Sports Illustrated’s College Basketball Projection System is a collaboration between economist Dan Hanner and SI’s Luke Winn and Jeremy Fuchs that produces our 1-351 team rankings, conference predictions and player statistical forecasts. For a deeper look at how the system works, read this explainer.
We simulated the season 10,000 times and generated median stats for every player in the top eight conferences (AAC, ACC, Atlantic 10, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC) as well as our other forecasted at-large bid candidates (Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s, BYU, Wichita State, San Diego State and Princeton). Today we’re unveiling our projected top 100 scorers, according to raw points per game, from that set of teams. See every article in our college basketball preview here.
Rank
Player
Team
Pos.
Year
Proj. PPG
ORtg
Volume
Mins
'15-16 PPG
1
Jack Gibbs
Davidson
PG
Sr
23.6
112.2
34%
87%
23.4
2
Peter Jok
Iowa
SG
Sr
21.4
113.8
26%
90%
16.1
3
Grayson Allen
Duke
PG/SG
Jr
20.1
128.7
25%
85%
21.6
4
Jordan Price
La Salle
SG
Sr
19.6
102.8
30%
91%
19.2
5
T.J. Cline
Richmond
PF
Sr
19.6
116.6
29%
80%
18.4
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Davidson senior shooting guard (and Settlers of Catan gamer) Jack Gibbs is a safe bet to lead the multi-bid conferences in scoring. He was fourth last year, behind only Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield, Mississippi’s Stefan Moody and NC State’s Cat Barber, all of whom have moved on to the pros. Gibbs scored 40 or more points three times as a junior, and although we don’t see his scoring average hitting Stephen Curry range—Steph put up 28.6 as a Davidson junior—a 23.6-per-game projection is more than respectable.
Rank
Player
Team
Pos.
Year
Proj. PPG
ORtg
Volume
Mins
'15-16 PPG
6
Jaron Blossomgame
Clemson
PF
Sr
18.9
120.0
25%
85%
18.7
7
Malcolm Hill
Illinois
SG
Sr
18.7
114.2
28%
86%
18.1
8
Rob Gray
Houston
SG
Jr
18.6
116.1
27%
76%
16.0
9
Ivan Rabb
California
PF
So
18.3
119.7
26%
83%
12.5
10
Markelle Fultz
Washington
PG/SG
Fr
18.2
114.6
27%
81%
Rank
Player
Team
Pos.
Year
Proj. PPG
ORtg
Volume
Mins
'15-16 PPG
11
Kelan Martin
Butler
PF
Jr
18.1
114.0
26%
81%
15.7
12
Nick Emery
BYU
PG
So
17.9
119.3
22%
85%
16.3
13
James Blackmon, Jr.
Indiana
SG
Jr
17.6
124.6
26%
70%
15.8
14
Jaylen Adams
St. Bonaventure
PG
Jr
17.6
121.8
23%
94%
17.9
15
Donte Clark
Massachusetts
SG
Jr
17.5
106.9
26%
82%
16.2
16
Allonzo Trier
Arizona
SG
So
17.3
116.6
23%
80%
14.8
17
Mike Young
Pittsburgh
PF
Sr
17.3
119.3
26%
76%
15.7
18
Stevie Thompson
Oregon St.
SG
So
17.3
110.9
24%
86%
10.6
19
Dillon Brooks
Oregon
SF
Jr
17.2
117.0
26%
82%
16.7
20
Trevon Bluiett
Xavier
SF
Jr
16.9
121.6
22%
85%
15.1
Rank
Player
Team
Pos.
Year
Proj. PPG
ORtg
Volume
Mins
'15-16 PPG
21
Jayson Tatum
Duke
SF
Fr
16.8
117.7
25%
79%
22
Melo Trimble
Maryland
PG
Jr
16.7
113.6
29%
82%
14.8
23
Tyler Cavanaugh
George Washington
PF
Sr
16.7
113.8
25%
79%
16.8
24
J.J. Frazier
Georgia
PG
Sr
16.6
117.0
25%
82%
16.9
25
Dusty Hannahs
Arkansas
SG
Sr
16.5
118.3
24%
68%
16.5
26
Isaac Hamilton
UCLA
SG
Sr
16.5
115.4
22%
85%
16.8
27
Emile Blackman
Duquesne
SG
Sr
16.5
104.0
23%
88%
15.8
28
Moses Kingsley
Arkansas
PF
Sr
16.4
115.2
26%
74%
15.9
29
Rodney Purvis
Connecticut
SG
Sr
16.3
109.5
24%
86%
12.8
30
Jahmal McMurray
South Florida
PG
So
16.3
98.2
25%
93%
15.2
31
B.J. Tyson
East Carolina
PG/SG
Jr
16.3
104.6
25%
86%
14.6
32
Corey Sanders
Rutgers
PG
So
16.2
103.2
27%
87%
15.9
33
Khadeen Carrington
Seton Hall
PG
Jr
16.2
107.2
24%
85%
14.1
34
Yante Maten
Georgia
PF/C
Jr
16.2
106.0
27%
76%
16.5
35
Jawun Evans
Oklahoma St.
