Where Does Trayce Jackson-Davis Stand Among College Basketball's Top Returners?

NCAA.com's Andy Katz released a list of the top returning college basketball players for the 2022-2023 season. The top 25 list included Indiana forward Trayce Jackson-Davis, along with four other Big Ten players.

Here is a breakdown of the top 10 players on Katz's list.

1. Oscar Tshiebwe, Kentucky

The reigning National Player of the Year returns to Kentucky seeking revenge for the Wildcats' first round exit in the 2022 NCAA Tournament at the hands of the Cinderella story Saint Peter's Peacocks. After two seasons at West Virginia, Tshiebwe nearly doubled his points and rebounds totals to average 17.4 points and 15.2 rebounds.

Kentucky loses three starters – TyTy Washington, Kellan Grady and Keion Brooks – but Tshiebwe will remain a steady, dominant force in the paint. He has his personal accolades after a breakout junior season, and now he'll be hungry to leave a legacy with an NCAA Tournament run.

2. Drew Timme, Gonzaga

Averaging over 18 points per game during the last two seasons, Timme has been a model of consistency and efficiency in college basketball. He boasts a career 61.9 field goal percentage with crafty moves in the lane.

The Bulldogs lost in the national title game during Timme's sophomore season in 2021, and fell to Arkansas in the Sweet 16 last year. After two seasons being named a consensus All-American, Timme returns to Gonzaga with one thing left to accomplish: a national championship.

3. Armando Bacot, North Carolina

Bacot recorded a double-double in every game of the eighth-seeded Tar Heels' run to the national championship game. His 20-point, 22-rebound effort took down Saint Peter's, and he grabbed 21 rebounds to end Mike Krzyzewski's career at Duke.

After averaging 16.3 points and 13.1 rebounds, Bacot – along with starters Caleb Love, Leaky Black and RJ Davis – decided to run it back for one more year to try and avenge their championship loss.

4. Trayce Jackson-Davis, Indiana

Jackson-Davis was unable to raise his stock the 2022 NBA Draft Combine after testing positive for COVID-19 shortly beforehand. He decided to return to Indiana where he joins three other returning starters and a top 10 freshman class.

If he replicates last year’s statistics – 18.3 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.3 blocks – Jackson-Davis will finish third in points, third in rebounds and first in blocks on the all-time Indiana leaderboard. But for Jackson-Davis, next season is about far more than individual stats. Indiana is 53-41 overall with a 25-34 record in the Big Ten, and has never made it past the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Jackson-Davis' three seasons.

5. Marcus Sasser, Houston

Sasser was Houston's leading scorer with 17.7 points per game on 43.7 percent 3-point shooting, but an injury ended his season after just 12 games. Still, Houston managed to return to the Elite Eight for the second year in a row under head coach Kelvin Sampson.

Sasser finished second on Houston in points per game as a sophomore on the team that reached the Final Four. And now as a senior, a full year with a healthy Sasser could mean another deep NCAA Tournament run for the Cougars.

6. Hunter Dickinson, Michigan

After declaring for the 2022 NBA Draft, Dickinson decided to return for his third season at Michigan. His teammates Caleb Houstan and Moussa Diabate both stayed in the draft, leaving Dickinson as the only returning starter on Juwan Howard's squad.

Dickinson was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year, and he improved his game to average 18.6 points and 8.6 rebounds per game as a sophomore. He's now a legitimate 3-point threat and will compete for Big Ten Player of the Year.

7. Jaime Jaquez Jr., UCLA

Jaquez broke out with a 27-point effort to defeat Michigan State in the opening round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament to kickstart UCLA's Final Four run. The Bruins lost to North Carolina in the Sweet 16 in 2022, and now Johnny Juzang is gone.

That means Jaquez and Tyger Campbell will run the show under Mick Cronin. After shooting 39.4 percent from 3 as a sophomore, Jaquez's numbers dropped to 27.6 last season. UCLA will need the sophomore version of Jaquez from 3 in order to return to the Final Four.

8. Jalen Wilson, Kansas

Wilson scored 15 points as Kansas overcame a 20-point deficit to defeat North Carolina in the 2022 national championship game. He posted double-doubles in three of Kansas' six tournament games, and now returns for his fourth season in Lawrence.

The Jayhawks will be without Remy Martin, Ochai Agbaji, David McCormack and Christian Braun next year, giving Wilson a chance to increase his 11-point average as a sophomore and junior.

9. Zach Edey, Purdue

Edey was on the Big Ten All-Freshman team and increased his scoring by six points per game as a sophomore. Playing just 19 minutes per game, Edey was one of the most efficient players in college basketball, averaging 14.7 points and 7.7 rebounds with a 64.8 field goal percentage.

At 7-foot-4, 285 pounds, Edey is one of the more unguardable players in college basketball. It will be interesting to see if he can maintain this efficiency playing more minutes in a featured role with the departure of Jaden Ivey and Trevion Williams.

10. Kendric Davis, Memphis

Davis was perhaps the most sought-after transfer this offseason after averaging over 19 points per game in each of he last two seasons at SMU. He's a career 35 percent 3-point shooter, and he'll run the show at Memphis next year after the loss of Jalen Duren, Lester Quinones, Landers Nolley and Emoni Bates.

The 5-foot-11 point guard posted two 30-point games last season, and was one rebound shy of a triple-double in the third game of the season against Northwestern State.

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