TKR's Guide to the 2008/2009 Season

With the 2008/2009 regular season officially starting today, TKR thought that we would bring everyone a quick guide to the upcoming season of college basketball. Here are my picks for a variety of topics regarding this season.

All-American 1st team

PG- Johnny Flynn (Syracuse)

SG- DeMar DeRozan (USC)
SF- James Harden (Arizona St.)
PF- Blake Griffin (Oklahoma)
C- Tyler Hansbrough (North Carolina)

All-American 2nd team

PG- Darren Collison (UCLA)
SG- Stephen Curry (Davidson)
SF- Damion James (Texas)
PF- Sam Young (Pitt)
C- Luke Harangody (Notre Dame)

All-American 3rd team

PG- Jeremy Pargo (Gonzaga)
SG- Nick Calathes (Florida)
SF- Tyler Smith (Tennessee)
PF- Jon Brockman (Washington)
C- Hasheem Thabeet (UConn)

I wanted to take the time to clarify some of my decisions. I don't have Stephen Curry as a 1st team All-American because I believe that he will have a dip in production because of the loss of Jason Richards. I also think that his stats should be put under the microscope because of the competition in the SoCon (Southern Conference). Also, I don't consider Curry to be an All-American caliber PG. He has never played the position at the college level, and I am not ready to anoint him as an elite PG.

The hardest part of my decision was choosing the PG spot on each team. I think all three of the PG's included, as well as Ty Lawson, are going to make a push for the spot on the 1st team. They are all very good, but the question is which one will put together a truly great season.

Top 5 Freshman to watch:
1) DeMar DeRozan (USC): The next great freshman at USC. He is very good without the ball, and will be the best athlete in college basketball.

2) Tyreke Evans (Memphis): Evans should thrive in the Memphis offense. Needs to prove himself as a defender.

3) Scotty Hopson (Tennessee): With his length and athleticism, he should start and excel from day one under Bruce Pearl.

4) Kebma Walker (UConn): A backcourt featuring Walker and A.J Price should be scary good for the Huskies. I love the toughness and leadership he brings to the table.

5) B.J. Mullens (Ohio St.): Mullens follows the path of highly-skilled big men at Ohio St. He will play great this year, and then head to the NBA.

Top 5 games to watch this year (Not Including Gonzaga games):

1) UNC vs. Michigan St. (December 3 at Ford Field)
2) Memphis @ Tennessee (January 24)
3) Pitt @ Louisville (January 17)
4) Oklahoma vs. Texas (January 12 and February 21)
5) UCLA vs. Arizona St. (January 17 and February 12)

My Sweet 16 in no particular order:

Gonzaga, North Carolina, Louisville, Notre Dame, UCLA, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Texas, Arizona St., Michigan St., Duke, UConn, Miami (FL), UNLV, Wake Forest, Marquette.