PG
So
16.2
112.9
26%
85%
12.9
36
Dedric Lawson
Memphis
PF
So
16.1
105.5
28%
82%
15.8
37
Jabari Bird
California
SG
Sr
16.1
118.8
22%
79%
10.4
38
Peyton Aldridge
Davidson
PF
Jr
16.0
122.9
21%
87%
15.5
39
V.J. Beachem
Notre Dame
SF
Sr
16.0
121.4
20%
83%
12.0
40
Josh Hart
Villanova
SG/SF
Sr
16.0
124.2
23%
79%
15.5
Georgia should have one of the nation’s best scoring duos in guard J.J. Frazier (No. 24) and center Yante Maten (No. 34), but not enough of a supporting cast to project as an NCAA tournament team. Likewise for Oklahoma State, whose starting backcourt of Jawun Evans (No. 35) and Phil Forte III (No. 42) is projected to combine for 32.0 points, but their team projects to finish in the lower half of the Big 12.
Rank
Player
Team
Pos.
Year
Proj. PPG
ORtg
Volume
Mins
'15-16 PPG
41
Malik Monk
Kentucky
SG
Fr
16.0
117.1
25%
77%
42
Zach LeDay
Virginia Tech
PF
Sr
15.9
119.5
24%
78%
15.5
43
Phil Forte III
Oklahoma St.
SG
Sr
15.9
120.8
21%
80%
13.3
44
Tres Tinkle
Oregon St.
SF
So
15.9
114.0
23%
83%
13.1
45
Dwayne Bacon
Florida St.
SF
So
15.9
106.8
27%
72%
15.8
46
Jamel Artis
Pittsburgh
PG
Sr
15.9
110.8
24%
82%
14.4
47
Nigel Hayes
Wisconsin
PF
Sr
15.9
113.3
27%
85%
15.7
48
Jordan McLaughlin
USC
PG
Jr
15.8
115.2
23%
88%
13.4
49
Josh Jackson
Kansas
SF
Fr
15.7
119.0
23%
79%
50
Maurice Watson Jr.
Creighton
PG
Sr
15.6
112.6
27%
85%
14.1
51
Bryant Crawford
Wake Forest
PG
So
15.6
101.9
26%
85%
13.8
52
Jordan Woodard
Oklahoma
PG
Sr
15.5
115.8
23%
85%
13.0
53
Monte Morris
Iowa St.
PG
Sr
15.5
121.4
24%
90%
13.8
54
Dennis Smith Jr.
North Carolina St.
PG
Fr
15.4
120.1
22%
87%
55
Charles Cooke
Dayton
SG
Sr
15.4
110.9
24%
79%
15.6
56
Josh Hawkinson
Washington St.
PF
Sr
15.4
114.5
22%
82%
15.4
57
ShawnDre' Jones
Richmond
PG
Sr
15.3
116.1
22%
87%
14.7
58
E.C. Matthews
Rhode Island
SG
Sr
15.3
109.2
24%
79%
0.0
59
Obi Enechionyia
Temple
PF
Jr
15.3
111.8
24%
74%
11.0
60
Mike Crawford
Saint Louis
SG
Sr
15.2
105.8
21%
87%
10.3
Rank
Player
Team
Pos.
Year
Proj. PPG
ORtg
Volume
Mins
'15-16 PPG
61
Ja'Quan Newton
Miami FL
PG
Jr
15.0
109.3
27%
79%
10.5
62
Nate Mason
Minnesota
PG
Jr
15.0
109.7
24%
85%
13.8
63
Bryant McIntosh
Northwestern
PG
Jr
15.0
111.3
26%
89%
13.8
64
Damyean Dotson
Houston
SF
Sr
14.9
127.1
20%
80%
13.9
65
Marc Loving
Ohio St.
