The Big 12 made news this summer with their new conference sponsorships, but now that the college basketball season is close to tipoff, questions about the on-court production are ringing. The Big 12 expects to have around five teams with Final Four aspirations, and the conference is pretty deep, even beyond the top tier. For some teams, the uncertainty comes down to one player; for others, it’s an entirely new identity. Here’s the biggest question each Big 12 team needs to answer this season.

Arizona: What is the offensive ceiling of this roster?

After a Final Four run last season, Arizona's success this season will most likely start because of their ability to defend. The Wildcats have plenty of talent on offense starting with 7'2" center Motiejus Krivas, and Ivan Kharchenkov is another key returner for this offense, but they'll need production deeper in their lineup to help out the offense.

5-star freshman, Caleb Holt, will be one of the primary options in the backcourt to provide further scoring. The projected lottery pick can get downhill and finish well at the rim with his strong frame. During high school and AAU, he also flashed the ability to be a facilitator for others, even if it isn't going to be his primary responsibility.

Derek Dixon didn't have the best freshman season at North Carolina, but the 6'5" transfer has plenty of upside both shooting and facilitating the ball.

Arizona State: Will Randy Bennett's style translate to the Big 12?

Arizona State hired head coach Randy Bennett this off season. Bennett was a premier coach at Saint Mary's for over twenty seasons, leading them to twelve tournament appearances. He's had success with a slow-tempo style that relies on physical defense.

The Big 12 has a wide range in styles, making Bennett's addition to the conference even more interesting. Arizona State doesn't have the same talent as Houston, but Houston has been a dominant force in the conference while also utlizing a slow-tempo and physical defensive system. On the other hand, there are teams like Arizona who play much faster than any team in the West Coast Conference, which Saint Mary's is in, played last season.

Baylor: Can the Mingo brothers be the next great guards at Baylor?

Baylor has developed a lot of talented perimeter players over the last half decade such as Cameron Carr, VJ Edgecombe, Ja'Kobe Walter, and Davion Mitchell. Now, brothers Kayden and Dylan Mingo are set to pair up in the backcourt for the Bears. Kayden had a good statistical freshman season at Penn State last year, while Dylan comes in as a top 20 player in his class.

Both Dyland and Kayden Mingo have the talent to be real contributors right away, given both their talent level and the past success Baylor has had with guards. Kayden Mingo averaged 13.7 points and 4.3 assists per game during his freshman season, and although rankings don't specifically equate to on-court success, Dylan Mingo is the higher ranked prospect of the two.

Baylor will need the duo to contribute right away for Baylor to reach their ceiling, but players like Isaac Williams and Brett Decker do give the Bears other options in the backcourt. Both Williams and Decker shot over 45 percent from three last season, and that shooting potential will be important as it hasn't been a strength of the Mingo brothers.

BYU: Will there be defensive improvements?

In the two seasons under Kevin Young, BYU has had top-15 offenses both seasons, but they've been outside of the top-50 defensively. On paper, this roster should find plenty of success on offense, but if they want to compete for the top of the Big 12, they'll need to find consistency on defense.

If Jaxon Kohler ends up being eligible, he gives BYU a physical front court player who has been part of multiple elite defenses at Michigan State. This roster won't have the expectations of being an elite defense, but with how good the offense can be, if head coach Kevin Young can figure out a system that makes this defense respectable, BYU can become a competitor at the top of the Big 12.

Cincinnati: Can the roster mesh together quickly?

Cincinnati hired head coach Jerrod Calhoun this offseason, and his first task was assembling an entirely new roster. Grant Darbyshire is the only returner to Cincy, but he's only played 14 minutes in his three year career.

There are six players on the roster who averaged double digit points last season, headlined by Tulsa transfer Tylen Riley, who averaged 15.0 points and 4.4 assists per game. He'll be relied upon a lot to set up the offense for everyone else. Myles Colvin and Eric Mahaffey are talented wings who can both shoot and get to the rim. Tyler Tejada, Trevian Carson, and Riley Allenspach are all mid-major transfers who excelled on their treams last season, but will be taking a big jump in competition.

