Looking Forward to the NCAAB Season

The 2013-14 college hoops season is still some way off but that doesn’t stop us looking forward with anticipation to the new season and with that thought in mind here are the top four things we are looking forward to next season.

We’ll start with the new ACC realignment – now some of the changes that have been made to the tradition-rich conferences we hate but what’s not to like about what we have in store in the ACC. Here we have added Notre Dame, Syracuse and Pittsburgh – that gives us Mike Krzyzewski, Roy Williams and Jim Boeheim all in the same league that has to be a major leap forward.

Oh, and Louisville and Rick Pitino will join the conference in 2014, according to the bet365 betting news. No conference will be able to match the ACC and it will take some side to win it and we can envision some mouth-watering tussles ahead.

Over at Kansas, the Jayhawks will be on a quest of the 10th straight Big 12 title; the Jayhawks' feat of nine straight league championships is one of the most remarkable accomplishments in college basketball history. No team from a major conference has won that many consecutive titles since UCLA won 13 in a row from 1967 to 1979.

It will be quite some test though as Kansas lose all five starters from last season’s team that went 31-6 and with Oklahoma State and Baylor in good shape this would be no mean achievement, although they did lose all their starters from their 2008 national championship squad and still won the Big 12 title the following season. Their recruiting class is ranked No2 in the nation so they have a chance but there are sure to be ups and downs but if anyone can pull off the feat it’s the Jayhawks.

We just touched on freshmen there with the Jayhawks and we’ll follow on by making freshmen the third thing that we are looking forward to next season by looking at the recruiting class that Kentucky has assembled, and what a class it is. You have to be looking forward to seeing the Harrison twins, Julius Randle & Co playing together and it could get better if Andrew Wiggins joins that group.

That’s not to say though that there are not outstanding freshmen at other schools, just take a look at this line-up of talent coming into the NCAA;  Aaron Gordon (Arizona), Jabari Parker (Duke), Jerrell Martin (LSU) and Wayne Selden (Kansas). Fresh talent and stars are always welcome and the 2013-14 season has plenty of those from its freshman class.

And finally, you always have to have a look those teams which have been sleepers and while they might not win anything in 2013-14 they will or could make significant strides and we would be surprised if these three didn’t have a shot at making the NCAA tournament despite not receiving much respect.

The LSU Tigers feature an up-and-coming programme and a couple of outstanding players such as Johnny O’Bryant and Anthony Hickey; St John’s Red Storm with Jakarr Sampson leading the way are dreadfully underrated and the Arizona Sun Devils also have a squad with depth and talent led by point guard Jahii Carson. All of threes three are not getting much love pre-season but could well fire their way to the NCAA tournament.

Plenty to look forward to therefore in 2013-14 and we - like many NCAAB betting fans - can’t wait much longer for it all to get started.