2024 Men’s College Basketball Futures: Picks and Predictions

The college football season is already in full flow, and now college basketball is joining the party in this busy time on the sports calendar.

Monday marks the opening tipoff of the 2024-25 campaign, so it’s time to break down the best bets to make on the upcoming festivities.

Is Connecticut in line for another championship? Will Duke’s recruiting lead it back to the promised land for a first title under head coach Jon Scheyer? Who will be Player of the Year? We’ll try to answer those questions and more. 

Duke to win championship (+1000)

Duke is No. 7 in the AP preseason poll but is getting more respect from the oddsmakers, tied for the second outright favorite at +1000 with Kansas – trailing only Connecticut (+850).

Even at those odds, the Blue Devils have great value. The headliner of the roster is freshman Cooper Flagg, the top recruit in the country. Scheyer’s incoming class also includes Kon Knueppel, Khaman Maluach and St. Paul VI teammates Darren Harris and Patrick Ngongba II.

Maluach is a 7ft 2in center from South Sudan and gives the Devils a much-needed rim protector that they have generally lacked in recent years.

With that kind of new talent, it hardly matters that Duke is returning only two key contributors from last season’s roster in Tyrese Proctor and Caleb Foster.

Count on this team peaking when it matters most in March once the youngsters really start to find their groove. 

Baylor to win championship (+2200)

If you are looking for more of a longshot play, Baylor may be the way to go.

Head coach Scott Drew already has one title under his belt with the Bears and there is no reason why they can’t cut down the nets for a second time.

Drew’s crew is loaded with talent, highlighted by shooting guard Jayden Nunn, small forward Langston Love and center Josh Ojianwuna. Both Nunn and Love averaged in double-figures last season while shooting better than 43% from three-point range.

A few transfers in Jeremy Roach (Duke), Norchad Omier (Miami) and Jalen Celestine (Cal) should also bring a significant boost. But the most notable addition is five-star recruit VJ Edgecombe, who is part of a freshman class at Baylor that also features Rob Wright, Jason Asemota and international player Marino Dubravcic from Croatia.

There is a lot to like about this team, especially at relatively long odds.

RJ Davis to win the Wooden Award (+700)

Duke may be the best team in the ACC if not even the entire nation, but don’t sleep on its big rival. North Carolina is also a force to be reckoned with, and the biggest reason why is veteran guard RJ Davis.

Even as the favorite to win the John R. Wooden Award at +700, Davis still has enticing value.

Not only is he arguably the best player in the land, but the fact that he is clearly the best player on his team means his statistics should be off the charts.

He won’t have as much competition from his own teammates to fill up the box score as, for example, Flagg at Duke.

Davis averaged 21.3 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists while shooting a career-best 39.8 percent from three-point range last term. The senior could be even better in his final go-around in Chapel Hill. 

Michigan to win the Big Ten regular-season title (+900)

Juwan Howard is out and Dusty May is in as the new head coach at Michigan.

May became one of the hot names in the coaching industry when he led Florida Atlantic to an improbable Final Four run two seasons ago. The Owls backed it up last year with a 25-9 record (14-4 in Conference USA) and a return trip to the NCAA Tournament.

May is bringing 7’1’’ center Vlad Goldin with him to Ann Arbor while also welcoming transfers Roddy Gayle Jr. (Ohio State), Tre Donaldson (Auburn), Sam Walters (Alabama) and Danny Wolf (Yale).

The freshman class is highlighted by Justin Pippen, son of Scottie Pippen. All things considered, this new-look Wolverines squad has a great chance to win the Big Ten. 

Read more betting picks and predictions for NCAAB on site.

National Championship odds

Connecticut	+850
Duke	+1000
Kansas	+1000
Alabama	+1200
Houston	+1400
Gonzaga	+1800
Iowa State	+1800
North Carolina	+1800
Baylor	+2200

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.