The transfer portal has taken the college athletics world by storm recently. It presents both opportunities and challenges. For most programs and players, it's a positive development. However, one of its byproducts is the added difficulty in offseason projections, especially in basketball. Predicting a team's lineup with a brand new starting five becomes nearly impossible.

Unraveling the Impact of the Transfer Portal on College Basketball

Tier 1: The Jumbled Top of the Conference

Purdue (KenPom: 12, Torvik: 16), UCLA (14/14), Illinois (17/10), Maryland (19/15), Oregon (20/26), Michigan (21/22), Michigan St. (22/20).Both KenPom and Torvik show a jumbled mess at the top of the conference. Neither site has a Big Ten team in the national top ten, but seven teams are in the 10-25 range. Michigan's inclusion in the top tier might surprise some, but they can compete with anyone when they avoid turnovers.In the last week's AP Poll, only Purdue (No. 8), Wisconsin (No. 11), and Illinois (No. 19) represented the Big Ten. However, as UCLA, Maryland, Oregon, Michigan, and Michigan St. continue to make noise, this is likely to change rapidly.

Tier 2: The Middle of the Pack

Ohio St. (29/32), Penn St. (33/38), Wisconsin (37/40), Indiana (44/39), Iowa (46/44).Michigan's win at the Kohl Center over then No. 11 Wisconsin was valuable. But both KenPom and Torvik consider the Badgers to be overrated as they are out of the top 25. Wisconsin has a potent offense but a relatively weak defense ranked 88th by KenPom. Similarly, Michigan's home win over Iowa was good, but Iowa is still finding its footing.

Tier 3: The Rebuilding Years

Northwestern (59/50), Nebraska (61/51), Rutgers (74/58).Rutgers is a big surprise as they were expected to contend for the conference crown with standout freshmen. But so far, they haven't received much help from their supporting cast. Nebraska and Northwestern were also expected to have rebuilding years, and that seems to be the case so far.

Tier 4: The Disappointing Teams

USC (93/85), Washington (104/107), Minnesota (111/112).There is a significant gap between Tier 3 and Tier 4 in the Big Ten. USC and Washington have been very disappointing this season. KenPom even ranks them below teams like Loyola Chicago, UC San Diego, and Santa Clara. It will be a tough transition for them.KenPom has some interesting features. It lists a conference ranking by Net Rating of the team expected to go.500 in conference play, which is a way to power rank conferences. This year, the Big Ten is second only to the SEC, with the Big 12 and Big East close behind.Also, the site lists the top five players in the conference, which currently includes Trey Kaufman-Renn of Purdue, Derik Queen of Maryland, John Tonje of Wisconsin, Nate Bittle of Oregon, and Braden Smith of Purdue. In my opinion, the on-court performance backs up these rankings.Offensively, the best teams so far are Purdue (No. 8 in ORtg), Wisconsin (No. 19), Oregon (No. 20), and Ohio St. (No. 22). Defensively, KenPom lists UCLA (No. 4 in DRtg), Michigan (No. 10), Maryland (No. 13), and Illinois (No. 17) in order of strength.In conclusion, it's still early in the college basketball season. But we are starting to see some teams fall behind while others are stuck at the top with no clear leader. This should make for some exciting basketball this winter!