Self teams have struggled with guard heavy lineups/teams forever. The Bears lost four starters from last year's national championship team and were hammered by injuries: likely rotation scorer Langston Love missed the entire year, versatile big man defender Jonathan Tchamwa-Tchatchoua suffered a season-ending injury and leading scorer LJ Cryer effectively did the same, playing just once in Baylor's final 14 games. Download this stock image: Waco, Texas, USA. 2:41 pm ET, at All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. Baylor point guard James Akinjo has struggled of late, averaging 7.3 points while shooting 7-for-29 from the field in his last three games. Additionally, the Bulls were 4.5 points per 100 possessions better with Ball on the floor, mostly thanks to his shooting and playmaking but also due to his unreal defensive disruptiveness, with the Chino Hills product solidifying himself as one of the most impactful two-way players in the game in 2021-22. For the latest Jalen Brunson rumors and salary info, click here. Feb 19, Baylor (22-5) Win vs. TCU, 72-62, 28. For the latest Tyrese Haliburton rumors and salary info, click here. All in all, if hes healthy once again in 2022-23, Ball should be able to outpace his place in these rankings he was that effective last season for Chicago. So, remember that when gushing about the way Tamin Lipsey played throughout Iowa State's 77-62 victory against 13th-ranked Baylor Saturday afternoon at Hilton Coliseum. Whats more, Lowry produced 0.95 points per possession (PPP) as the pick-and-roll ball-handler in 2021-22, a mark healthy enough to rank in the leagues 77th percentile. Last season, Brunson averaged 16.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.8 assists while shooting 50.2 percent from the floor and 37.3 percent from three. 14 Baylor men's basketball's guards combined for 62 points as the Bears took down the University of Oklahoma 82-72 Wednesday night in the Ferrell Center. Able to knock down shots from all over the floor, either with his feet set or off the dribble, and do so accurately, is one of Balls biggest strengths. All in all, Haliburton is already productive and still has room to grow. The Bob Cousy Award is an annual prize given to the best point guard in NCAA Basketball. But that doesn't mean lead guards . Head coach Dave Aranda . OSU shot 9-for-32 from 3 in its loss to Baylor on Monday. Overtime will be interesting. . RJ Davis' attempt to tie the game in regulation bounced off the rim. Along with his 1.7 steals per contest, however, Smart also put up 12.1 points, 3.8 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game while shooting 33.1 percent from beyond the arc. For the latest Ja Morant rumors and salary info, click here. Bryce Thompson squatted down, trying to get a better vantage point of the ball. The future Hall-of-Famer led the NBA in nightly assists at 10.8 while contributing 14.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.9 steals and shooting 49.3 percent from the floor. From that point until the end of the campaign, however, once Ball went out, the Bulls were 21st in net rating with a paltry -4.6 mark and 27th(!!!) But if this is truly the start of Westbrooks decline, then we may be overvaluing him a bit with this ranking. And thus far, the 19-year-old has not disappointed, posting a 2nd Team All-Rookie campaign in 2021-22 after averaging 12.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game, marks that place him in impressive company. But a "true" point guard might be a little overrated. That's just ridiculous point guard depth for Chris Beard and Texas. Given that North Carolina has won four of its last five games, three by double digits, with two wins over top two seeds in Baylor and Duke, the Tar Heels don't have any reason to fear anyone left in the region if they play the way they've been playing. Baylor Scheierman is 6-foot-6. For Young to bounce back from that lackluster postseason showing in 2022-23 and get back to being the hugely productive, All-NBA-level point guard that hes proven to be over recent seasons. So clearly, despite what the naysayers will pick at, Simmons is an excellent point guard. Taevion Kinsey. Dontrez Styles also chipped in nine huge points off the bench, including a big 3-pointer in overtime. If North Carolina's guards continue to play at such a high level, the Tar Heels are as dangerous as anybody left in the East. Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Dec 4, Baylor (8-0) Win vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 99-54, 9. The state of Texas is clearly loaded with point guards. They'll feed off each other and really inspire everyone else to raise their effort level to match theirs. Ive seen him throw down some pretty impressive dunks in practice gyms. Adding a stud like South Carolina transfer Devin Carter could really help Providence's guard play take another leap forward. Smith is the skill guy that those two will revolve around. Giddey is one of just two teenagers ever to post a 12/7/6 stat line in a full season, with the other being the player who finished first on this very list. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. 2:53 pm ET, at He should flirt with double-doubles often next year. Eric Musselman is already raving about the basketball IQ that 5-star freshman Anthony Black has. The No. We see no drop-off coming for Holiday in 2022-23 despite the fact hes now 32, as his game should continue to age well. 2:46 pm ET, at North Carolina will play either No. Describing Texas' point guard room as "loaded" might be underselling how special this unit might be. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Carr is the productive veteran who's seen it all. In 2021-22, Lowry averaged 13.4 points on 44.0 percent shooting (37.7 percent from deep) and 7.5 assists. Even so, it feels like Young enters the upcoming season with less hype than he had heading into 2021-22, which is likely due to the manner in which his most recent campaign ended. The biggest question mark on this entire list, we took somewhat of a leap of faith with this ranking considering the long layoffJamal Murray is attempting to return from. Head coach: Scott Drew. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. Zakai Zeigler is about to introduce himself in a major way. Kolek jumped from a 28% 3-point shooter last year to 38.2% in 2022-23. 2:42 pm ET, at 2:39 pm ET, at 2021-22 was no different for Holiday, who averaged 18.3 points, 6.8 assists and 1.6 steals while shooting 50.1 percent from the floor and 41.1 percent from beyond the arc. There are 20 candidates that start out in the preseason and it gets whittled down throughout the year until a winner is named around the Final Four. Tennessee also has solid veterans like Santiago Vescovi and Tyreke Key who can handle the ball in a pinch, but Rick Barnes looks ready to hand the keys to Zeigler. Michigan State scored 127.3 points per 100 possessions in the 215 possessions Hoggard and Walker played together last season, according to Pivot Analysis. Oh, and then Morris is a 5-star freshman who some believeis the best point guard in the Class of 2022. Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. 8 seed North Carolina avoided making history Saturday, knocking off No. In the playoffs, that number was actually even bigger, as Simmons boasted a +19.6 swing rating during his time on the floor in the 2021 postseason. Baylor's guards give everybody fits. Hes also a flashy playmaker with a nose for making the right pass, usually in an eyebrow-raising manner. 01:54 NOW PLAYING. CLICK HERE to download the CBS Sports Mobile App and get the latest on your team today. An agent of chaos, one whose behavior as a professional athlete over recent years can be described as at least somewhat erratic,Kyrie Irving still finished eighth in our point-guard rankings, because when he is on the floor, he remains one of the most explosive scorers and playmakers the league has seen this the turn of the century. A 6-foot-4 shooting guard from iSchool of Lewisville (Texas), George is ranked No. in defensive rating, giving up an atrocious 117.4 points per 100 possessions, a rate that was only stingier than the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets and Indiana Pacers, all of whom were tanking and brashly, too. This is the one big, glaring point of emphasis Baylor's coaching staff could maybe push at the moment the one place an extremely good team could get obviously better. For the 2022-23 season, we have a new list of candidates to watch for the best point guard in the country. Add in the fact that Lowry, after being called out not so subtly byPat Riley at the NBA legends end-of-year press conference, seems to be in better shape now than he was at any point in the last league year, In shape Kyle Lowry pic.twitter.com/Tvj28GWJgE, NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) July 14, 2022. Kentucky also has 5-star combo guard Cason Wallace who should be a major baller, and Illinois State transfer Antonio Reeves was very comfortable with the ball in his hands. The Murray State product followed that up by averaging 27.4 points, 5.7 rebounds and 6.7 assists last season while shooting 49.3 percent from the field and 34.4 percent from beyond the arc, a mark just healthy enough to force defenders to respect his outside shot, which opened up even more attacking lanes for one of the most explosive point guards weve ever seen. Jalen Bridges had 14 points and Adam Flagler added 13 for Baylor (22-8 . But after a razor-close margin in our vote, we just barely went with Morant ahead of Young, though you really cant go wrong with either player. But he has help. Well, theres a certain guy who plays for the Mavericks who continues to put up monster, nearly unheard-of numbers for a player his age, and now looks to be taking offseason diet and conditioning more seriously than ever before. Who will his teammates even be in 2022-23, with the trade rumors surrounding the teams other star point guard, as well as Kevin Durant? As we are all well. Baylor might not have that James Akinjo-like point guard who has the ball in his hands 24/7, but that might not be a bad thing. Series History. All of those perimeter players being so selfless is a joy for Arizona's. Thoughts on Baylor's 26-20 Loss to BYU and the Trip to Provo The Baylor Bears dropped to 1-1 on the 2022 season with a road loss to a future Big 12 member. Dan Hurley and the Connecticut coaching staff hit a home run in the transfer portal by landing East Carolina star Tristen Newton. If ever a college basketball game was a Jackson Pollock painting, its this one. The Phoenix Suns finished the campaign with a ridiculous 64-18 record and with the best net rating in the NBA at +7.5 with Paul pulling the strings for what appeared to be the leagues strongest contender. He might be the best point guard in the transfer portal. Feb 9 @ Kansas State, Baylor (20-4) Win vs. Kansas State, 75-60, 25. Last season, Villanova senior guard Collin Gillespie won the award, making him the second Wildcat to win it (Jalen Brunson). At least optimistic enough to still consider him among the NBAs 25 best floor generals. Nov 15, Baylor (2-0) Win vs. Nicholls State, 89-60, 3. 21 prospect in the nation, Walter joins Finnish guard Miro Little in Baylor's 2023 recruiting class.. After taking his first official visit to Baylor during the summer of 2021, Walter . Memphis' point guard room went from a major weakness to a major strength when the Tigers landed SMU transfer Kendric Davis. We dont expect a huge leap from Smart in 2022-23, as offensively, the now-28-year-old appears to simply be who he is at this point, but hes still one of the feistiest backcourt defenders out there and the type of player to put his body on the line to make winning plays. Dec 20, Baylor (11-0) Win vs. Alcorn State, 94-57, 12. December 11, 2022: Mary Hardin-Baylor (Division III) 71-65: Texas State: December 13, 2022: Conference winners and tournaments. For the latest Stephen Curry rumors and salary info, click here. Thats also the 27th-best mark among players with 150 such possessions, not a bad rate for a player who has lost a step athletically and was hampered by injuries throughout the year. With his expertise in so many different facets of the game and thanks to his great size for a lead guard at 6-foot-6, 220 pounds, the sky is the limit for Cunningham, who has the potential to develop into an All-Star, and likely even more, for the Detroit Pistons. Boise State: Marcus Shaver Jr. is back to run the show. Hows this for proof: From the start of the season through Jan. 14 with Ball still (mostly) in the lineup, the Bulls were ninth league-wide in net rating (+2.7) and 17th in defensive rating (109.4) while boasting a 27-13 record. Jan 4, Baylor (14-0) Win vs. Oklahoma, 84-74, 15. Allof those guys were highly sought-after players. Baylor What to watch: A No. Were certain Ball isnt done developing, either, as the Chino Hills product is still just 20 years old, making it a near certainty we havent seen the final version of the youngest Ball brother quite yet. 4 in the ESPN 100 for 2022 -- but will move up to No. Regardless, we decided to list Simmons as a point guard for this exercise since that is the position hes spent his entire career playing. Campbell is tough as nails, and he plays hounding defense. What Kings management needs to figure out is whether or not Fox can lead a team to the playoffs, somewhere Sacramento hasnt been since 2005-06. St. Johns: A point guard room of Andre Curbelo and Posh Alexander is talented enough to be in the top-20. He elevated his play even further when it mattered most in the playoffs, putting up 21.6 points and 4.6 rebounds over 18 postseason contests, helping guide the Dallas Mavericks to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2010-11. Not bad, especially for a 6-foot-3 guard. Both Kerr Kriisa and Courtney Ramey know what it's like to play in loaded backcourts. His midrange game is just nasty, plus Davis shot over 40% from 3-point range in ACC play last season. There also are. Yes. Last year was more of the same from Young, who averaged 28.4 points and 9.7 assists while shooting 38.2 percent from three. 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