10 Burning Questions That Could Shake Up the 2025-26 Men’s College Basketball Season

College basketball is gearing up for what promises to be an electrifying season, brimming with twists and turns that nobody saw coming. With coaching shake-ups rattling programs, jaw-dropping player moves reshaping rosters, and NIL deals breaking records left and right, the landscape of the game has shifted dramatically. As the calendar flips to Monday, November 3, the hardwood will light up with 20 teams from the preseason AP Top 25 stepping onto the court, each carrying dreams of glory and eyes on the prize.

But here’s the kicker—who’s really poised to dominate? Which coaches find themselves staring down the barrel of “win or else” seasons? And let’s not forget about the freshmen—those fresh faces that have everyone buzzing. This season holds more questions than answers, so let’s unravel the top 10 mysteries that will define the 2025-26 college basketball journey.

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After an offseason of high-profile coaching changes, head-spinning transfers and record-setting NIL deals, college basketball is nearly back. The new season tips off Monday, Nov. 3, with 20 preseason AP Top 25 teams in action.

What teams will be relevant in the title chase? Which coaches are under the most pressure to win to save their jobs? Who are this season’s must-see freshmen? Let’s dive in by addressing 10 big questions about the 2025-26 college basketball season.

1. Is this the highest the talent level has been across the sport?

Ever? No.

In a long, long time? Yes.

The skyrocketing NIL market has changed the calculus for prospects who either aren’t eligible to enter the NBA Draft or aren’t surefire first-round draft picks. Young players typically can earn more money signing with a top-tier college basketball program than they can playing in the G League or for overseas professional teams.

Underclassmen returned to college in record numbers this offseason rather than chasing NBA two-way contracts or paydays in Europe. Dozens of young international prospects also came stateside to play college basketball, some 21- or 22-year-olds with several years of experience competing against professionals, others supremely gifted teenagers with NBA aspirations.

In recent years, college basketball has lost top high school prospects to alternative pathways like the G League Ignite, Overtime Elite or the NBL’s Next Stars program. This year, every top prospect in the star-studded 2025 class is playing college basketball, from Kansas’ Darryn Peterson, to BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, to Duke’s Cam Boozer.

College basketball attracting players with professional experience finally received mainstream attention when coaches began recruiting players out of the G League. Last month, Santa Clara signed Thierry Darlan, a guard from the Central African Republic who had spent the previous two seasons with the G League Ignite, the Delaware Blue Coats and the Rip City Remix.

Don’t expect the NCAA to step in and refuse to grant eligibility to players who have previously competed professionally. The NCAA issued a statement Friday essentially saying it doesn’t think it can legally defend banning players with international or domestic professional experience from playing college basketball.

“These cases are likely to continue,” the NCAA statement said, unless Congress intervenes, establishes the NCAA’s authority in setting operational rules and provides immunity from legal challenges.

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - MARCH 30: Houston Cougars guard Emanuel Sharp #21 and guard Milos Uzan #7 react against the Tennessee Volunteers during the Elite Eight round of the 2025 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament held at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 30, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/NCAA Photos/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) — Emanuel Sharp, Milos Uzan and the Cougars came up just short of a national title last season, beating Duke in the Final Four before losing to Florida in the title game, 65-63. (Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

(Joe Robbins/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

2. Who’s the favorite to win the national title?

KenPom and the other major efficiency-based computer ranking systems each favor Houston. Oddsmakers and AP Top 25 voters argue it’s Purdue.

The case for Houston begins with one of college basketball’s top returning trios. Milos Uzan, Emanuel Sharp and Joseph Tugler are each back from a 35-win team that suffered a gutting two-point loss in the national title game against Florida when the Cougars failed to get off a shot on their final possession.

Any uncertainty about Houston stems from the fact that, in an era when top teams are often loaded with proven upperclassmen, Kelvin Sampson’s team will be heavily reliant on freshmen. Center Chris Cenac Jr. was Rivals.com’s No. 6 player in the 2025 class. Guards Isiah Harwell (No. 9) and Kingston Flemings (No. 22) weren’t far behind. Two of those three heralded freshmen are likely to start for the Cougars. The third should be the team’s sixth man.

The case for Purdue starts with an offense that was top-10 nationally last season and should be even better this year. Any offense featuring Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer and Trey Kaufman-Renn should be elite, and the addition of prized 19-year-old Israeli guard Omer Mayer will provide some extra playmaking and scoring punch.

Without Zach Edey, Purdue suffered from a lack of rebounding and rim protection last season, allowing opposing teams to shoot 55.6% from inside the arc, which ranked 332nd nationally. The addition of gritty 6-foot-11 South Dakota State transfer Oscar Cluff should help, as should the return of Daniel Jacobsen, the 7-foot-4 center who fractured his tibia in Purdue’s second game last season.

Neither Houston nor Purdue resembled title favorites in preseason exhibition games. Ole Miss took down the Cougars, 70-56. Kentucky, down two starters, convincingly beat the Boilermakers, 78-65.

3. Who else is a threat to cut down nets in April?

There’s a long list of title contenders.

