Ranking the front-runners and contenders for women's college basketball player of the year

A year ago at this time, the national player of the year race in women’s college basketball looked like a foregone conclusion. Yes, UCLA’s Lauren Betts and Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo were also in the conversation, but Sarah Strong was a big favorite. And by season’s end, the UConn star was the easy and consensus choice for every major top player award, from the Wooden Award to the Naismith and Wade trophies.

Strong returns for her junior season, and Hidalgo is back for one final run with the Fighting Irish. But they have plenty of company in this year’s race when the 2026-27 season tips off in 11 days.

JuJu Watkins, the consensus 2025 national player of the year, missed all of last season while she recovered from a knee injury but is back in USC’s starting lineup. And Vanderbilt’s Mikayla Blakes, who led the country in scoring as a sophomore, also returns.

The race for the country’s best player starts now — and likely will be at the forefront of the college basketball conversation through March.

ESPN examines which players are preseason favorites, contenders or who might have an outside shot of breaking into consideration.

Tier 1: Foursome in a league of its own

JuJu Watkins, 6-2, junior, guard, USC
Sarah Strong, 6-2, junior, forward, UConn
Hannah Hidalgo, 5-7, senior, guard, Notre Dame
Mikayla Blakes, 5-8, junior, guard, Vanderbilt

The odds are heavily weighted toward the winner coming from this group. In fact, if the national player of the year is not one of these four, it would be the college basketball story of the year.

Each player’s résumé is already stacked. Watkins (2025) and Strong (2026) have been named the country’s top player in previous seasons. Blakes, who two seasons ago was the surprise of the freshman class, has a national scoring title among her credentials (27.0 PPG in 2026). And Hidalgo, who posted double-digit steals in five games last season, was named last season’s best defensive player and has two ACC player of the year trophies on the shelf.

But nothing will capture the early-season attention more in women’s college basketball than Watkins’ return. USC plays an exhibition game against Cal next week and Watkins officially makes her return on Nov. 2 against UNLV in Las Vegas. All eyes will be on how she looks on her surgically repaired knee. Will she instantly be the same player who averaged 25.5 points per game in her first two seasons with the Trojans? If not, how long will that take? That timeline might determine Watkins’ status as a singular front-runner.

With passing and defense that are also elite attributes, Watkins’ case could get a boost from a USC team loaded with talent like sophomore Jazzy Davidson and freshman Saniyah Hall. The Trojans were 18-14 without Watkins last season after going 31-4 in 2024-25. Getting back closer to those 31 wins will also significantly help Watkins’ candidacy.

In her freshman year, Strong shared the spotlight and largely deferred to Paige Bueckers. Last season Azzi Fudd was at least Strong’s equal in star power. That is no longer the case. The Huskies are undeniably Strong’s team, and this could be the season she puts herself in that ongoing conversation of best UConn players ever. Her versatility (18.4 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 3.8 APG, 3.4 SPG, 1.6 BPG, 58.2% FG, 40.4% 3-point FG) is unmatched. Health is something to watch with Strong, too; she sat out all formal basketball activities this summer to rest nagging lower leg issues that bothered her late last season.

Opponents have grown to fear being guarded by Hidalgo. Twice she has led the nation in steals, and last year she set the single-season NCAA record (202) and single-game mark (16, against Akron). She’s already the ACC’s all-time leader. Offensively, Hidalgo became the fastest player in ACC history to reach 2,000 points (86 games) and could become the Irish’s all-time leading scorer by Thanksgiving. Her 25.3 points per game a season ago ranked third nationally behind Blakes and Audi Crooks.

As good as Blakes was as a freshman with a pair of 50-point games, her consistency and ability to score against Vanderbilt’s top competition — all while being the focus of every scouting report — elevated her to Tier 1 status. Blakes averaged 30.1 points in the SEC, arguably the country’s best conference. Even in one of her worst games of the season, she managed 27 points in an upset loss to Georgia. The Commodores’ rise to a second-place SEC finish last season can largely be attributed to Blakes taking another step forward. If she elevates one more time, this award could belong to her.

play

Sarah Strong: Winning Wooden Award ‘a great honor’

Most pivotal games: Between Nov. 5 and Dec. 9, Strong will be showcased like no other contender. The Huskies play Michigan, Iowa, Louisville, South Carolina, Duke, Maryland and Notre Dame all on national television in that five-week span before the spotlight fades and Big East play opens just before Christmas.

Hidalgo will go head-to-head with each of the other three front-runners. Notre Dame plays at Vanderbilt on Dec. 3, hosts the Huskies on Dec. 9 and meets USC in Las Vegas on Dec. 19.

Tier 2: The tweener

Madison Booker, 6-1, senior, forward, Texas Longhorns

Booker stands alone here. She will likely be a first-team All-American but doesn’t quite break through to Tier 1. Despite her exquisite midrange game, Booker isn’t the scorer that Blakes and Watkins are, and Strong and Hidaglo are on a different level as passers and defenders. Her 2.2 steals last season were a career high, as were 18.9 points per game and 6.7 rebounds. After consecutive seasons playing alongside Rori Harmon, Booker is now the Longhorns’ elder stateswoman and leader. She is surrounded by youth.

Most pivotal games: Booker could make up ground if she leads Texas to the top of the SEC and excels in big nonconference games against UCLA (Dec. 20), Duke (Dec. 19) and Louisville (Dec. 2).

Tier 3: Maybe in a different era

Joyce Edwards, 6-3, junior, forward, South Carolina
Audi Crooks, 6-3, senior, center, Oklahoma State
Jaloni Cambridge, 5-7, junior, guard, Ohio State
Olivia Olson, 6-1, junior, guard, Michigan

With the graduation of Chance Gray, Cambridge (23.2 PPG) becomes even more vital to Ohio State’s success. Expect her 33% usage rate to climb. Edwards, whose scoring average jumped 6.5 points per game last season, has more help at South Carolina, but the Gamecocks’ offense will likely run through her. Crooks, who ranked second nationally to Blakes with 25.8 points per game, should be just as productive in her new home in Stillwater. Olson is Michigan’s engine and might have to be even better than her 18.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists from last season for the Wolverines to take that next step to a Final Four.