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5. Can Duquesne catch any luck? The Dukes unfortunate off-season -- five players shot on campus -- has been well-documented, and it only got worse this week when Memphis transfer Almamy Thiero underwent arthroscopic knee surgery. Somewhere, somebody owes Ron Everhart a break. If you don't find yourself pulling for these guys this season, your favorite team is either playing against them, or you're heartless.
6. Can Derrick Caracter take a hint? Since the beginning, Rick Pitino has sworn he will not play Caracter if he doesn't lose a significant amount of weight. To his credit, the Louisville coach is sticking with it, evidence being when the school announced this week that Caracter "may miss some early practice sessions because of conditioning issues." Translation: Get in shape, big boy! And if Caracter ever wants to reach his potential, he'd be wise to spend the next three weeks getting at it.
7. Can Tennessee prepare its freshman point guard? Though Bruce Pearl inherited a lifeless program, he did at least take over two good guards last season in C.J. Watson and Chris Lofton. Now, Watson, the point guard, is gone, leaving the Vols in a scenario under which they're probably going to trust freshman Ramar Smith to run the show. It's not ideal, but I'm guessing he's good enough to do it.
8. Can North Carolina prepare its freshman point guard? At UNC, the situation is slightly different. For starters, the starter is back, so the worst-case scenario -- and this isn't a bad scenario -- has Bobby Frasor handling things. Of course, for North Carolina to be really great (and I'm talking national-title winning great), it'll probably need freshman Tywon Lawson to run the show. Again, it's not ideal, but I'm guessing -- actually, I'm pretty sure -- he's good enough to do it.
9. Can Robert Dozier emerge? The Memphis staff would've loved for Shawne Williams to return for his sophomore season, but they didn't panic when he chose otherwise because they believed it would merely open minutes for Dozier, a 6-9 forward whose potential is off the charts. Truth is, Dozier doesn't have to be a double-double guy with so many other talents around him. But for the Tigers to reach another Elite Eight, they need at least one of their sophomores -- Antonio Anderson, Chris Douglas-Roberts or Dozier -- to take a natural step forward after deferring to Williams, Rodney Carney and Darius Washington last season. If that happens, it's another waltz through Conference USA. If not, well, it's probably still another waltz through Conference USA. But you get the point.
10. Can Texas succeed with a potential Fab Five? It's doubtful the Longhorns will go with five newcomers, considering the staff loves the toughness of sophomore A.J. Abrams. But don't be surprised to see four freshmen start from Day 1, meaning Rick Barnes has some teaching to do. Regardless of the lineup or its classification, Texas has talent, led by studs Kevin Durant, D.J. Augustin and Damion James. And good/young is a better combination than bad/veteran, best I can tell.
11. Can Bill Self find enough court time? Forget all that NCAA Committee on Infractions stuff. The real issue Kansas is dealing with is trying to decipher how to keep a group of gifted players happy. On the roster are Russell Robinson, Mario Chalmers, Brandon Rush, Julian Wright and Sasha Kaun. Those are the starters from last year. They're all back. Meanwhile, McDonald's All-Americans Sherron Collins and Darrell Arthur have joined the program, and unless the Big 12 decides to add a 6-on-6 version of the game or 20 more minutes to each contest, keeping everybody content and focused on the larger goal could be an issue for Self. Still, far as problems go, this is a good one to have.
12. Can D.J. White be as dominant as everybody thinks? In talking to Kelvin Sampson early in the summer, the one thing he could say for sure about his new team was that he believes "the White kid is going to be pretty good." Past that, who knows? But if the White kid is as advertised coming off a pair of foot injuries, then Sampson has a chance to make Indiana respectable in what projects as a get-your-feet-under-you type season.
13. Can Billy Donovan keep expectations realistic? Here's the problem with returning everybody from a team that won a national title: Anything less than a repeat is deemed a disappointment by the masses, and that's simply unfair. Florida will be expected to win every game it plays, and it'll win most of them on pure talent and swagger. But what Donovan has to master this preseason is the ability to calm his own fan base and players, make sure everybody understands that having a great season and winning another national title aren't necessarily one and the same.
14. Can LSU be as good with Tack Minor as it was without him? There's a lot of pressure on Minor to prove he's capable of running a top 10 team. When LSU lost him last season, it went to the Final Four, a classic addition by subtraction situation. Now, Minor is back, and set to be the starting point guard. He needs to show in the preseason that he's more under control, or else the Tigers could be dealing with some subtraction by addition.