Cincinnati could end up being a pretty deep team, but it may simply take time for all of the new players to gel before the talent turns into wins.

Colorado: What is Colorado's identity?

After back to back disappointing seasons, head coach Tad Boyle looks to get Colorado back on track with a largely revamped roster. After making the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2024, Colorado has struggled both offensively and defensively over the past two seasons.

Colorado does return four players from last season, headlined by 6-foot-1 guard Barrington Hargress, who averaged 14.2 points and 4.5 assists per game. The Buffaloes also added in four mid-major transfers to their roster.

Aside from Hargress, everyone else in the projected rotation for Colorado is at least 6'5". This team could potentially try and use their length to force more turnovers defensively, and use their size on offense to try and bully teams in the paint.

Houston: How dominant can the defense be?

Houston returns Joseph Tugler, meaning they have arguably the best defender in the country. There are plenty of new faces on this roster, though, who will need to learn the aggressive defensive system Kelvin Sampson deploys. With the offense projected to be very good, but not elite, defense will once again be the calling card for the Cougars.

Tugler gives the defense real stability as he can cover up a lot of defensive mistakes himself. Kent State transfer Delrecco Gillespie is another physical forward who can provide versatility on the defensive side of the ball. LSU transfer Dedan Thomas Jr. hasn't been a great defender in his career, but Sampson has shown he can turn anyone into a good enough defender. It'll help Thomas that he'll be paired in the backcourt with Mercy Miller and Chase McCarty, two players who have flashed defensive upside in Houston's system already.

Iowa State: What does the backcourt look like until Toure comes back?

Killyan Toure is expected to return in January after suffering a right shoulder injury in the off season. With his injury, Iowa State will have a lot of minutes and production they'll need to fill. If Tamin Lipsey gets a fifth season, that eases the burden, but Iowa State will still need others to step up until Toure is back.

5-foot-11 transfer Jaquan Johnson will be a primary option to shore up the backcourt while Toure is gone. He averaged 16.9 points, 3.6 assists, and 2.5 steals per game last season at Bradley. Returning sophomore Jamarion Batemon is someone who should see an expanded role while Toure is gone. Batemon averaged 6.8 points and 0.6 steals in 15.5 minutes per game last season for Iowa State.

Kansas: Will the 5-in-5 rulings go their way?

Kansas is currently banking on Trey Kaufman-Renn, Melvin Council Jr., and Tre White to all be eligible for another season of college. All three are currently ruled as eligible, but that can change at any time. If they are able to play, Kansas will be one of the best teams in the country. If they aren't Kansas will still be a good basketball team, but won't project to have the same ceiling.

Regardless of the eligibilty rulings, Kansas will have to put five players out on the floor. Tyran Stokes will be a major name to watch as he comes to Kansas as the top-ranked player in the freshman class. Taylen Kinney is another 5-star freshman who could see a big role this season for the Jayhawks.

If the rulings go against Kansas, Keanu Dawes and Paul Mbiya will be two players who will have to play well in the frontcourt for the Jayhawks.

Kansas State: What does year one of Casey Alexander look like?

Kansas State hired head coach Casey Alexander this off season after his success at Belmont. Alexander is more of an offensive-minded coach, and he's looking to bring that to Kansas State with an almost entirely new roster for the Wildcats.

This roster doesn't have the biggest names on it, but there are players who could make an impact in an expanded role. JT Rock is the biggest of the group, both literally and metaphorically. The 7-foot-1 center averaged 6.0 points and 3.4 rebounds in 12.7 minutes a game last season at New Mexico. He can give Kansas State a great rebounder and rim protector, while also stretching the floor on offense.

Brandon Rechsteiner will be asked to run the offense after he averaged 12.0 points and 2.5 assists per game for Colorado State last season.

Oklahoma State: Can the tempo win the Cowboys games?

