Updated 2017-18 CBB Player of the Year Rankings with 1 Month to Go

Oklahoma's Trae Young is still the prohibitive favorite to win all of the men's college basketball national player of the year awards, but guys like Deandre Ayton, Marvin Bagley III, Jalen Brunson and Jock Landale aren't exactly going down without a fight.

Let's note from the outset, per usual, that team success is crucial to these player rankings. Player of the year awards tend to go to the best players from the best teams, not necessarily the ones who put up the most absurd statistics.

That could hurt Young in the end, as the Sooners have lost five of their last nine games and have slipped to No. 17 in the latest AP Top 25 poll. If he continues to average close to 30 points and 10 assists per game, it probably won't matter. But we all might have jumped the gun by saying at various points in the past six weeks that the only way Young could fail to win the Wooden Award at this point would be an injury.

Beyond the battle for No. 1, there are some great candidates in the bottom half of the top 10 who would be locks for first-team All-American in just about any other season. There are just so many outstanding players this season that not everyone is going to get the recognition he deserves.

Statistics current through the start of play on February 5.

Honorable Mentions

Charlie Riedel/Associated Press

Devonte' Graham

Devonte' Graham, Kansas
17.2 PPG, 7.5 APG, 3.9 RPG, 1.9 SPG, 41.9% 3PT

Graham's transition from three-and-D role player to ball-dominant star has been seamless and spectacular. If it's hard to imagine Kansas' offense without him, it's because it almost never happens. Graham has played all 40 minutes in each of the last six games. But it's hard to put him in the top 10 of the national Player of the Year rankings when there are already three other Big 12 guards on the list. Just know that Graham is the most honorable of these mentions.

Miles Bridges, Michigan State
17.4 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 2.8 APG, 1.0 BPG, 36.8% 3PT

In my New Year's POY rankings, I had "Michigan State's TBD MVP" at No. 6, using the theory that the best player from each of the primary title contenders tends to be the top Player of the Year candidates. And I still believe that there will be a Spartan among the five finalists for the Wooden Award. However, it's still too early to declare which one it will be, as Nick Ward, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Cassius Winston are also putting up remarkable numbers.

Jared Harper, Auburn
12.9 PPG, 5.8 APG, 2.1 RPG, 1.2 SPG, 40.9% 3PT

Against all odds, Auburn is in the conversation for a No. 1 seed. But there's no individual member of the Tigers who stands out as their best player. Forced to pick one to be their POY candidate, you can't go wrong with the efficient point guard.

Mikal Bridges, Villanova
16.9 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 2.2 APG, 1.7 SPG, 1.2 BPG, 42.3% 3PT

Carsen Edwards, Purdue
16.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.2 SPG, 39.6% 3PT

There's no explicit rule that we can't have two players from the same team in the top 10, but it is hard to argue for a guy to be in the top 10 if he isn't No. 1 on his own team. That said, the explosions of Bridges and Edwards are the primary reasons Villanova and Purdue, respectively, have become two of the favorites to win the national championship.

Isaiah Wilkins, Virginia
6.0 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 1.7 BPG, 1.6 APG, 1.3 SPG

Devon Hall, Virginia
12.1 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 3.1 APG, 0.8 SPG, 44.2% 3PT

Between their slow pace of play and the fact that team defense is Virginia's calling card, it has always been a challenge to make the case for Cavaliers in the POY rankings. Both of these players are deserving, though. Wilkins has been UVA's ultimate glue guy for the past three years, and Hall has become the veteran leader we weren't sure this team would have after losing London Perrantes from last season.

10. Vincent Edwards, Purdue

Jim Mone/Associated Press

2017-18 Stats: 15.5 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 3.1 APG, 41.5% 3PT

Previous Rank: Not Ranked

There are any number of different ways we could go with this final spot.

Among major-conference players, Devonte' Graham and Miles Bridges are outstanding candidates. If you prefer to shout out a minor-conference player at No. 10, both Mike Daum of South Dakota State and Nick King of Middle Tennessee are quality options. Even just on Purdue's roster, you could make a case for Carsen Edwards, Dakota Mathias or Isaac Haas.

But we're going with Vincent Edwards, because even when he struggles, he still makes a positive impact.

Ten days ago, Edwards was shooting 48.2 percent from three-point range on the season, but he has been ice-cold from the perimeter in his last three games, going 0-of-13 from distance. And yet, in those three games, he has averaged 15.0 points, 8.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists, keeping Purdue in position to win a trio of close games.

