College basketball is a sport of constant churn. In addition to coaches, fantasy owners have to get used to new rosters every year -- particularly in the one-and-done era. This is a source of frustration to some people, and excitement to others. Each year, there are teams that have to start over. Some teams (i.e. Kentucky and Duke) expect their players to move on after one successful season. However, there are a number of teams that don't count on turnover and are heading into the 2015-16 season with a lot of new parts. Most of these teams will not be highly rated, even with their big names, but they could also be the sources of the nicest surprises. Let's look at one team from each power conference that has a brand new roster.
St. John's Red Storm
Coach Chris Mullin will get to put his stamp on the Red Storm in his first season. The squad made the NCAA Tournament last year, but every player of consequence left with Steve Lavin. No player who averaged more than 8.4 minutes or 1.5 points is back, so Mullin will start from square one. He will have some interesting players such as Pittsburgh transfer Durand Johnson and freshman point guard Marcus LoVett Jr. Johnson is a 6-foot-6 wing who averaged 8.8 points and 3.0 rebounds for the Panthers as a freshman in 2013-14. If LoVett can get past his current academic hurdles, he could lead the team in scoring after providing 25 points
College basketball is a sport of constant churn. In addition to coaches, fantasy owners have to get used to new rosters every year -- particularly in the one-and-done era. This is a source of frustration to some people, and excitement to others. Each year, there are teams that have to start over. Some teams (i.e. Kentucky and Duke) expect their players to move on after one successful season. However, there are a number of teams that don't count on turnover and are heading into the 2015-16 season with a lot of new parts. Most of these teams will not be highly rated, even with their big names, but they could also be the sources of the nicest surprises. Let's look at one team from each power conference that has a brand new roster.
St. John's Red Storm
Coach Chris Mullin will get to put his stamp on the Red Storm in his first season. The squad made the NCAA Tournament last year, but every player of consequence left with Steve Lavin. No player who averaged more than 8.4 minutes or 1.5 points is back, so Mullin will start from square one. He will have some interesting players such as Pittsburgh transfer Durand Johnson and freshman point guard Marcus LoVett Jr. Johnson is a 6-foot-6 wing who averaged 8.8 points and 3.0 rebounds for the Panthers as a freshman in 2013-14. If LoVett can get past his current academic hurdles, he could lead the team in scoring after providing 25 points per game as a high school senior. Freshman center Yankuba Sima and power forward Kassoum Yakwe should also get plenty of playing time.
Washington Huskies
It doesn't seem that long ago that the Huskies were a perennial NCAA Tournament team. Coach Lorenzo Romar has fallen on hard times and the team has not been dancing since 2011. Unlike most of the teams in this list, the Huskies do have an established scorer returning in Andrew Andrews. The 6-2 senior hit 2.1 3-pointers on his way to 15.0 points in 2014-15. After Andrews, there are a lot of question marks. Romar tried to reload the roster with a nice recruiting haul. The team has options in the frontcourt with Noah Dickerson and Maquese Chriss, a pair of 6-8 forwards. Andrews will be joined on the wing by Dejounte Murray, a skinny 6-5 shooter. The team doesn't have a clear point guard, but freshman David Crisp could be a nice sleeper.
Syracuse Orange
Maybe if Jim Boeheim and his Orange had never left the Big East, they would not have run into problems. And if ifs and buts were candy and nuts, Syracuse would win the championship every year. The Orange were not allowed to compete for a championship last year and will remain on probation for five years and lose 12 scholarships over the next four years. Boeheim will be suspended for the first nine ACC games, as well. On the court, Syracuse will lean on Michael Gbinije and Trevor Cooney while its frontcourt retools. Gbinije provided 12.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.6 assists, while Cooney scored 13.4 points on 2.3 three-pointers. Tyler Roberson (8.3 points, 7.3 rebounds) will anchor the 2-3 zone and the team hopes Dajuan Coleman is healthy after major knee surgery.
Kansas State Wildcats
In previous stops, coach Bruce Weber has generally had more success with his predecessor's players. He led the Wildcats to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances in his first two seasons with Frank Martin booty, but the squad dropped to the lower half of the Big 12 last year. The three double-digit scorers from last season are gone, and Weber is left with a lot of questionss. The leading returning scorer is 6-4 senior guard Justin Edwards, who provided 6.3 points in his first year after transferring from Maine. He did score 16.7 points with the Black Bears, so he could get more offensive opportunities. Holes in the frontcourt could be filled by freshman, including 6-10 center Dante Hales and Kansas native Dean Wade.
Ohio State Buckeyes
It used to be the Buckeyes were one of those teams that just reloaded instead of rebuilt. The team lost four of its six top scorers, including current Los Angeles Laker D'Angelo Russell. Coach Thad Matta has not missed the NCAA Tournament since 2008, but some players will need to step up to keep the streak alive. JaQuan Lyle originally signed with Oregon but an academic issue kept him from playing college ball last year. The 6-5 guard could be the next Buckeyes star, but he had surgery to repair his meniscus in February. Forward Marc Loving scored 9.4 points and hit 46 percent of his three-pointers last season. Loving and 6-4 sophomore forward Jea'Sean Tate could be in for much bigger roles in the new season.
Alabama Crimson Tide
Ohio State and Alabama may be powers in football, but they both face uncertain futures on the hardwood. In addition to a virtually new roster, the Crimson Tide also have a new coach in Avery Johnson, who once led the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA Finals and 127 wins over two years. Like Kansas State, Alabama had three double-digit scorers who are now gone. Forward Shannon Hale put up 8.2 points and 3.2 rebounds in just 19.4 minutes last season. He missed the end of his sophomore season with a foot injury. Forward Michael Kessens had a great freshman season at Longwood in 2012-13 (13.7 points and 8.8 rebounds) before transferring to Alabama. He was rather quiet last year. The backcourt will be manned by freshman Dazon Ingram and Retin Obasohan, who played quite well after Ricky Tarrant was injured last season.
