Most Improved team.

Which team will be a team that wasn't ranked last year or was ranked but not highly but will surprise some people this year in the national spotlight.

Mine is Wake Forest , the ACC is an easy conference to play in and obviously I think they're going to be in the top 5 in the conference easily. They have the #4 recruting class with the addition of AL-Farouq Aminu , Ty Walker and Tony Woods I think they'll have a pretty good year. I don't know if they lack a true point guard or not though. That could be a problem if they don't have one.

Anybody else ?

I'm inviting everybody to jump on board right now.  Seating on the bandwagon will soon be limited.

UNLV is winning 30+ games next season, and will be no worse than a 4-seed heading into the NCAA Tournament.

Combine who's coming back (senior starters Wink Adams, Joe Darger, and Rene Rougeau) with who's coming in (7' 5-star center Beas Hamga, Memphis transfer Tre'von Willis, and a rock solid recruiting class), and you've got the makings of a serious, serious sleeper.

Barring unforeseen injuries, this should be the best UNLV team since the Johnson, Augmon early nineties team.

I pick Syracuse...

Just for Mike (just strictly for Mike and not for personal reasons)

Mine is Wake Forest , the ACC is an easy conference to play in

Smooth.  Way to slide that in there.  I'm surprised no ACC fans have weighed in.  (Then again, it is the off-season.)

My picks to be better than people are projecting:

Big East - Provy, Cincy...  Both could be tournament teams... or they could fail to make the NIT.  Goes either way.  Pitt's going to hit the season ranked, but they could be a Final Four team if they gel.

ACC - I'll agree with Wake Forest.

SEC - Florida will be markedly improved, but, then, I think most people expect that

Big Ten - Purdue will be a national player; despite losing Neitzel, Izzo's Spartans will be in the hunt for the Big Ten crown... but the sleeper to make its first tourney appearance in years?  Penn State. 

Big XII - Nebraska could have a breakthrough season.

PAC-10 - Arizona State's my sleeper.  Sendek showed remarkable progress with the Sun Devils in his first season... I think this year, they make a play for the PAC-10 title.

Teams that're going to fare worse than their pre-season projections:

Big East - Georgetown (no way my Hoyas finish in the Top Ten... they'll be a bubble team this year... Making it to the round of 32 would be a good showing); Notre Dame (they're a complete package... unfortunately, they're not an elite one); Marquette (I think the Eagles will backslide a bit this season) 

**Note: Having 7 or 8 teams in the Spring Top 25 poll is drawing a target on our conference's back.  Boeheim's arguing (already) that the B-East will deserve 10 bids isn't helping.

ACC - Duke will be good... but not great... could this be the beginning of a loooong, slooooow, descent for the Devils?  Clemson will probably win like 18 straight games.  Then lose.  Like usual. 

Big Ten - Everyone knows Indiana will inhale vigorously, so that's no surprise

Big XII - Hard for me to believe Texas will be as good as I'm seeing them ranked

SEC - I think expectations are going to be a little elevated in Kentucky this year; not saying they won't do well... just not as well as a 12-4 conference record in a rebuilding year would seem to prognosticate.

PAC-10 - I don't think UCLA will make it to the Sweet Sixteen next season.  (You know your program's top-tier when that's underachieving, but still.)

Riverrock I'm on the bandwagon UNLV will have an extrememly good team next year, but they could get some competition from BYU if some of their key guys withdraw from the draft.

I'll look at the other major conferences

ACC: Wake Forest easily in my opinion, this conference isn't that great and they return I believe their starting 5 and bring in the #1 class with 3 5 star guys.

Big Ten: I think Minnesota could shock some people, with their good recruiting class coming in and Tubby is a good coach.

Big XII: Nebraska could be pushing for their 1st Tourney bid in a while.

Big East: Seton Hall I think could with the return of Brian Laing and Eugene Harvey.

Pac 10: Washington I feel should make the tournament this year with all their key guys back, also USC should contend for the Pac 10 even though they lose Mayo and Jefferson, because they bring in DeRoazen.

SEC: Florida because the have one of the best coaches and they have a good class coming in.

Non-Major Schools: San Diego after beating UConn last year the USD is looking to do more and they could with the return of every player from last year's team.