Freshman Tracker: Trae Young may be country's best player
MORE: Bossi's takeaways from the City of Palms event
There’s a new name at the top of this season’s college freshman tracker as Oklahoma’s Trae Young takes over the top spot. Who made moves and who enters the top 10 in National Basketball Analyst Eric Bossi’s second freshman tracker of the 2017-18 season.
Previous: 2
How he got here: A homegrown product from Norman, Young toyed with the idea of leaving for a blueblood like Kansas or Kentucky. However, the chance for total freedom and to be the man from day one helped the Sooners win his services.
This season: 28.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and 10.2 assists per game.
Analysis: Young is leading the nation in scoring and assists. He’s not just the best freshman so far this season, he’s probably college basketball’s player of the year. Big 12 play is just around the corner. Can he keep up the pace he’s on for a legendary freshman season?
Previous: 1
How he got here: Originally a member of the class of 2018, Bagley announced at the end of the summer of 2017 that he would enroll in school a year early. Duke beat out Arizona, Kansas, UCLA and USC.
This season: 21.3 points, 11.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.
Analysis: If not for the super efforts of Young, Bagley III would have remained in the top spot. He makes things look easy and has done a good job of commanding the ball and playing above the rim. The one area that Bagley could make a big improvement in is protecting the rim on the defensive end.
Previous: 4
How he got here: For much of Ayton’s recruitment, Kansas was considered the leader. However, shortly before the start of his senior season he tide began to switch for the native of the Bahamas and he picked Arizona.
This season: 20.3 points, 11.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.
Analysis: After a near disastrous start, Arizona looks like they’ve got things figured out and Ayton is a big reason why. It’s been a while since we’ve seen a big like him in college who has the type of size, coordination, physicality and ability to also step away from the rim.
Previous: 3
How he got here: A late-bloomer by today’s standards, Sexton took the country by storm between his junior and senior years of high school. He picked Alabama over Kansas and NC State among others.
This season: 21.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.
Analysis: Sexton was expected to inject some juice into the Alabama program and he’s certainly done that. His scoring has gone down a little bit over the past few weeks but that could be a sign of him learning to trust his teammates more.
Previous: 5
How he got here: A native of San Diego who played on the same summer team as Ayton, McCoy waited until late April of his senior year to choose UNLV over Arizona, Michigan State, Oregon and hometown San Diego State.
This season: 20.3 points, 11.3 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game.
Analysis: McCoy continues to put up one double-double after another. So far this year, McCoy has posted double-doubles in eight of the Rebels 11 games. His ability to for the most part avoid foul trouble has been a big factor in his production.
Previous: 6
How he got here: A high-scoring floor general from Connecticut, Waters initially signed with Georgetown. After getting his release in the spring, Creighton and Western Kentucky were brought up as contenders but Will Wade moved quickly to land him after getting the LSU gig.
This season: 18.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game.
Analysis: During his second month on the floor in Baton Rouge, Waters scoring numbers have dipped slightly. But, he’s become more productive as an assist producer and hasn’t been hunting shots.
Previous: 7
How he got here: One of the last big-time players in the class of 2017 to make his choice, Knox pulled off a mild surprise when he chose the Wildcats over Duke, Florida State and North Carolina.
This season: 15.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game
Analysis: Each time the Wildcats take the floor they seem to be improving a little bit and Knox has been quite steady. Other than one off night against Monmouth, Knox has been the most reliable player Kentucky has.
Previous: NR
How he got here: A big time athlete and productive rebounder who had academic concerns, White initially signed with Georgia Tech. When Brian Gregory was let go, White opened things up and found his way to Arizona State.
This season: 14.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 0.8 blocks per game.
Analysis: A redshirt, White has been a revelation for the nation’s most surprising team. The Sun Devils are in the top five and his high level production and efficiency have been somewhat lost in the shuffle with the excitement created by Arizona State’s guards.
Previous: NR
How he got here: Diallo elected to skip the second half of his prep school year and picked the Wildcats over UConn and enrolled during the second semester of the 2016-17 season.
This season: 15.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.
Analysis: As the season has gone on, Diallo has gotten better and better. A big-time athlete who is as exciting as they come in the open floor, he’s done a respectable job as a jump shooter hitting over 38 percent of his attempts from three while averaging just over 20 per game in his last four outings.
Previous: NR
How he got here: A Canadian who put up huge numbers at powerful Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill, Wigginton chose the Cyclones over Oregon and Arizona State.
This season: 16.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.
Analysis: When Wigginton committed to the Cyclones we wrote that he could be a 2,000 point scorer in Ames. He’s well on his way. After a “slow” start shooting the ball, Wigginton is cooking of late and has averaged 21.8 per game the last five outings.
Fell out: Jaylen Nowell (No. 8), Nickeil Alexander-Walker (No. 9), Mohammed Bamba (No. 10)
Keep an eye on: Oshae Brissett (Syracuse), Troy Brown (Oregon), Ethan Chargois (SMU), Jaren Jackson (Michigan State), Jhivvan Jackson (UTSA), Omari Spellman (Villanova), McKinley Wright (Colorado).