The Athletic has published a tiered ranking of men's college basketball programs, classifying teams into various categories based on their status within the sport. The top tier, labeled as 'The Blue Bloods,' includes prominent programs such as Duke, Kentucky, and UConn. The subsequent tiers are divided into 2A, featuring Indiana, Michigan State, and Villanova; 2B with Gonzaga; and Tier 3, which lists Georgetown, Oregon, and Memphis. The publication's attempt to categorize 90 of the top college basketball programs has sparked discussions among fans and analysts, with some agreeing and others inevitably challenging the placements. The tiering system aims to identify which programs are considered blue bloods and how the rest stack up against each other. The Athletic has offered a promotional subscription rate of $1/month for 12 months for readers interested in exploring the rankings further.
Tier 1: The Blue Bloods Duke, Kentucky, UConn Tier 2A Indiana, Michigan State, Villanova Tier 2B Gonzaga Tier 3 Georgetown, Oregon, Memphis Surely no one disagrees with our college basketball program tiers... https://t.co/gfGXS0iyes
Behold @TheAthletic's Program Tiers for men's college hoops. Who's a blueblood? Who barely missed that cut? Who is still figuring out how this sport works? Read, and yell at us: https://t.co/YIAg0Pocu9 https://t.co/NRUnXtXwwA
Who's a blue blood in college basketball? And what about the rest? We attempted the impossible — tiering 90 of the top programs. $1/month for 12 months 👇 https://t.co/C6R2AlvxFy
College basketball program tiers: From blue bloods like Duke (and UConn!) on down ⤵️ https://t.co/Cz6ZQpIf2c
Here are my Big East tiers at the moment: https://t.co/XMYlDfqHG8