Tuesday, April 03, 2001
Finalists could be back next year
Favorites' fates ride on NBA decisions
By Michael Perry
The Cincinnati Enquirer
MINNEAPOLIS Here is what's scary: Duke may lose just one starter from Monday night's national championship game (Shane Battier), and Arizona may lose only one starter (7-foot-1 center Loren Woods).
But it's difficult to begin talking about which teams should be near or at the top of next fall's preseason college basketball poll. There are many unanswered questions about which players will leave college early and make themselves available for June's NBA draft.
Perhaps the one player who would be the biggest threat to turn pro is Duke sophomore point guard Jason Williams, though first-team All-American has said repeatedly he intends to return to Duke.
Williams was asked about it again Sunday and said: I'm happy to be here and hopefully win a national championship and return to school next year.
A look at other underclassmen whose decisions will figure in to how their teams are ranked to start 2001-02:
Arizona sophomore guard Gilbert Arenas, the team's leading scorer, may be considering a leap to the pros.
Michigan State, which lost to Arizona in the NCAA semifinals, has sophomore Jason Richardson, a second-team All-American, and freshman Zach Randolph contemplating the move.
Stanford, which lost in the regional finals to Maryland, is expected to be without junior Jason Collins next season.
Other question marks include Notre Dame junior Troy Murphy and North Carolina sophomore Joseph Forte, both first-team All-Americans, and Kentucky's Tayshaun Prince, a second-teamer.
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