Pac-12 men's basketball preview: Picks for all-conference teams, postseason awards and March bids

Welcome to the Pac-12 Hotline’s fearless forecasts for Pac-12 men’s basketball as conference play ramps up.

Here we go …

NCAA Tournament bids

Arizona, Colorado: The Wildcats are the best team in the conference and a lock for March Madness; the only question is whether they nail down a No. 1 seed. Most of the remaining teams have removed themselves from consideration with subpar showings in nonconference play. A precious few are on the NCAA bubble and must navigate 20 league games, plus the Pac-12 tournament, without accruing too many bad losses. Colorado is better equipped for that task than Utah, which is better positioned than either USC or Washington.

Player of the Year

Colorado’s KJ Simpson: An all-conference selection last season, the junior has upgraded his all-around play: He’s averaging 19.9 points, 4.5 assists, 4.5 rebounds and shooting a tick under 50% from 3-point range. Those are All-American numbers for a point guard who means more to the Buffaloes than any single Arizona player means to the Wildcats.

Coach of the Year

Utah’s Craig Smith: The third-year coach has the Utes on a clear upward trajectory. After winning 11 games in his first season and improving to 17 last winter, Smith is on pace for at least 20 — plus a potential NCAA berth. Picked seventh in the preseason media poll, the Utes should beat that projection by two or three slots. We also considered Colorado’s Tad Boyle, Washington’s Mike Hopkins and Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd.

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Freshman of the Year

USC’s Isaiah Collier: The top-rated recruit in the country has been as good as advertised, averaging 16.1 points and 4.3 assists per game. If Collier’s 3-point shooting improves (currently: 30.3 percent), the 6-foot-5 point guard just might help the struggling Trojans sneak into the NCAA Tournament in what should be his only collegiate season. We also considered UCLA guard Sebastian Mack and Colorado wing Cody Williams, another likely lottery pick.

Defensive Player of the Year

USC’s Joshua Morgan: The 6-11 senior is fifth in the country and first in the conference with 2.73 blocks per game. (Nobody in the Pac-12 is close.)

Exceptional length and timing allow Morgan to impact shots even when he’s not deflecting them. Morgan was an all-defensive team selection last year but didn’t win the DPOY award because of UCLA’s masterful Jaylen Clark. This season, it’s his turn.

Our picks for the various all-conference teams are above.

Contact Jon Wilner at pac12hotline@bayareanewsgroup.com. On Twitter: @wilnerhotline