Start with reigning national champion Florida, which returns every key frontcourt player from last season. How good the Gators are will pretty much come down to two questions: Can coveted transfers Xaivian Lee and Boogie Fland provide perimeter scoring punch and playmaking? And can Thomas Haugh successfully transition from exploiting mismatches at power forward to playing on the wing?

Then there’s Duke, the preseason ACC favorite despite losing Cooper Flagg and the rest of its starting five from last year’s Final Four team. Heralded freshman Cam Boozer will be Duke’s headliner this season, but what will determine whether Duke reaches its ceiling is how returners Isaiah Evans, Caleb Foster and Patrick Ngongba II develop. Can the sweet-shooting Evans blossom into a star as a sophomore? Can Foster and Ngongba emerge as reliable starters?

Among the other teams with legitimate national title hopes, UConn, Louisville and Kentucky stand out the most.

Between improved point guard play from Silas Demary and Malachi Smith, an array of skilled outside shooters and elite offensive rebounding from Tarris Reed Jr., UConn should be elite offensively. Louisville welcomes elite freshman Mikel Brown Jr. and one of the nation’s best transfer portal hauls. Kentucky is ridiculously deep and should be much improved defensively, especially if potential lottery pick Jayden Quaintance makes a midseason return.

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - OCTOBER 24: AJ Dybantsa #3 of the Brigham Young Cougars rushes the ball up the court against the North Carolina Tar Heels during the first half of their exhibition game at the Delta Center on October 24, 2025 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images) — AJ Dybantsa was the top recruit in the country and landed with BYU. (Chris Gardner/Getty Images)

(Chris Gardner via Getty Images)

4. Can AJ Dybantsa elevate BYU into a national power?

At minimum, he’s going to make the Cougars must-watch.

When AJ Dybantsa announced on “First Take” last December that he had chosen BYU, he instantly became the most celebrated basketball recruit in school history. Dybantsa has long been considered a leading contender to go No. 1 in the 2026 NBA Draft. He’s a long, athletic 6-foot-9 shot creator with the physical tools to thrive in transition and to blossom into a defensive menace.

Dybantsa joins a BYU program that last reached the Elite Eight in 1981 but has the financial backing to ascend in the national pecking order. The Cougars have surrounded Dybantsa with a supporting cast that includes first-team all-Big 12 guard Richie Saunders and shot-blocking center Keba Keita. Then BYU spent to raise its ceiling by adding Baylor transfer Robert Wright, one of the nation’s top freshman guards last season.

Last year, BYU won 23 games and made the second weekend of the NCAA tournament but got run off the floor by Alabama in the Sweet 16. This season, BYU is capable of more if its offensive efficiency remains elite and Dybantsa and Wright help the defense make a leap.

How good can BYU be? The Cougars are No. 8 in the preseason AP Top 25 and second only to Houston in the preseason Big 12 poll.

Those are lofty expectations but Dybantsa is aiming even higher.

“My main goal is to win the national title,” he has said.

5. Can Darryn Peterson revive struggling Kansas?

For the past two years, AP voters made the mistake of anointing Kansas preseason No. 1. The media miscast Hunter Dickinson as a star capable of carrying a title contender and overlooked the spacing issues that arose from building around three non-shooters.

There’s reason to believe AP voters may have overcorrected this month by awarding Kansas its lowest preseason ranking in 17 years. The revamped roster that Bill Self assembled has a real chance to finish way better than 19th in the nation.

The addition of prized freshman Darryn Peterson is the biggest source of optimism. Peterson, a dynamic three-level scorer with the ideal physical measurements for a modern two guard, has overtaken Dybantsa as the favorite to go No. 1 in the 2026 NBA Draft. He has a chance to be the best freshman that Self has ever coached — more consistent than Andrew Wiggins and more polished than Joel Embiid.

The defensive potential of this Kansas team is through the roof with multiple proven perimeter stoppers and Flory Bidunga anchoring the paint. Transition offense also figures to be a strength. The question is how Peterson’s supporting cast will shoot from behind the arc and whether a clear secondary scoring option will emerge.

Kansas passed its first test, convincingly winning at No. 11 Louisville in an exhibition game on Friday night.

Not bad for a team projected to finish sixth in its own league.

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - OCTOBER 24: Head coach Hubert Davis of the North Carolina Tar Heels calls a play during the first half of their exhibition game against the Brigham Young Cougars at the Delta Center on October 24, 2025 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images) — Hubert Davis is 101-45 during his four years as North Carolina’s head coach. (Chris Gardner/Getty Images)

(Chris Gardner via Getty Images)

6. Which coaches need to win big to save their jobs?

All eyes are on two tradition-rich ACC programs who have underachieved recently.

In the last three years under Hubert Davis, North Carolina has missed one NCAA tournament and slipped into another as a No. 11 seed. The Tar Heels hired general manager Jim Tanner and assembled one of the most expensive rosters in college basketball this offseason. If they are still in bubble territory next March, the clamor to move on from Davis will be deafening.