That's the sign of a Player of the Year candidate. Like a Cy Young hopeful in baseball, even when he isn't feeling it with his best pitch on a particular day, he still grinds out a B-plus performance.

And if your vote for Player of the Year tends to go to the most valuable player on the best team, there's plenty of reason to believe that player is Edwards.

Maybe he isn't in your top 10 just yet, but if he puts up average performances (for him) in wins against Ohio State and Michigan State in the next few days, get ready to hear a lot of people lauding him as a first-team All-American candidate.

9. Keenan Evans, Texas Tech

Sean Rayford/Associated Press

2017-18 Stats: 18.6 PPG, 3.3 APG, 3.0 RPG, 1.3 SPG, 33.7% 3PT

Previous Rank: Not Ranked

In the span of three late January games, Keenan Evans went from the most overlooked star in the country to the one dude who no one can stop talking about.

Evans had 26 points in a close win over Oklahoma State, 31 points in a close win over South Carolina and 38 points in an overtime win over Texas, including the game-winning bucket as time expired. Most importantly, he did it efficiently, scoring those 95 points on just 38 field-goal attempts, thanks to 45 free-throw attempts and 64.3 percent three-point shooting.

Of course, if you've been paying attention to Texas Tech's incredible season, you know this isn't the first time he has torched the competition. Back in the Hall of Fame Tip-Off tournament, Evans had 29 points against Boston College, followed by 25 against Northwestern the following night. Two weeks later, he dropped 32 points on Nevada in a key nonconference win. And he scored at least 15 points in each of his first five Big 12 games.

And if you know that, you also know it's because Evans struggled in mid-January—and because the Red Raiders lost Zach Smith to an injury right before the Jan. 9 game against Oklahoma—that this team suffered three losses in the span of four games to lose a lot of its national momentum. After scoring at least 73 points in each of the first 15 games of the season, Texas Tech went from 65 to 58 to 52 points in those three losses. This is largely because Evans scored a paltry 37 points on 37 field-goal attempts in those contests.

Everyone has been comparing Trae Young to Stephen Curry this year, but another one to keep in mind might be Evans to Kemba Walker. If this guy is feeling it on offense for three weeks, Texas Tech can beat anyone with its defense.

8. Keita Bates-Diop, Ohio State

Rich Schultz/Getty Images

2017-18 Stats: 20.2 PPG, 8.9 RPG, 1.7 BPG, 1.5 APG, 1.0 SPG, 36.7% 3PT

Previous Rank: Not Ranked

His streak of consecutive games as the KenPom.com game MVP ended at 11 in mid-January, but Keita Bates-Diop is still plowing through the Big Ten like a freight train. He is averaging 22.5 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.9 blocks over his last 10 games, transforming Ohio State from a bubble team into one that should reach the second weekend of the NCAA tournament.

Arguably the best thing about KBD is that even his "duds" are good. In seven games this season with an O-rating of 100 or worse, Bates-Diop has still averaged 14.7 points, 10.0 rebounds and 2.1 blocks.

And if those are his bad games, you can probably imagine what the MVP performances are like. He had 35 points and 13 rebounds in a win over Illinois on Sunday, and it barely even registered as a blip on the social media radar. It was a career high in scoring for Bates-Diop—on just 16 field-goal attempts, no less—but at this point, it just felt like par for the course for him.

What's most impressive to me is his combination of shooting and rebounding. Guys who shoot a good number of threes don't typically rebound this well. But if he maintains his current averages and Ohio State plays 36 games, he would become just the fourth person in more than a quarter-century to finish a season with at least 320 rebounds and 65 made three-pointers. The others were Glenn Robinson, Kevin Durant and Quentin Richardson.

7. Trevon Bluiett, Xavier

John Minchillo/Associated Press

2017-18 Stats: 19.2 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 2.7 APG, 42.4% 3PT

Previous Rank: 7

Trevon Bluiett might be the least-discussed 2,000-point scorer in major-conference history. Xavier's stretch 4 hit that plateau three games ago, but you probably didn't know that. You never hear him talked about in the same light as recent 2,000-point scorers like Buddy Hield, Georges Niang or Doug McDermott.

It's tough to say why that's the case. Xavier was a No. 2 seed two years ago, had a phenomenal (Bluiett-fueled) run to the Elite Eight last year and darn well might be a No. 1 seed this year. You would think the leading scorer of all three of those teams would be one of the most popular players in the sport.

Instead, he's frequently forgotten about when people are talking off the cuff about the best players in the country.

