Purdue, Kansas Lead 2025–26 Practice News

College basketball previews are heating up as Purdue enters 2025–26 as a national-title contender under Matt Painter but faces a brutal nonconference and Big Ten slate that includes Alabama, the Baha Mar Championship, Marquette and rivalry showdowns with Indiana and Michigan State. Kansas has essentially reloaded under Bill Self, adding projected No. 1 pick Darryn Peterson and asking sophomore Flory Bidunga to take a major defensive leap for the Jayhawks’ title hopes. Iowa State's schedule features marquee neutral-site and conference matchups — including St. John’s, Houston and Arizona — and returns a largely intact core supplemented by freshmen and transfers. UConn and Indiana State opened intense fall practices emphasizing competition for roles and defensive physicality, while Tom Izzo said modern summer practices gave Michigan State staff an earlier, clearer read on roster readiness. At the professional and recruiting levels, the Memphis Grizzlies opened training camp in Nashville under new coach Tuomas Iisalo amid significant roster turnover (Desmond Bane out, Kentavious Caldwell‑Pope in), and LSU began practices focused on retaining players and adding wing depth in the 2026 class.