With college football over and the NFL wrapping up soon, college basketball is about to be back toward the top of the sports world. Saturday features another marquee slate, with 17 schools ranked in the latest AP Poll in action. Here are my two favorite college basketball props for this tremendous showcase of talent on DraftKings Sportsbook:
Duke -10.5 (-108)
Auburn deserves its number one overall ranking, but Duke is the hottest team in the country. The notion that top prospects correlate with success is faulty at best—just look at Rutgers, who has a pair of future top-five picks. That’s not to say having freshman phenom Cooper Flagg hasn’t helped elevate the Blue Devils ceiling.
Flagg is the centerpiece of the squad on both ends. On offense, he’s a point forward who can distribute the rock to open shooters or be a punisher in the paint. The jumper is starting to come along, and his ferocity on the low block makes him an unstoppable force. Defensively, he’s a lockdown anchor who averages nearly three stocks (steals and blocks) a contest.
Future lottery picks Khaman Maluach and Konn Knueppel have blossomed into real contributors, with the latter a true three-level scorer. Veteran leader Tyrese Proctor has been a perfect glue guy, and this group looks untouchable.
Wake Forest has a shiny 14-4 record, but that mark is a result of facing inferior ACC competition. The Blue Devils are operating in a different stratosphere and, even on the road, should crush the Demon Deacons.
Oregon -5 (-110)
Even with future Hall of Famer Dana Altman at the helm, this Oregon roster is still defying expectations. The Ducks don’t have a superstar, but their rotation is full of guys who can go off on any given night. Senior stretch big Nate Bittle leads the team in scoring, with sophomore sniper Jackson Shelstad not too far behind him.
Oregon’s offense by committee is a nice complement to an often suffocating defense. The collection of switchable wings and the occasional “Altman press” give opposing groups fits. Minnesota is treading water and is 95th in KenPom. This is a quality gap too much for the Golden Gophers to overcome—this shouldn’t be competitive for long.