Maybe it's because he doesn't often have huge performances or highlight-reel plays? Bluiett has only scored 30 or more points twice in his career. One of those games was a 40-point explosion in last season's Crosstown Classic; the other was a 31-point game against Georgetown on Saturday. But he has eclipsed 20 points 40 times in his career and has scored in double figures on 108 occasions.

Basically, Bluiett has been rock-solid for four years and has gradually gotten better during that time. He is the lifeblood of this Xavier team, which is a threat to win it all if he plays well in March and April.

6. Jevon Carter, West Virginia

Charlie Neibergall/Associated Press

2017-18 Stats: 16.9 PPG, 6.8 APG, 5.1 RPG, 3.2 SPG, 38.6% 3PT

Previous Rank: 10

The Trae Young Show has made it challenging to appreciate some of the absurd numbers that other guards are posting this season, but maybe this little nugget will help you process just how impressive Press Virginia's leader has been.

Even if we reduce Jevon Carter's per-game averages to 80 percent of the current marks—dropping to 13.5 points, 5.4 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 2.5 steals—there are only two other players in the past 10 seasons who have reached each of those four plateaus: Stephen Curry in 2008-09 and Kris Dunn in 2014-15.

When you have to cut a player's season averages by 20 percent in order to include a pair of former lottery picks in the club, he's clearly doing something right.

Carter's assist and rebound numbers aren't quite as high as what Jason Kidd did as a sophomore in 1993-94—16.7 PPG, 9.1 APG, 6.9 RPG, 3.1 SPG, 36.2% 3PT—but they're at least comparable. And one could argue that Carter makes up for the difference with fewer turnovers committed (2.5 per game versus Kidd's 4.3).

In other words, Carter has been better than you have probably realized, and the Mountaineers are still a serious threat for a deep tournament run if guys like Daxter Miles Jr. and Lamont West can snap out of the funk they have been in lately.

5. Deandre Ayton, Arizona

Chris Coduto/Getty Images

2017-18 Stats: 19.7 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 1.8 BPG, 1.4 APG, 34.6% 3PT

Previous Rank: 5

In Pac-12 play, Deandre Ayton has embraced his calling as a true big man.

Early on in the season, he was routinely taking multiple shots per game from three-point range, and he only averaged 1.4 blocks per nonconference game. But through 11 Pac-12 games, he is averaging 2.4 blocks and has only attempted three triples.

Ayton hasn't completely abandoned his face-up game, nor should he. He's still hitting mid-range jumpers with Tim Duncan-like regularity, which helps create space for Arizona's other big man (Dusan Ristic) to get easy looks at the rim. But Ayton has been much more of a dominant center than a stretch 4 for more than a month.

The people who have spent the past several years trying to brand him as the NBA's next Kristaps Porzingis-type of unicorn might not like this slight transformation, but it's good for both Ayton and Arizona.

Were it not for Rawle Alkins shooting 2-of-11 from the field in a three-point loss at Washington and Allonzo Trier disappearing in a three-point loss at Colorado, the Wildcats would be on an 18-game winning streak. When Ayton is dominating in the post, this team is almost impossible to beat.

4. Jock Landale, Saint Mary's

Gregory Bull/Associated Press

2017-18 Stats: 22.8 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 2.1 APG, 1.0 BPG

Previous Rank: Honorable Mention

Let's start out by addressing the elephant in the room: the level of competition Jock Landale is facing.

You're absolutely right, naysayers. Saint Mary's and Landale faced a pathetic nonconference schedule, and WCC play hasn't been much tougher. It's not fair to judge him based on what he has done against terrible teams. So let's take out all the cream-puff games and rerun the numbers, only counting the seven games that KenPom lists as Tier A or Tier B.

That puts him at 29.7 points, 12.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.3 blocks per game.

Oh.

He plays his best against the best opponents? Well, so much for that schedule argument. Looks like Landale is just an unstoppable force of nature who absolutely belongs as a first-team All-American.

In his most recent game, Landale went for 34 points and 18 rebounds in a 65-62 road win over San Diego. He accounted for 52.3 percent of the Gaels' points and 62.1 percent of their rebounds. He also had four assists for good measure. It was his fourth time scoring at least 32 points in his last seven games and his eighth consecutive game with multiple assists.

Keep sleeping on Landale and the Gaels at your own risk. In addition to Landale, they have a four-year starter at point guard (Emmett Naar) who ranks second in the nation in assists per game and three other starters shooting better than 42 percent from three-point range.

3. Marvin Bagley III, Duke

Lance King/Getty Images

2017-18 Stats: 21.4 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 1.6 APG, 1.0 BPG, 1.0 SPG, 35.4% 3PT

Previous Rank: 2

It's almost lunacy that Marvin Bagley III isn't the runaway favorite for national Player of the Year, given what he is doing at his age.