15. Can Mike Cook be the go-to scorer Pittsburgh needs? There will come a time when Pitt has to throw the ball to the wing, isolate a guy and let him try to get a bucket to win a game. If Jamie Dixon is fortunate, Cook will develop into that guy for the Panthers. Prior to transferring from East Carolina, he scored 15.0 points per game and always showed the ability to get into the lane and create shots. If that attribute transferred with Cook to the Big East, Pittsburgh will be a legit Final Four contender.
16. Can Jared Dudley still do it without Craig Smith? Stephen Colbert broke away from Jon Stewart, started his own show and is doing just fine. It's time to see if Dudley can do similar in basketball terms. He's been Smith's sidekick while making Boston College a legitimate ACC threat. But those 17.6 points and 9.4 rebounds are now gone, either freeing Dudley to up his production or struggle as the focus of the BC's offense.
17. Can Nate Funk be the type of guy a team rides to a magical year? It's possible the Missouri Valley Conference could put two teams in the Sweet 16 again this season, and Creighton is a candidate to fill one of those spots. However, a lot of that rests on the shoulders of Funk, and I mean that in the most literal sense. Funk received a medical redshirt last season following a shoulder injury, which is what has him still hanging somewhere in Middle America. But for Creighton to go where it thinks it's going, the 6-3 guard needs to be back to the form that had him scoring 17.0 points per game before he shut it down.
18. Can Toney Douglas be the point guard he wants to be? I know Douglas can score. Everybody knows that. But what I don't know -- and nobody can possibly know just yet -- is whether Douglas can be an affective point guard in the ACC. When he left Auburn after his freshman season, it was at least partly because he wanted to play point guard to enhance his NBA prospects. Now, FSU is giving Douglas that opportunity, and if he succeeds then the Seminoles are headed to the NCAA Tournament, for sure.
19. Can Reggie Theus blend talent into a team? On paper, New Mexico State looks nice. Tyrone Nelson is a force, Elijah Ingram is steady and Fred Peete, Martin Iti and Justin Hawkins are impact transfers, any of whom could flourish in this new setting. Problem is, it can be difficult to merge so many different parts, especially when some of the parts have already proven not to work at other Division I programs. But if Theus figures it out, the Aggies will be capable of making a run at Nevada in the WAC, which would in turn make them a NCAA Tournament contender.
20. Can Lute Olson solve his puzzle? Mustafa Shakur is the point guard, but Nic Wise and J.P. Prince can play there, too. Jawann McClellan and Marcus Williams are on the wings, but Chase Budinger needs minutes, and playing small might be the best way to go for this team. Bottom line, there is a combination of players on the Arizona roster that can take the Wildcats to the Final Four. But determining exactly who that combination consists of is going to be the trick.
21. Can Rice ride Morris Almond to the postseason? Almond might be the best player in the country at a traditionally sub par program. The Owls haven't been to the NCAA Tournament since 1970, and they aren't likely to get an automatic bid this year considering doing so will require Memphis losing to inferior talent on its home floor in the league tournament. That means Rice will have to make its mark early in games against Gonzaga (Nov. 14), Utah (Nov. 15) and Vanderbilt (January 2). No quality wins with a rare All-American candidate, and the Owls might be looking at another 36 years without a NCAA Tournament.
22. Can Drew Lavender be the point guard Xavier needs? Lavender, a former McDonald's All-American and standout at Oklahoma, is now eligible at Xavier, and he clearly has the ability to be a difference-maker in the Atlantic 10. If he proves capable of blending with a solid group of veterans -- and by all accounts, he is -- then the Musketeers will be league champions, and could win a couple of games in the NCAA Tournament.
23. Can USC find a point guard? Until now the death of Ryan Francis has been addressed from a human standpoint. Nobody really cared what it could mean to USC's basketball team, and that's fine. But it will be evident soon -- if it wasn't already -- that the Trojans are going to miss Francis on the court, too, and searching for his replacement could prove difficult considering the likely best option, Daniel Hackett, should actually be a senior in high school.
24. Can Virginia Tech turn experience into achievement? The Hokies return five starters, and there is some talent in guards Jamon Gordan, Zabian Dowdell and big man Coleman Collins. All those players are seniors, meaning they're on their way out. So if Seth Greenberg is going to make the NCAA Tournament, this is the year he needs to do it.
25. Can Tom Izzo again prove he's one of the best coaches in the country? If you're an average fan living outside Big Ten country, it's doubtful you can name one player on Michigan State's roster, the exception being Final Four point guard Drew Neitzel. That's not normal for the Spartans, and it's why many have them in position to miss the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 10 seasons. As for me, I'll bet on Izzo to get it done, somehow, though doing so will take him revealing some stuff that can't be seen on the surface. But that's exactly what these next 25 days are for, right?