PF
Sr
14.9
113.8
21%
84%
14.0
66
Henry Caruso
Princeton
F
Sr
14.9
120.3
24%
70%
15.0
67
Antonio Blakeney
LSU
SG
So
14.8
115.4
21%
76%
12.6
68
Pat Birt
Tulsa
SG
Sr
14.8
107.0
23%
76%
12.0
69
Rodney Bullock
Providence
PF
Jr
14.7
99.3
25%
81%
11.4
70
Bryce Alford
UCLA
PG/SG
Sr
14.7
116.5
22%
80%
16.1
71
Shep Garner
Penn St.
PG
Jr
14.7
108.8
24%
84%
14.8
72
Desi Rodriguez
Seton Hall
SF
Jr
14.7
110.5
23%
75%
12.4
73
George King
Colorado
SG/SF
Jr
14.7
109.3
24%
70%
13.6
74
Kris Jenkins
Villanova
SF/PF
Sr
14.6
124.3
21%
75%
13.6
75
Kyle Kuzma
Utah
PF
Jr
14.6
107.6
25%
78%
10.8
76
Billy Garrett Jr.
DePaul
PG
Sr
14.5
108.2
27%
76%
12.6
77
Jermaine Bishop
Saint Louis
PG
So
14.3
99.5
25%
79%
8.9
78
Tra Holder
Arizona St.
PG
Jr
14.3
104.7
25%
79%
14.2
79
Tyler Davis
Texas A&M
C
So
14.3
114.4
24%
70%
11.3
80
Sindarius Thornwell
South Carolina
PG/SG
Sr
14.3
111.3
22%
84%
13.4
Rank
Player
Team
Pos.
Year
Proj. PPG
ORtg
Volume
Mins
'15-16 PPG
81
Jalen Brunson
Villanova
PG
So
14.2
115.0
22%
82%
9.6
82
Marcus Foster
Creighton
SG
Jr
14.2
111.3
23%
71%
83
Zak Irvin
Michigan
SF
Sr
14.1
110.9
23%
85%
11.8
84
Bonzie Colson, Jr.
Notre Dame
PF
Jr
14.1
123.8
25%
68%
11.1
85
James Demery
Saint Joseph's
SF
Jr
14.1
106.6
21%
86%
8.1
86
Conner Frankamp
Wichita St.
PG
Jr
14.0
123.9
18%
85%
6.1
87
Matt Mobley
St. Bonaventure
SG
Jr
14.0
107.3
23%
75%
88
Frank Mason
Kansas
PG
Sr
14.0
120.1
21%
86%
12.9
89
Justin Jackson
North Carolina
SF
Jr
13.9
125.1
22%
74%
12.2
90
Lorenzo Bonam
Utah
PG/SG
Sr
13.9
115.1
21%
86%
10.2
91
Troy Caupain
Cincinnati
PG
Sr
13.9
112.9
22%
86%
13.0
92
Tyler Lydon
Syracuse
PF
So
13.9
112.6
23%
77%
10.1
93
Jared Terrell
Rhode Island
PG/SG
Jr
13.9
109.2
22%
85%
13.6
94
Steve Vasturia
Notre Dame
SG
Sr
13.9
114.2
21%
90%
11.4
95
Seth Allen
Virginia Tech
CG
Sr
13.9
106.1
28%
63%
14.7
96
Austin Nichols
Virginia
SF
Jr
13.8
107.7
25%
71%
97
Andrew White III
Syracuse
SF
Sr
13.8
111.5
23%
71%
16.6
98
Trey Kell
San Diego St.
SG/PG
Jr
13.8
109.8
23%
74%
12.6
99
Kerwin Roach, Jr.
Texas
PG
So
13.8
106.6
24%
77%
7.5
100
Lonzo Ball
UCLA
PG
Fr
13.8
116.9
22%
77%
Here come the key transfers: Creighton’s Marcus Foster (No. 82) averaged 15.5 points as a Kansas State freshman in 2013–14 and is ready to get his career back on track in Omaha. Andrew White III (No. 97) left Nebraska and graduate-transferred into a situation at Syracuse where he could very well be the leading scorer. Former Memphis power forward Austin Nichols (No. 96) projects to lead a balanced Virginia team in points, as does former Kansas guard Conner Frankamp (No. 86) at Wichita State.
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