Adrian Autry is also facing a prove-it season after not coming close to taking Syracuse to the NCAA tournament since replacing Jim Boeheim two seasons ago. Syracuse had a good offseason, retaining JJ Starling and Donnie Freeman and adding talent via the high school ranks and the transfer portal. If Autry can’t get the Orange to the NCAA tournament in his third season, he shouldn’t count on getting a fourth.

7. Which coaching legend will be the next to retire?

College basketball’s changing landscape has already hastened the retirement of some of the sport’s coaching icons. Roy Williams, Mike Krzyzewski, Jay Wright, Jim Boeheim, Tony Bennett, Jim Larrañaga and Bruce Pearl have each retired since 2021, in some cases citing burnout from the transfer portal producing unfettered free agency and the loosening of NIL rules turning recruiting battles into bidding wars.

Which member of the old guard could be the next to put away their whistle and clipboard for good? There are a few obvious candidates.

Creighton’s Greg McDermott is planning to retire and has already handpicked his successor. Kansas’ Bill Self has dealt with recurring health issues in recent years. Houston’s Kelvin Sampson could walk away if he at last wins a championship. Michigan State’s Tom Izzo and Oregon’s Dana Altman have repeatedly had to address retirement rumors.

But maybe the biggest name to monitor is Gonzaga’s Mark Few, who will turn 63 in December and who could decide he wants more time for hiking and fly fishing while he’s healthy enough to do so. Few has said that Gonzaga assistant coach Brian Michaelson will succeed him whenever he decides to call it a career.

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA - AUGUST 28: NC State Wolfpack head basketball coach Will Wade looks on during the game against the East Carolina Pirates at Carter-Finley Stadium on August 28, 2025 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) — After a brief stint at McNeese, Will Wade is now the head coach at NC State. (Lance King/Getty Images)

(Lance King via Getty Images)

There were 62 coaching changes in men’s college basketball this offseason. Expect Auburn’s Steven Pearl, NC State’s Will Wade and Iowa’s Ben McCollum to enjoy the strongest debut seasons.

All five starters from Auburn’s Final Four team may be gone, but Bruce Pearl did not leave the cupboard bare for his son. Steven inherits a potential All-American candidate in sophomore point guard Tahaad Pettiford and an array of promising transfers, including efficient big man KeShawn Murphy (Mississippi State) and high-scoring wing Keyshawn Hall (UCF). Year 1 under Steven Pearl shouldn’t be a rebuild. If the newcomers jell, it’s a reload.

After making five straight NCAA tournament appearances at LSU and McNeese, Wade should extend that streak to six in Year 1 at NC State. Offensively, Wade will build around Texas Tech transfer Darrion Williams, an All-American candidate who chose the Wolfpack over Kansas. Defensively, Wade has the pieces to play the same aggressive, switchable defense that he has favored at previous stops.

McCollum has won 12 consecutive league titles and just went 31-4 at Drake in his first season as a Division I head coach. Matching that success in his first year at Iowa is unrealistic, but the Hawkeyes will be methodical, disciplined and difficult to score against.

9. Which teams from one-bid conferences have giant-slaying potential this March?

High majors should beware of two Missouri Valley Conference powers who won 20-plus games a year ago, then did an excellent job keeping the portal vultures at bay. Northern Iowa returns 72% of its minutes played from last season, more than any other Division I team in the country. Illinois State boasts the Valley’s top returning duo in dominant big man Chase Walker and guard Johnny Kinziger.

Who else should top seeds prefer to avoid?

Yale is the clear favorite in the Ivy League. High Point has the largest NIL budget among teams from one-bid conferences and used it to land three transfer guards who all averaged at least 13 points per game at their previous school. Liberty returns three senior starters from a 28-win team.

10. Which conference will produce the most tourney teams?

The Big 12 could have the strongest top tier of any league, but it will be either the SEC or the Big Ten that sends the most teams to the NCAA tournament. They’re both capable of gobbling up a dozen bids or more if things break in their favor.

A year ago, the SEC produced one of the greatest seasons for a league in college basketball history, earning a record 14 NCAA bids with Florida and Auburn making the Final Four and the Gators cutting down the nets. Only four of 15 all-league players return, but the SEC did reload with talented newcomers and is again the deepest conference top to bottom. Of the 16 SEC teams, only South Carolina is ranked lower than No. 58 in the preseason KenPom rankings. Only the Gamecocks appear to have a roster incapable of making the NCAA tournament.

There are a few more nights off in the 18-team Big Ten — cough, Rutgers, Penn State, Minnesota — but the upper two-thirds of the league is loaded. Six Big Ten teams cracked the preseason AP Top 25. Six more are among the other teams receiving votes.

Washington signed Hannes Steinbach, a 6-foot-8 forward who averaged 17.4 points and 13.0 rebounds while leading Germany to a runner-up finish at the U-19 World Cup this past summer. The Huskies will support him with a deep, talented backcourt. If that’s the 11th-best team in the Big Ten, as posited by the annual Big Ten media poll, this league will be a monster.