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Best College Basketball Players of the Season
March Madness annually draws plenty of interest from those who bet online and it should be more of the game during the 2025 NCAA basketball tournaments.
According to the college basketball odds, Auburn leads the way in the odds to win March Madness, followed by Duke, Florida, Alabama, and Houston. Two-time defending national champion UConn is well back at +6500 in the NCAAB odds of winning another title.
While filling out a bracket and trying to project the winner of the NCAA tournament has become something of a national pastime each March, there are plenty of star players to keep an eye on in the March Madness brackets.
When looking at the NCAAB betting trends, Florida leads the top men’s title contenders by covering against the college basketball spread 73% of the time.
Let’s take a look at the best college basketball players during the 2024-25 season.
A Look at the Best College Basketball Players
Returning Stars Fading in Player of the Year Odds
When the season began, returning stars RJ Davis of North Carolina, Hunter Dickinson of Kansas, and Mark Sears of Alabama were the front-runners in the National Player of the Year odds.
The question is whether that high-scoring trio can close the gap on Duke freshman sensation Cooper Flagg to win the Wooden Award. All three are still considered to be among the top college basketball players.
Davis and Dickinson are both at +800 in the National Player of the Year odds, even though their teams have had some tough times.
North Carolina has some work to do just to make it into the field of 68. After averaging 21.2 points and shooting 43% from the field during the 2023-24 season, his numbers have dropped to 17.5 points and 40% shooting. Those considering the inconsistent Tar Heels in the NCAAB predictions today should tread carefully.
Dickinson’s shooting, scoring, and rebounding numbers have dipped as well.
Sears is also struggling to match his 2023-24 numbers, even if Alabama is one of the top title contenders. Among these three returning stars, Sears has the shortest National Player of the Year odds as they are fluctuating from +20000 to +25000.
Cooper Flagg Making Quite the First Impression
After a strong showing against the U.S. National Team, the hype was off the charts for Cooper Flagg heading into his freshman season at Duke. Is it possible that he has been exceeding expectations?
Flagg had 26 points and 11 points in his first game against a ranked team. He dropped 42 points on Notre Dame and has flirted with a triple-double on multiple occasions. When making college basketball picks today, going with Flagg to pile up the stats whenever Duke is playing is never a bad idea.
The way things are going, it might be hard to envision anybody else walking away with the National Player of the Year award. He is at -160 to be the National Player of the Year.
Even though Flagg recently floated the idea of returning to Duke for his sophomore season, he is the clear favorite to be the top pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Don’t Discount Auburn Star Johni Broome
The best player for the best team in the country certainly should be in the running for the National Player of the Year award.
Johni Broome is averaging a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds per game. Add in 3.4 assists and 2.6 blocks, and those numbers are clearly worthy of consideration in the National Player of the Year race.
Auburn has been taking down ranked teams all season long. After just missing a double-double with 20 points and nine rebounds against Houston, Broome had double-doubles in Auburn’s next 10 games against ranked opponents.
Broome could be the top competition for Flagg at +100 to be the National Player of the Year. Broome spent some time on the NCAAB injury report, but he looks pretty healthy these days.
What About the Women’s POY Race?
There are plenty of candidates for the best player in women’s college basketball.
Sophomore guard Hannah Hidalgo is one of the key players for Notre Dame’s rise to the top of the women’s basketball national rankings. Hidalgo leads Notre Dame in scoring, assists, and steals.
She scored 30 points against Texas and also had 29 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists in a win over UConn. She is at +160 in the National Player of the Year odds.
Fellow sophomore JuJu Watkins is doing it all for the USC Trojans. In a win over then-No. 1 UCLA, Watkins had 38 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, and eight blocked shots. She began the season with 27 points and 10 rebounds versus Ole Miss. That game featured two top contenders, with UCLA’s Lauren Betts at +100 in the National Player of the Year odds compared to +225 for Watkins.
Paige Bueckers was the National Player of the Year as a freshman before a string of injuries sidelined the UConn star. Bueckers’ scoring numbers are down, but her assists are up as Azzi Fudd and freshman Sarah Strong are other top scorers for the Huskies. Bueckers is a distant fourth in the odds of winning the National Player of the Year award.
FAQs
Who was the best college basketball player last year?
Purdue’s 7-foot-4 center Zach Edey was named the 2023-24 National Player of the Year. He is in the running for the NBA Rookie of the Year.
How does March Madness work?
Teams that win their conference tournaments receive automatic bids into the NCAA tournament, with the other spots going to at-large teams. The NCAA Selection Committee seeds the teams with 67 single-elimination games played to crown the champion.
Who are the best college basketball players that made it to the NBA?
Based on the analytics, former UCLA star Kareem Abdul-Jabaar is the most efficient former college basketball player in his NBA career. Former Kansas star Wilt Chamberlain and North Carolina legend Michael Jordan are other top college players who starred in the NBA.
