Jordan Crawford, guard, Xavier

The sophomore transfer from Indiana, where he averaged 9.7
points. A true shooting guard, Crawford should flourish in
Xavier's system, which will stay basically the same under new
coach Chris Mack. The important fact is that Crawford is the
player who dunked on LeBron this summer.

Derrick Favors, forward, Georgia Tech

The local product was the Naismith national player of the year
(28.1 points, 13.3 rebounds) is the key to the Yellow Jackets
believing they can turn around last season's last-place finish
in the ACC.

Xavier Henry, guard, Kansas

He will be joined in the backcourt by his older brother, C.J.,
who gave minor league baseball a shot. Coach Bill Self will have
to find some room on a veteran team for a player who is a deep
threat as well as a slasher.

Lance Stephenson, guard-forward, Cincinnati

He was a celebrity throughout a high school career that saw him
finish as New York state's all-time leading scorer. It will help
that he steps into a lineup with four returning starters, and
he's good enough to have the Bearcats go with a three-guard
lineup.

John Wall, guard, Kentucky

All you need to know is that coach John Calipari said Wall's
skills are ahead of Derrick Rose and Tyreke Evans, two star
guards he coached at Memphis. Wall will miss the season opener
over NCAA violations then he'll run Kentucky's new uptempo
offense.