College Basketball Player of the Year Rankings

1. Jabari Parker, Duke
With his recent 29 point, 16 rebound outing against Boston College, Parker vaulted himself to the top of these rankings.  Outside of the game against Syracuse when he fouled out, Parker has dominated as of late, with four double-doubles in his last six games.  Though he certainly deserves this spot, he has been awarded it partly due to the recent loss of Creighton's Doug McDermott to lowly St. Johns.

2. Doug McDermott, Creighton
McDermott's numbers are outrageous.  25.3 points per game and 7 rebounds per game is an incredible stat line in college basketball, but his stock takes a hit because he plays in a fairly weak Big East field.  Creighton has had a fantastic season nonetheless, and they will need to keep it up if they want McDermott to win the player of the year award.

3. Tyler Ennis, Syracuse
Ennis doesn't have great stats like McDermott (11.9 points per game and 5.6 assists per game) and he is not quite top-5 draft material like Jabari Parker but he still in the race for the player of the year award because he does everything that does not show up on the stats sheet.  He is the on-court leader of first ranked Syracuse, and, as evidenced in his recent heroics against Pittsburgh, he absolutely has the clutch gene.  There is no doubt in my mind that if Syracuse continue their wonderful season, Ennis will remain in the player of the year conversation.

4. Shabazz Napier, Connecticut
Everybody knew that Shabazz Napier could score, but nobody thought that Napier would fill up the other parts of the box score like he has done this year.  With an incredibly well-rounded stat line of 17.3 points per game, 5.9 rebounds per game, and 5.3 assists for game, Napier has done it all this year for a tournament-bound Connecticut team.

5. Nick Johnson, Arizona
Much like Ennis, Johnson does not have an outrageous stat line and is not set to be an extremely high pick in the draft, but he has done all the little things right and has been the leader of the second best team in the country.  15.9 points per game and 3.6 rebounds per game is certainly not a bad line, but it also doesn't stand out.  However, Johnson is one of the best on-ball defenders and his incredible consistency and drive cannot be understated.

Others Considered:
Nik Stauskas, Michigan - Has incredible stats but has not played well enough in the last few games, leading to two recent surprise losses for Michigan.
Deandre Kane/Melvin Ejim, Iowa State - Truth be told, they seem to be ruining each other's player of the year chances, as they are having to share points and rebounds.
Julius Randle, Kentucky - After a blistering start to the season, Randle has been severely underwhelming as of late.
Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State - The recent suspension will certainly hurt his player of the year credentials.
Keith Appling/Gary Harris/Adreian Payne, Michigan State - Appling, Harris, and Payne are having to share stats and the injuries won't help them either.