2026-2027 MBB computer projections thread

[mb7299]

That's the one thing we will improve upon without Lipsey is outside shooting. He did everything great but that and when games matter it becomes a huge weakness to have a guard on the court that can't shoot.

 

[LLCoolCY]

The bullish case.

Toure ups his game (especially on offense) and solidifies himself as the PG. Johnson is a high-level backup PG and a total bulldog on defense. With those two together, you don't miss Lipsey too much.

Batemon turns into one of the better two-way SGs in the Big 12. Maybe Wiggins comes in and is good enough to demand some playing time right away as a bench gunner. A lack of scoring punch from the second guard was one of the weaknesses last year, but this area now becomes a strength.

Losing Momcilovic hurts, but we replace him in the aggregate with Batemon, Bond, and Prather. A step down on shooting sure but improved defense and depth from the guards and wings.

J-Jeff is the most irreplaceable, but Singleton provides at least a poor man's version of it and starts to expand his game more and more over the course of his career the same way Jefferson did for SM's and ISU.

Buchanan and Pleta both make incremental steps on consistency. Manning is a huge upgrade from the dearly departed Mulder in terms of providing an emergency or energy bench big man.

That team... could be about as good as the one last year.

About is good is accurate from a wins perspective. I don't see the 2 seed top 10 all year season like 2025-26 but 2026-27 should be top 20ish all year and 4-5 seed.

Think they get the results in different ways though. While last year was great offensively and very good defensively next years team could be elite defensively and good offensively. I do wonder if ISU starts a bit slow as the new player adjust to their roles and gain confidence thus entering the tourney they are "peaking" for a deep run. Having a bit more depth will allow the coaches to mix rotations to get the best combination of minutes to optimize the players skills after some games.

Very curious if Singleton can replicate the projection JJ had his first year coming off the knee injury. Don't think that is out side the range of expectations having a fully season starting in the Big10 which wasn't something Jefferson had.

 

[KennyPratt42]

Lipsey and Milan were great players for us for multiple years. But they were also a little bit unique and somewhat limited in their skillsets. They were elite in some areas and average at others for their position (rebounding and defense for Milan and 3pt and FT shooting for Tamin). Not to say they will be easy to replace, but a more well rounded player that is very good in areas, without needing to be elite, can have a similar impact.

The loss of Jefferson is what probably lowers the ceiling on next years team compared to last year (the ceiling on last years team was at least Final 4 so its a really high bar).

 

[CySmurf]

Mitchell could be an intriguing player...does he fit in for playing time?