Updated Player of the Year Rankings for College Basketball in 2016-17

We’re deep enough into the college basketball season that the statistics guys are putting up are probably going to be close to how they finish.

And if you study college basketball and numbers every season—hey, that’s me!—then you start to realize there are some incredible years being had across the country.

It starts to get difficult to differentiate who is more worthy of National Player of the Year and All-American consideration.

The field is deep. Arguments could be made for close to 20 players for first-team All-American. And only one guy gets National Player of the Year.

*Well, technically it can be more than one, because a lot of NPOY awards are out there now.

Really, it comes down to a voter’s preference. Voters have to figure out what intangibles are most important. For me, it’s winning and impacting winning. These qualities—or intangibles—are not always quantitative. The eye test is involved, which can be tricky.

But the last week of college basketball has provided reasoning for why the guy at the top of these rankings is at the top.

When his team needed him to be NPOY worthy, he went there.

Also considered: Bonzie Colson (Notre Dame), Dillon Brooks (Oregon), Josh Jackson (Kansas), Donovan Mitchell (Louisville), Jock Landale (Saint Mary's).

10. Jawun Evans, Oklahoma State Cowboys

Brody Schmidt/Associated Press

Previous rank: Not ranked

Jawun Evans is running the show for an offense that ranks second-best in the country according to KenPom.com’s metrics.

The Cowboys have just one guy who should play in the NBA (Evans) and a rotation that includes five freshmen. But somehow they’re one of the hottest teams in college basketball, winners of eight of their last nine after starting 0-6 in Big 12 play. Only four other Power Five conference teams have won at least eight of their last nine: Purdue, Florida, Arizona and Duke.

Oklahoma State has also had the most efficient offense in Big 12 games, ahead of the Kansas Jayhawks. That’s a KU roster that includes the best player in the league (Frank Mason) and the best NBA prospect (Josh Jackson).

Other Cowboys deserve credit too—as does first-year coach Brad Underwood—but Evans eats up more of his team’s possessions than any Power Five player in America, per KenPom.com. So in theory, he has more say over his team’s offensive efficiency than any other player on a Power Five team, and thus, he deserves a ton of credit for his team’s success.

9. Ethan Happ, Wisconsin Badgers

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Previous rank: 8

Wisconsin’s Ethan Happ had the most Ethan Happ game ever Sunday in a win over the Maryland Terrapins.

Happ posted 20 points, seven boards, three assists, five steals and two blocks. Surpassing or equaling those totals in those five statistics in one game has been done only 13 times in the past seven seasons, according to Sports Reference, and Happ joins the likes of Ben Simmons, Klay Thompson, DeAndre' Bembry, Marcus Smart and C.J. McCollum.

Happ is filling the stat sheet in those categories all season as well: 14.7 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 2.9 APG, 2.1 SPG and 1.1 BPG.

8. Johnathan Motley, Baylor Bears

Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

Previous rank: 7

Baylor is super reliant on Johnathan Motley, and defenses are well aware. In the game against Kansas this past Saturday, for instance, Bill Self had his team double Motley on every touch in the post.

Motley still managed to score 19 points.

That’s a testament to Motley’s versatility. The Bears can force-feed him in the post, but they can also get it to him on the perimeter facing the bucket, typically in pick-and-pops. Motley is also an elite offensive rebounder, so there’s really no way for a defense to take him away entirely.

And after two years of inconsistent play, the junior version of Motley has been one of the most consistent bigs in college hoops.

7. Luke Kennard, Duke Blue Devils

Mark Dolejs-USA TODAY Sports

Previous rank: 10

Luke Kennard kept Duke afloat through all the mess. That mess being injuries, those injured returning to screw up the flow and then Mike Krzyzewski sidelined with back surgery.

Now that Duke appears to be right and on a seven-game winning streak, Kennard is still at the center of it all. He’s averaging 20.6 points per game and making 50 percent of his threes during the winning streak.

He’s sharing shots with Grayson Allen and Jayson Tatum, and Duke’s offense thrives despite the presence of a true setup man because those three are so gifted in insolation. But it's become clear Kennard is still the man and the hardest of the three for defenses to handle.

6. Justin Jackson, North Carolina Tar Heels

Gerry Broome/Associated Press

Previous rank: Not ranked

North Carolina junior wing Justin Jackson was a solid scorer in his first two years in Chapel Hill. Jackson had a nice in-between game and an understanding of how to play the right way.

Growing up, Jackson’s parents did not allow him to shoot threes until he was strong enough to shoot them with proper mechanics, and the three-ball was the one hole in his game his first two seasons.

This year he’s added the range to his jumper and has made more threes (74) than his first two seasons combined. By adding that skill to his in-between game and awareness of how to get open when he does not have the ball, Jackson is now one of the toughest scorers to handle in the country.

