NBA Postseason Best Bets (5/17)
Alex Christenson
The college basketball season is less than three weeks away, and here at FTN Bets we have you covered for what promises to be another thrilling year of upsets and incredible finishes. I will be taking you around the country with a betting preview of the major conferences. I recap the betting trends from last season, list projected starters, preview the season, identify a key player and reveal how I’m backing or fading each team.
Let’s start with the best conference in college basketball, the Big 12. Last season ended a three-year streak of Big 12 representation in the NCAA Championship game, including consecutive championships from Baylor (2020-2021) and Kansas (2021-2022). This year, the conference will add four new teams in Houston, BYU, Cincinnati and UCF. With 14 total teams, will we see a change with the top teams, or will the dominance of national powerhouses such as Kansas, Texas and Baylor be magnified further?
Let’s take a look at our betting preview for the Kansas State Wildcats.
2023-2024 Kansas State Wildcats Betting Preview
Conference: Big 12
Head Coach: Jerome Tang (2nd season)
2022-2023 Record: 26-10 (11-7)
ATS: 24-12
O/U: 20-16
Projected Starters: G Tylor Perry; G Cam Carter; F Nae’Qwan Tomlin; F Arthur Kaluma; F David N’Guessan;
Jerome Tang waited 19 years for a college basketball head coaching job, and he delivered. The Wildcats were undaunted by a first-round Big 12 Conference Tournament exit to TCU and went on a massive NCAA Tournament run to the Elite Eight. Kansas State beat Kentucky and Michigan State before bowing out in a 79-76 thriller to Florida Atlantic. Tang completely revamped the roster last year with 10 transfers from across the country. After losing Markquis Nowell and Keyontae Johnson, Tang will need to repeat that magic with only 35.9% of their minutes returning, per BartTorvik.
Key Player: Arthur Kaluma
After being in awe of Keyontae Johnson’s return last season, Coach Tang and Kansas State fans eye Arthur Kaluma’s arrival to Manhattan with eagerness. This potential NBA wing can score from all over the floor. Kaluma is a grab-and-go threat with any defensive rebound but must find consistency to provide the much-needed scoring Kansas State really needs. We predicted Kaluma to take a jump last season, and he failed. Maybe this change of basketball ecosystem will provide the needed infrastructure for a Keyontae Johnson-type pop for Kaluma this season.
Projection: The second year is always a huge challenge for those who “struck gold” as a neophyte head coach. There will be much public support for the Wildcats after last season’s deep NCAA Tournament run, but count me among the skeptics. They went just 5-6 over their last 11 games prior to the NCAA Tournament and were heavily carried by Nowell and Johnson’s NCAA Tournament magic. That will not happen this year, and they are putting a ton of hope in the diminutive Perry, Samford scorer Ques Glover and the enigmatic Kaluma. A middle-of-the-pack finish within the conference is reasonable for Tang’s second season.
How I’m Betting Kansas State: Absolutely fading, especially early. They don’t have the late-game shot makers, and their inconsistency was masked by the late-season run. They are always tough at home and were 13-4 ATS last year. That’s where I’m comfortable backing them, but nowhere else. They were 12-5 ATS in the non-conference last year, but that will not be replicated without Nowell and Johnson. I expect these lines to be inflated early and see ripe early-season opportunities to fade the Wildcats at home against Bellarmine and South Dakota State.
