Regular Season Champion: Purdue Boilermakers

Purdue has one of the best coaches in college basketball in Matt Painter. Sure, Zach Edey is gone, but this will allow the guards to show just how good they are. There will be a lot more on the plates of Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer as the focal points of defenses, but they are ready for that. Smith might lead the country in assists and will average in the high teens for points. Trey Kaufmann-Renn will be solid enough on the inside, as well as guys like Myles Colvin, Caleb Furst, and Cam Heide. While Purdue is not as good this year, neither is the Big 10, which leaves them in a great spot to win the regular season crown.

Coach of the Year: Mick Cronin, UCLA

Mick Cronin did an awesome job bringing in a nice transfer class after a down season and missing the tournament last year. He brought in guys like Kobe Johnson and Tyler Bilodeau to go along with his returners like Dylan Andrews and Sebastian Mack. Based on the recruiting, UCLA should be much better and near the top of the Big 10 in their first year in the conference. The big question will be whether the travel of the Big 10 and the lack of a strong homecourt advantage will affect them. If they are able to negate those issues, the talent is there because of Cronin’s recruiting, and he is one of the best coaches in the conference. However, this conference is wide open, so I could make a case for a lot of coaches. I just like what UCLA did this offseason, so give me Cronin.

Player of the Year: Braden Smith, Purdue

Braden Smith will be the best player on the best team. He will most likely lead the conference in assists per game and lead Purdue in scoring. With Edey gone, we will get to see how good of a player Braden Smith is. This is no guarantee, but the talent pool in the Big 10 is not very strong. Watch out for Oumar Ballo as a candidate at Indiana if he is able to stay on the court long enough because he should put up big numbers.

Big 10 1st Team

Braden Smith, Purdue

Jackson Shelstad, Oregon

Oumar Ballo, Indiana

Payton Sandfort, Iowa

Dylan Harper, Rutgers