Kentucky

Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports

Position: Forward

Height, weight: 6'11", 225 lbs

Kentucky's front line in 2014-15 was on the level of an NBA team, and was taller than many pro franchise's rotation of big men. But from that group came four early NBA entrants, thinning out the herd and making for some much-needed replacements.

Enter Skal Labissiere, the Haitian-born big man who might not be able to do what four Wildcats accomplished last season but he'll do his best to come close.

"He has a post game with refined moves, including a tough-to-stop baby hook," Reid Forgrave of Fox Sports wrote. "He can hit a jumper. He can get up and down the court magnificently for a big man. And he can block shots. The scary part is how much he’ll progress from November to March."

Labissiere had 18 points on 9-of-12 shooting with five rebounds, two assist and two blocks in Kentucky's exhibition game Monday against Ottawa.

4. Cheick Diallo, Kansas

Gregory Payan/Associated Press

Position: Forward

Height, weight: 6'9", 218 lbs

The MVP of not one but two major high school all-star games this past spring, Cheick Diallo's signing with Kansas was applauded as the latest in a long line of big pickups for Jayhawks coach Bill Self. Like Cliff Alexander a season ago, but one that is expected to live up to potential and possibly match 2013-14 standouts Joel Embiid and Andrew Wiggins.

But with only a little more than a week before the season begins, we still don't know when (or if) we'll see Diallo wearing Jayhawk blue and playing in Allen Fieldhouse.

Diallo has yet to be cleared by the NCAA, which is looking into the high school (Our Savior New American in Centereach, New York) that he attended after moving to the U.S. from Africa. It's unlikely a decision will be made before the Jayhawks' Wednesday exhibition game, according to Jesse Newell of the Topeka Capital-Journal.

"We're treating it just like he's going to play," Self told Newell. "The reality, I think there will be a definitive answer by Northern Colorado (on Nov. 13), but I'm hoping, obviously, even sooner than that."

3. Jaylen Brown, California

Position: Forward

Height, weight: 6'7", 225 lbs

California hasn't been a major player for the nation's top recruits in nearly two decades, not since Jason Kidd starred for the Golden Bears. Yet Cuonzo Martin was able to pull stellar wing Jaylen Brown away from the likes of Kansas, Kentucky and UCLA, and in doing so has ascended his program to the upper tier of the Pac-12 even before Brown has played a game.

Additionally, NBA scouts are becoming a regular sight at Cal practices, per Janie McCauley of the Associated Press (h/t Yahoo Sports).

Teamed with fellow star freshman Ivan Rabb, the Golden Bears have been picked to finish second behind defending champion Arizona in the Pac-12.

2. Jamal Murray, Kentucky

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Position: Guard

Height, weight: 6'5", 207 lbs

Jamal Murray was already making a rise up the recruiting rankings last summer before he lit up the Pan Am Games as part of Canada's silver medal-winning team. He'd reclassified from the 2016 group to join Kentucky a year early, which meant he wasn't able to be on the Canadian team for Olympic qualifying since it would have interfered with the start of college.

While the international game missed out on Murray, the college landscape is in for a real treat. That started with his first non-intrasquad game with Kentucky on Monday, when he came within a rebound of the program's first triple-double in 27 years.

Murray had 22 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds on 8-of-15 shooting, making four three-pointers.

"I'm looking forward to all of the games that we get to play," Murray said, per Zagsblog.com.

1. Ben Simmons, LSU

Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports

Position: Forward

Height, weight: 6'10", 240 lbs

The "point forward" isn't a traditional basketball position, yet it might be a phrase you'll see and hear a lot this season when reading about or watching Ben Simmons.

The Australian-born freshman can play all five positions on the court and often will hit several of them in the same series of plays. During an overseas trip he led LSU in pretty much every statistical category, and he's why the Tigers are pegged to be a challenger in the SEC this season after being a massive underachiever last season.

"You're going to be able to put him on the court anywhere essentially at LSU, and he's going to be successful," ESPN's Fran Fraschilla said, per Nicole Auerbach of USA Today.

Whatever impact he's able to have on LSU, though, it will be minimal. Simmons is projected as the No. 1 pick in the 2016 draft, per NBADraft.net.

Follow Brian J. Pedersen on twitter at @realBJP.