In the past 24 years, there have only been three other instances of a freshman or sophomore averaging at least 21 points and 11 rebounds per game. Those players were Kevin Durant, Michael Beasley and Blake Griffin, each of which became a top-two pick in that year's NBA draft and the most recent of which did so in 2008-09.

For Bagley to be a part of that club is even more impressive when you consider his teammates are exponentially better than what those former college legends had for their supporting casts. While Durant, Beasley and Griffin were the obvious go-to guys on their teams and often the only ones who even bothered trying to rebound, Bagley has four teammates averaging at least 11 points per game, as well as Wendell Carter Jr.'s 9.6 rebounds.

Bagley's usage rate is nowhere near what it was for the other three double-double machines, and he's still putting up these numbers.

And yet, to vote for Bagley as the NPOY, one would have to overlook both the sensational point guard for the No. 1 team in the country (Jalen Brunson) and the most captivating college basketball player of my lifetime (Trae Young). Unfortunately, someone has to come in third place in that race, and it likely means that Bagley will be the best unofficial bronze medalist in Player of the Year history.

2. Jalen Brunson, Villanova

Laurence Kesterson/Associated Press

2017-18 Stats: 19.4 PPG, 5.0 APG, 3.1 RPG, 48.3% 3PT

Previous Rank: 3

Here's the $64,000 question* for the voters on the various national Player of the Year panels: How big does the gap need to be between Villanova and Oklahoma in order to overcome the statistical gap between Jalen Brunson and Trae Young?

If they both played for teams that went 27-6 and earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA tournament, Young would be the no-brainer, unanimous winner. But if Villanova finishes 31-3 and earns the No. 1 overall seed while Oklahoma goes 21-11 and gets a No. 8 seed, would that be enough of a difference for Brunson to win it? (Also, if Oklahoma does end up as a No. 8/9 seed, could the selection committee please, for the love of all that is holy, give us Brunson vs. Young in the round of 32?)

Regardless of how things play out, both of these point guards have been fantastic.

With Brunson, it's the efficiency and the uncommon lethality in the paint. We've discussed this multiple times throughout the season, but Brunson's ability to run an offense from within 10 feet of the hoop is unlike anything else you'll see in today's game. It's almost like a quarterback who has the patience to find an open man while the pocket collapses around him. Except instead of having big men blocking for him, he has guys a foot taller than him trying to block his shot.

You've heard of the triple-threat position? It's where a player catches the ball facing the hoop and has the option to dribble, pass or shoot. Well, with Brunson, it's more like a quintuple-threat position, because he can pass, shoot, drive to rim or drive to the paint where he once again assumes the threat of passing or scoring. The defense has to stop him multiple times just to end one possession. And because that's so hard to do, he's running the most efficient offense in the nation.

* Just to clarify, there's isn't a $64,000 cash prize for NPOY. That's just a reference to a game show that went off the air 60 years ago.

1. Trae Young, Oklahoma

Sue Ogrocki/Associated Press

2017-18 Stats: 29.8 PPG, 9.7 APG, 4.1 RPG, 1.9 SPG, 39.3% 3PT

Previous Rank: 1

Trae Young is so gifted that it has gotten to the point where people aren't satisfied when he puts up 19 points and 14 assists in a close road loss to an NCAA tournament team.

Yes, Saturday's game against Texas was one of his least efficient performances of the season, because he shot a dreadful 2-of-14 from three-point range. But doesn't that just further illustrate how great Young has been? He did something that has only been achieved 23 times since the start of the 2010-11 season, and the knee-jerk reaction on social media was to complain that he's struggling and to question whether Oklahoma is a legitimate candidate for a deep run.

We are already spoiled by his greatness.

He is better than we deserve.

And I have never had more fun than this while watching a player.

Literally every Oklahoma game is must-see television, because he is a constant threat to do something historic. Just four days before the "disappointing" performance against Texas, he had 44 points on 20 field-goal attempts against Baylor. If you were too busy watching a different game or coverage of Super Bowl media week, you missed out on an incredible night of 30-foot bombs that touched nothing but net.

Make sure you don't miss another one. We've overused terms like "once-in-a-decade player" and "once-in-a-generation talent" in previous years with guys like Jahlil Okafor and Ben Simmons, but Young seriously is something incredible that we haven't seen in ages. When people are casually tossing around the name Pete Maravich to try to come up with a proper comparison for a player, you know he's a rare breed of excellence.

Kerry Miller covers men's college basketball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @kerrancejames.