With a spectacular freshman class joining a sport that was already returning a healthy dose of its star power from the previous season, the preseason outlook for college basketball’s top individual award has rarely looked more muddled or competitive.
Let’s take a look at the top 10 candidates for the 2025-26 Wooden Award as the season prepares to tip-off.
1. Braden Smith (Purdue)
The near consensus national Preseason Player of the Year, Braden Smith returns to West Lafayette after a tremendous 2024-25 season in which he delivered historic all‑around numbers. Smith averaged 15.8 points, 8.7 assists (second nationally), 4.5 rebounds, and 2.2 steals per game, while shooting efficiently from the field (42.8 % FG, 38.1 % 3PT).
Being the front-man for the preseason No. 1 team in the country is a tall task, but if Smith lives up to it, he could become the fourth Boilermaker to bring home the sport’s most-prized individual hardware.
2. JT Toppin (Texas Tech)
A consensus Second Team All-American in 2024-25, Toppin is back at Texas Tech after leading the Red Raiders to a regional final appearance a season ago. The versatile 6’9 forward posted averages of 18.2 points and 9.4, and made a habit of stepping up in the most crucial of moments for Grant McCasland’s team.
3. AJ Dybantsa (BYU)
The only true freshman on the AP’s preseason First Team All-American squad, expectations couldn’t be higher for Dybantsa’s first (and likely only) season in Provo. That hype only intensified after Dybantsa’s electric performance in BYU’s exhibition opener against Nebraska last week.
If Dybantsa can have some splashy moments early on during BYU’s tough non-conference slate, it would certainly help his name creep to the front of many a Wooden voter’s brain.
4. Yaxel Lendeborg (Michigan)
After thriving the last two seasons as an under-the-radar star at UAB, Yaxel Lendeborg is ready to introduce himself to a more mainstream college basketball audience this season. The absurdly versatile forward averaged 17.7 points, 11.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.7 steals for the Blazers last season.
Lendeborg’s final season at the mid-major level ended with a particularly ridiculous performance — a 30-point, 20-rebound, eight-assist, zero-turnover, five-steal, and four-block outing against East Carolina in the AAC Tournament. There is very little on the court that Lendeborg doesn’t do well, and now he’s poised to make the entire country realize it.
5. Darryn Peterson (Kansas)
If a freshman besides Dybantsa brings home national Player of the Year honors, Peterson is the safe bet to be that player. Bill Self has already described Peterson as “the best freshman I’ve ever recruited,” and stated that he plans on having Peterson shoulder more of the scoring load than any other freshman he’s ever coached before.
If the potential No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft can handle the pressure of unequivocally being “the man” in Lawrence, he has a chance to be “the man” in college basketball this season.
6. Solo Ball (UConn)
A Second Team All-Big East performer as a sophomore last season, Ball appears ready to make the leap to superstardom on a UConn team that seems poised to return to the ranks of legitimate national title contenders after a one year hiatus. Ball averaged 14.4 points and 3.6 rebounds while hitting a conference-best 41.4 percent from behind the arc last season. Those numbers could rise with additional help in the backcourt this season from Georgia transfer Silas Demary Jr. and 5-star freshman Braylon Mullins.
7. Trey Kaufman‑Renn (Purdue)
Don’t sleep on Braden Smith’s teammate here. As great as Smith was for Purdue last season, it was actually Kaufman-Renn who led the Boilermakers in both scoring (20.1) and rebounding (6.5) last season. The 6’9” senior forward is a double-double machine who, when he’s at his best, might just be the most dominant frontcourt player in the country.
8. Alex Condon (Florida)
A preseason First Team All-American, Condon is ready to make the ascension to superstar after a 2024-25 season where he averaged 10.6 points and 7.5 rebounds per game for Florida. The 6’11 Aussie also led the national champions with 49 blocked shots. After initially announcing that he was headed to the NBA Draft, Condon returns to Gainesville with the goal of doing some more net cutting and establishing himself as the best college big man in the country.
9. Donovan Dent (UCLA)
Perhaps the most coveted guard in the transfer portal during the offseason, Dent arrives in Westwood after a 2024-25 season that saw him average 20.6 points and 6.4 assists per game on his way to earning Mountain West Player of the Year honors at New Mexico. He became the first player in college basketball to eclipse 600 points and 200 assists in a single season since Ja Morant did it at Murray State. Expect Mick Cronin to hand Dent the keys to his offense. If he can steer the ship effectively, Dent could be poised for even taller honors in 2025-26.
10. Tahaad Pettiford (Auburn)
Everything about Auburn basketball has been in a bit of a state of flux since Bruce Pearl’s abrupt retirement announcement last month. The one thing that Tiger fans can be certain about is that Pettiford is still one of the best pure scorers in the country. After averaging 11.6 ppg as a freshman reserve on last year’s Final Four squad, Pettiford figures to be the focal point of Auburn’s attack in his sophomore season. When Pettiford is on a heater, there is no player in college basketball more fun to watch.