Under head coach Steve Lutz, Oklahoma State has ranked 9th and 12th in adjusted tempo. However, it hasn't translated to Big 12 wins. Now as Oklahoma State has the most talented roster under Lutz, which includes multiple key returners, will the uptempo style be able to wear teams out?

This roster can potentially run up to a 10-man rotation if everything breaks right. It may not always be the most feasible, but because of how fast Oklahoma State wants to play, it can help keep everybody fresh while other teams wear down.

Kanye Clary is the lead guard for this roster, and his speed and quickness help set up the offensive tempo for Oklahoma State. He was able to get out and run a lot, although he was more efficient when setting up others than himself. Clary taking a jump in efficiency would be a big boost to this offense.

TCU: Will roster retention help continue success?

After reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season, TCU returns three of their starters and an important bench player. Head coach Jamie Dixon filled in the front court with transfers in Luke Bagboye and DJ Thomas, but the roster retention will be relied on for this team.

Brock Harding returned to TCU, and he gives them a table-setting point guard. Harding averaged 5.6 assists per game last season while decreasing his turnover rate from the previous year.

Micah Robinson and Xavier Edmonds are two returning forwards that averaged over ten points per game while also providing physicality defensively to help force turnovers.

Harding, Robinson, and Edmonds should give TCU a solid core to run their team through, and they could all take a jump after having completed a year in the TCU system.

Texas Tech: When does JT Toppin return?

Star player JT Toppin tore his ACL on February 17, 2026. He returned to Texas Tech this season with the intention to suit up at some point. Texas Tech is still a talented team without him, but Toppin is who takes this team to a potentially elite level.

Texas Tech will be more than just JT Toppin, though. Cruz Davis and Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn are two high-scoring guards who each averaged over 20 points per game last season while shooting at least 40 percent from three. Those two will be especially relied upon while JT Toppin is still recovering from injury, but when Toppin returns, teams are going to have a difficult time trying to gameplan how to slow all three down.

UCF: Can UCF build on their success?

UCF made the NCAA Tournament last season for the first time since 2019, and only the fourth time since 2000. Head coach Johnny Dawkins had to reassemble most of his roster, but there's talent throughout to try and continue the momentum.

7-foot-2 center John Bol gives UCF rim protection and rebounding to base the rest of their team around. Dior Johnson averaged 24.0 points per game last season for Tarleton State. He has the talent to be an elite scorer in the Big 12, but he's had a rocky collegiate career thus far.

Off the bench, UCF should have multiple quality shooters in players like Carmelo Pacheco, Lewis Walker, Jason Asemota, and Cayden Vasko. This shooting depth gives UCF more options to figure out how they're going to score the ball offensively.

Utah: Who emerges as the go-to guy(s)?

After a bad 2026 season, in which Utah finished 10-22, head coach Alex Jensen had to put together an almost entirely new roster. There are some players with potential, but there isn't much proven high-major talent on the roster.

Jackson Holcombe averaged 16.0 points per game last season for Utah Valley, and his ability to get all the way to the rim will be needed for this Utah offense. Babacar Faye is another forward who has scored the ball well at the mid-major level.

Ohio State transfer Taison Chatman was a highly ranked recruit, but injuries never allowed him to showcase the talent for the Buckeyes. The talent is still there, however, and a change in scenery could be what he needs to finally breakout.

West Virginia: Will the offense catch up to the defense?

Last season, West Virginia had a quality defense but ultimately missed the NCAA Tournament because of their offense. This roster is better suited to be able to score this season, but they'll need consistency on that end to try and make noise in the Big 12.

Finley Bizjack will be relied upon to be a scorer for West Virginia this season. The 6-foot-4 guard averaged 17.1 points and 2.5 assists per game for Butler last season. Joson Sanon, Seydou Traore, Mouhamed Sylla, and Martin Sommerville all transfer in from high-major programs while averaging between eight and ten points per game last season.

6-foot-0 freshman Miles Sadler may be the point guard that West Virginia needs to bring the offense together. There are multiple players who can score on this roster, but Sadler can potentially be the one that helps set up everything else for this offense.