College Hoops Barometer: Stock Up/Stock Down in NCAA Men's Basketball

The landscape of college basketball has shifted, as the era of monster conferences and impact transfers is fully upon us.  Certainly, this year's freshman class is still stacked with the likes of Cooper Flagg, Ace Bailey, Dylan Harper and others.  That being said, the relaxed eligibility and transfer rules, along with the NIL, have allowed players to stay in school longer and reap the benefits of their success.  This has made "recruiting" current collegians just as important as incoming freshmen.  It appears that the days of relying solely on "one-and-done" players to carry a squad deep into the NCAA Tournament are largely over.

As the college basketball season ramps up into high gear, let's take a look at some ballers making early headlines in this edition of the College Hoops Barometer.

UPGRADE

Kam Jones, G, Marquette – All Jones did Tuesday was mess around and get a triple-double.  Perhaps more impressively, it came in a clash between ranked foes, as Marquette vanquished No. 6 Purdue, and in dominating fashion no less.  Jones tallied 17 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists in the 76-58 thrashing of the Boilermakers.  On the season, Jones is averaging 22.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 6.0 assists per tilt.  He will be one of the more dynamic, versatile guards in college basketball this season.

Lynn Kidd, C, Miami – The 'Canes lost Norchad Omier to Baylor, but gained Kidd from Virginia Tech. Kidd has been extremely productive and efficient through Miami's first three outings. Kiss shot 10-of-11 from the field in the season opener en route to 24 points and nine rebounds. Overall, he is averaging 14 points and six rebounds per game and has barely had to play more than 25 minutes in any contests due to inferior competition. Kidd will be asked to carry a heavy burden for the Hurricanes in the frontcourt, as Miami is stacked with guards but rather thin up front.  However, that could also be a boon to Kidd, who should get all the minutes he can handle once conference play begins.

Michael Rataj, F, Oregon State – Rataj has taken his game to new heights as a junior.  Despite playing similar minutes as compared to a season, ago, Rataj has almost doubled his points and rebounding averages.  Rataj is averaging 15.3 points and 9.5 rebounds per contest.  Rataj has been a menace on the defensive end as well, managing 2.5 steals and 1.3 blocks per contest.  Lastly, Rataj has even been able to get his teammates involved, averaging a career-best two dimes per tilt.  The 6-9 forward has worked his way into a starring role for the Beavers alongside guards Nate Kings and Damarco Minor.

Johni Broome, F, Auburn – Broome has been a key contributor for the Tigers over the last two seasons, and he appears set to dominate this year.  Broome is averaging career-bests of 20 points and 11.3 rebounds per clash.  He is shooting 65.5-percent from the floor, which is also a career-high.  Broome is also asserting himself on the defensive end, swatting 3.3 shots per outing, which is tied for sixth in the country.  Broome's last game was his best of the season thus far, as he tormented hapless North Alabama for 30 points, 17 rebounds and three rejections.  Broome has started 71 of the 72 contests since joining the Tigers and should continue to be a force for Auburn this season.

CHECK STATUS

Deivon Smith, G, St. John's – The much-travelled Smith is on his fourth school, most recently coming from Utah where he broke the Pac-12 single-season triple-double record originally set by Jason Kidd.  Smith's production through the first four games with his new school have not been quite as stellar. He came off the bench in the season opener, then subsequently started the next three contests.  Thus far he is averaging 10.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per tilt. While the numbers are not bad necessarily, they pale in comparison to his stats from Utah. Moreover, despite the lackluster competition thus far, he has still played over 30 minutes in each of the last three contests. Smith is likely just getting acclimated to his new squad, but it appears there will be something of an adjustment period.

Dug McDaniel, G, Kansas State – McDaniel is another transfer getting his feet wet in unfamiliar surroundings. McDaniel came over from Michigan where he averaged 16.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists per tilt last season.  McDaniel's scoring has been down since coming over to the Wildcats.  He came off the bench in the first two outings of the 2024-2025 campaign and combined for just 12 total points. McDaniel entered the starting lineup last week and had his best game with K-State, tallying 16 points, three rebounds, five assists and two steals. However, McDaniel subsequently missed yesterday's win over Mississippi Valley State due to an undisclosed issue.  The Wildcats are integrating no less than six transfers who are already playing meaningful minutes, so it will likely just take some time for the roles to be fleshed out.

AJ Storr, G, Kansas – The plan appears to be to utilize Storr off the bench this season, which would be a change for the Wisconsin transfer.  Storr started all 36 games last year for the Badgers, averaging 16.8 points along with 3.9 rebounds per outing.  He has played in five games so far as a member of the Jayhawks, all as a reserve.  In those five contests, Storr is averaging 9.4 points while averaging nearly 10 fewer minutes per game than a season ago.  While Storr should provide instant offense off the bench, the depth of the Jayhawks will leave him falling far short of last year's numbers, barring injury or other change of circumstances.

DOWNGRADE

Trevon Brazile, F, Arkansas – Brazile has not quite lived up to expectations during his time with the Razorbacks.  The inability to stay on the court has been a chief factor, as Brazile appeared in just 35 games over the past two seasons combined for the Hogs.  When healthy last year, he averaged respectable figures of 8.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.2 blocks.  He tested both NBA waters as well as the transfer portal this offseason before ultimately returning to Arkansas.  However, he came off the bench for the first two games, then hurt his ankle in the third game, one in which he started.  The ankle injury caused him to miss yesterday's win over Pacific.  The severity of the injury is unknown, as the 6-10 forward unfortunately continues to fail to maximize his talent. Hopefully Brazile can return to the court shortly and reach his potential.

Vladislav Goldin, C, Michigan – A key component to the recent NCAA Tournament runs for Florida Atlantic, the seven-footer transferred to Michigan but has had a sluggish start to the season. After averaging 15.7 points and 6.9 rebounds per tilt last year, Goldin is managing just 6.5 points and 5.3 rebounds per clash.  After shooting 67.3-percent from the field a season ago, Goldin is hitting just 55.6-percent of his shots from the field through four contests as a member of the Wolverines. The sample size is small, but the new system and step up in competition looks to be difficult for Goldin thus far.

Samson Johnson, C, Connecticut – A role player on each of the last two UConn championship squads, Johnson was supposed to take the reins at center from departed big man Donovan Clingan.  While Johnson has started the first four games of the season, it has been Michigan transfer Tarris Reed who has been far more effective thus far.  While Johnson is averaging 5.8 points and 3.0 rebounds per contest in 18 minutes per contest, Reed is managing 11.8 points and 9.8 boards per tilt in a little over 19 minutes per game. Johnson has been a beast on the defensive end, blocking three shots per contest, but Reed has proven a superior scorer and rebounder in the early going. The tandem is likely to continue splitting minutes moving forward, which limits the fantasy value for both players, though overall Reed looks like the better option at this time.