He's been extra hot as of late, topping 20 points in five of UNC's last seven games. 

5. Nigel Williams-Goss, Gonzaga Bulldogs

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Previous rank: 5

The pressure of maintaining a perfect record is certainly not getting to Gonzaga point guard Nigel Williams-Goss.

Over his last seven games, Williams-Goss is averaging 21.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.1 steals per game while shooting 71 percent inside the arc, 40 percent from beyond and 95.1 percent at the free-throw line.

The first four spots on the first-team All-American squad look to be locks (the next four guys on this list), and Williams-Goss is making a strong case for that final spot.

4. Lonzo Ball, UCLA Bruins

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Previous rank: 4

If you were building the perfect point guard in college hoops, he’d likely look (and play) like Lonzo Ball.

Ball continues to be a gift to the analytics population with his understanding of how to play the game the right way by the numbers.

The UCLA freshman has attempted just five jump shots inside the arc in the half court all season, according to Synergy Sports play-by-play tracking, and that’s how a point guard ends up shooting 71.6 percent inside the arc. That’s a percentage usually reserved for behemoth big men who simply dunk everything at the rim.

It’s not that Ball does not shoot jumpers; he just does it from behind the three-point line. He’s made 64 triples. Ball also leads the nation in assists (7.6 per game).

Most draftniks seem set on the Washington Huskies' Markelle Fultz as the No. 1 pick in the draft. I’m not here to argue against that. But in an NBA game that is heavy into analytics, there could be some front offices considering Ball for his understanding of what constitutes good offense.

3. Josh Hart, Villanova Wildcats

Mel Evans/Associated Press

Previous rank: 2

The last time a team won the national championship and returned a good portion of its core was Florida in 2006-07. The Gators would go on to win a second national title, but it would be fair to say they underachieved in the regular season, finishing 26-5.

Villanova returned three starters—as opposed to Florida’s five—and has kept the focus and soared to a 26-2 record.

At the heart of the consistency is star Josh Hart, who averages 18.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists and has a 124.8 offensive rating, which is second-best nationally of players who use at least 24 percent of their team’s possessions, according to KenPom.com.

And to understand how Hart and the Wildcats have not fallen off at all, simply take a look at this quote from Hart delivered to Sports Illustrated’s Brian Hamilton:

"

Now that I’m the guy at the top of the scouting report, the guy every team wants to stop, I have to make sure that I make the right play. It’s not just about scoring. It’s about making sure my teammates are getting the ball. Trying to minimize the tough shots that I take. It’s about who is dialed into the details.

"

That’s some perspective, folks.

2. Caleb Swanigan, Purdue Boilermakers

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

Previous rank: 3

Caleb Swanigan is averaging 18.6 points, 12.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game, and he’s on pace to cruise past 600 (points)-400 (rebounds)-80 (assists).

Using that data, Purdue associate athletics communications director Chris Forman makes a compelling case for Swanigan to win National Player of the Year. Only five other players have pulled off 600-400-80 since the 1992-93 season, and the three major-conference players to do so (Wake Forest’s Tim Duncan, Utah’s Andrew Bogut and Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin) went on to win NPOY.

Forman also pointed out that none of the five had more than 14 threes; Swanigan has made 29 and is shooting 46.8 percent from deep.

Adding to the list of his statistical accomplishments: Swanigan’s 34.1 defensive rebounding percentage is highest among major-conference players in Ken Pomeroy’s database, which dates back to the 2003-04 season.

1. Frank Mason III, Kansas Jayhawks

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Previous rank: 1

In both of KU’s games last week, it looked like a loss was more likely than not coming—more so the first against the West Virginia Mountaineers, obviously, than the second at Baylor.

Here were the scenarios the Jayhawks faced:

• Down 14 with 2:58 left in regulation against West Virginia. (According to KenPom.com, Kansas had a 0.1 percent win probability at this point.)
• Down 35-23 with 55 seconds left in the first half against Baylor.

Here’s how Frank Mason III performed in those comebacks wins:

• He scored 15 points, made all 10 of his free throws and had an assist during the comeback plus overtime against West Virginia.
• He scored 19 points on 6-of-7 shooting (plus six of six at the free-throw line) and had four assists in the final 20 minutes, 55 seconds at Baylor.

So once it looked bleak on those two days, Mason went off for 34 points, had five dimes, did not miss a free throw and missed just three shots total in the 28 minutes, 53 seconds that followed.

The senior point guard has been all kinds of clutch this season, starting with his game-winner in Game 2 against Duke at Madison Square Garden. He’s still over 50 percent from three, and he’s been extra clutch at the free-throw line lately (53 of 59 in the last six games).

That's the work of a National Player of the Year.

C.J. Moore covers college basketball and football for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter: @CJMooreBR.