College Basketball

College basketball 2022-23 countdown: No. 5 Baylor

Updated Mar. 17, 2023 10:13 a.m. ET

College Basketball Broadcaster and Reporter

Editor's note: John Fanta is counting down his top 15 college basketball teams leading up to the start of the 2022-23 season. Checking in at No. 5 is Baylor.

On Jan. 8, the Baylor Bears were 15-0 and ranked No. 1 in the country. At the time, it looked like nobody was going to be able to stop the reigning national champions from making another deep NCAA Tournament run.

Things changed drastically from there, though. The Bears went 12-7 in their next 19 — a finish caused in major part by significant injuries — showing why the college basketball season is a marathon and that the hottest teams heading into March matter most of all.

That being said, even without LJ Cryer and post presence Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua, the Bears came close to reaching the Sweet 16, mounting a 25-point comeback to force overtime against North Carolina in the second round. The Tar Heels, who were the hottest team in the country at the time, hung on and went all the way to the national title game. Who knows what would have happened had Baylor been healthy, but that’s the other side of the coin from what the Bears experienced the previous season when they cut down the nets in Indianapolis.

Now, the Bears are loaded yet again, with three starters back and some high-impact newcomers. This program remains on the top pedestal of college hoops programs, and that starts with head coach Scott Drew. He has mastered the art of culture-building and recruits players who fit a certain identity of toughness.

In the past three seasons, Baylor has compiled a record of 81-13.

There’s no reason to believe that the winning clip of 86% is going to slow down, and for a fourth straight year, a national title is a real possibility.

The metrics sure agree. KenPom.com has the Bears with the fourth-best adjusted offensive efficiency rating and the 12th-ranked defensive efficiency rating. BartTorvik.com ranks Baylor No. 2 in the country, behind only Gonzaga.

With a strong backcourt intact, a five-star recruit ready to blossom on the scene as one of America’s best freshmen, and a pair of transfers, Drew has the tools to mold a Big 12 champion and a top seed on the dance floor.

Let’s take a deeper dive into the No. 5 team in our preseason countdown.

Who’s back for the Bears?

Leading scorer Adam Flagler headlines the returnees for the Bears, and as he enters Year 5 with the program. He will be asked to run the point, and all signals point to the 6-foot-3 guard being able to handle the lead role after he averaged 13.8 points and 3.0 assists last season, aiding James Akinjo in the playmaking column. There’s no question that Flagler can score. He shot 44% from the field and 39% from downtown last season, going for 20-plus points six times, including a 27-point outing in the second-round thriller against North Carolina. Look for Flagler to build on the success he’s had thus far and serve again as Baylor's top scorer.

Cryer joins Flagler in the backcourt after a season that started so promising but was cut short due to stress fractures in both of his feet. In 19 games, though, the 6-foot-1 guard posted 13.5 PPG while shooting a conference-best 47% from beyond the arc. His ability to score in bunches is such a big positive for the offense, as he totaled 15-plus points in eight games and led the team in scoring in almost half of the games he played in.

Turning to the frontcourt, fifth-year senior Flo Thamba is going to be a major key. The 6-foot-10 starting center enters the 2022-23 campaign with no shortage of experience. He’s started 64 straight games and has played in 10 NCAA Tournament games. With Tchamwa Tchatchoua sidelined by a knee injury and no real timetable for his return, the importance of Thamba cannot be overstated. It bears noting that Thamba stepped up when Tchamwa Tchatchoua suffered a devastating knee injury last February. In the 10 contests to close the season, Thamba averaged 9.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.2 blocks in 27.9 minutes per game. He’s a terrific defender and a vital part of the Bears’ rebounding efforts. In a frontcourt that has some questions beyond him, Thamba will need to lead the way.

In terms of the reserves, look for redshirt freshman Langston Love to help the Bears as a spark on the perimeter. A five-star recruit in the 2021 class, the 6-foot-4 guard missed all of last year with a torn ACL. Senior Dale Bonner is also back for his second year with the Bears after transferring from Division II Fairmont State, and he could be a rotation piece to monitor as well. In the NCAA Tournament against North Carolina last year, Bonner had eight points, five boards and three assists.

Who’s new on the roster?

If you don’t know the name Keyonte George, mark it down now, because you’re going to be hearing it for years to come. The highest-ranked recruit in Baylor history, George is a dynamic 6-foot-4 wing who has already made his presence felt as much as one could without yet playing an official game. With Baylor representing USA Basketball at the GLOBL Jam tournament in Canada this past summer, George averaged 22.8 points and led them with a 37-point performance against Canada.

He’s a multidimensional scorer out of IMG Academy, having averaged 18 points in his senior year while shooting 41% from beyond the arc. While George plays very strong for his size and embraces physicality, making him a perfect fit for Baylor. His ability to fill it up gives him the potential to be a top-10 pick in next summer’s NBA Draft class, and if George can develop his playmaking and defense, he could change the Bears’ ceiling for the better.

While the five-star recruit highlights the new additions in Waco, Drew also executed strongly in the transfer portal. Jalen Bridges is a 6-foot-7 forward who comes to the Bears after starting 52 games in two seasons under Bob Huggins at West Virginia. Bridges is switchable defensively, and his versatile skill set will help the Bears replace what Jeremy Sochan and Kendall Brown brought to the team. Bridges notched 32 steals and 22 blocks as a sophomore and averaged 8.4 points to go along with 4.8 rebounds per game. He chose Baylor over Michigan State, Ohio State and Alabama. It’s expected that he will start at the four slot.

The other lengthy acquisition for Drew acquired is 6-foot-8 BYU transfer Caleb Lohner, who averaged 7.0 points and 6.7 boards in two seasons with the Cougars. He will likely come off the bench, and it will be interesting to see what role Lohner plays for this team. Last season, he shot just over 21% from 3-point land, an area of his game that he’s trying to evolve. He’s won at BYU as part of a program that went 44-18 in his time there, and Drew has said he’s been very coachable in the transition to life in Waco.

The questions to answer for the Bears …

What happens if Thamba gets in foul trouble? Who will step up beyond him on the glass? The two names to watch in terms of true post reinforcements are four-star freshman Josh Ojianwuna and junior Zach Loveday. Experience is not a strength of the frontcourt after Thamba, and it is really unknown what to expect from those reserves. Drew’s most productive lineup would likely be throwing in Lohner for a small ball approach, but in a challenging Big 12, defending and rebounding is not easy. Having strong play in the paint has been huge to Baylor’s recent success.

The million-dollar question: Will we see Tchamwa Tchatchoua get back out on the court this season? His recovery is on schedule, but it’s tough to tell when he will return.

The other question: Just how great will the Bears backcourt be?

That’s a good problem to have, and it’s going to be really fascinating to see how Flagler, Cryer and George work together. Will we see them all feed off one another? That’s a very real question when you mesh a five-star talent with veterans, but Drew is the king of creating culture. That should not be a worry in Waco.

The big picture …

Baylor has been one of the nation's best college basketball programs in the last three years, and the Bears have as good a chance as anyone to win it all. Combine Flagler and Cryer with the highly touted George? Let Bridges hold things down at the four slot while Thamba controls the interior with his defense and rebounding? The starting five is a matchup nightmare. If the depth gets firmed up, watch out. The Bears could do what Villanova did in winning two out of three national titles from 2016-2018.

Schedule highlights

Friday, Nov. 18: Virginia (Las Vegas)
Sunday, Nov. 20: UCLA or Illinois (Las Vegas)
Tuesday, Nov. 29: at Marquette (FS1)
Friday, Dec. 2: Gonzaga (San Pentagon - Sioux Falls, S.D.)
Sunday, Dec. 18: Washington State (Dallas)
Tuesday, Jan. 17: at Texas Tech
Monday, Jan. 23: Kansas
Saturday, Jan. 28: at Arkansas (Big 12/SEC Challenge)
Monday, Jan. 30: at Texas
Saturday, Feb. 4: Texas Tech
Saturday, Feb. 11: at TCU
Saturday, Feb. 18: at Kansas
Saturday, Feb. 25: Texas

Top 15 countdown:

John Fanta is a national college basketball broadcaster and writer for FOX Sports. He covers the sport in a variety of capacities, from calling games on FS1 to serving as lead host on the BIG EAST Digital Network to providing commentary on The Field of 68 Media Network. Follow him on Twitter @John_Fanta.