BYU last reached the Elite Eight in 1981 and has never made the Final Four.
That could change next season, when the Cougars are expected to contend for the men’s college basketball national title behind AJ Dybantsa, the nation’s top-ranked 2025 recruit.
Dybantsa, a 6-foot-9-inch wing and projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA draft, reportedly received a name, image and likeness deal from BYU worth about $7 million.
The Cougars also are expected to add Rob Wright from the transfer portal after reportedly offering Baylor’s star point guard a $3.5 million NIL deal.
Making BYU one of the favorites to win the 2026 NCAA Tournament — it’s the 16-1 fifth choice at Caesars Sportsbook — was a no-brainer after Dybantsa committed to the school Dec. 10. But making numbers on next year’s national champion has become more challenging for oddsmakers amid the offseason chaos created by the rise of NIL and an increasingly packed portal.
“It’s more difficult than it’s ever been,” Caesars college basketball trader Patrick Berbert said. “Of all the power conference teams, probably half of them don’t have half of their starting lineup filled out yet. You’re putting up the odds (based on) what they have and what you think they’ll be able to grab in the transfer portal.
“We don’t have access to what each school provides in NIL money. It’s making an educated guess that all the top teams are going to be able to fill out their roster a little bit better. … It’s definitely harder, but not out of reach to do.”
Veteran Westgate SuperBook oddsmaker Ed Salmons agrees it’s tougher to make futures odds with so much player movement.
“It’s almost now you’re just trying to figure out the strength of program and strength of coaches,” he said. “There’s just so much unknown, and the odds are reflective of that. You just hear stuff and go with it and then start watching the games.
“That’s why Florida was 80-1 at some point during the summer.”
The Gators, who won the national championship in Monday’s 65-63 comeback win over Houston, are the 25-1 15th choice at the Westgate to repeat.
“They’re going to lose almost the whole team,” Salmons said. “That doesn’t mean they can’t go out and get some great players.”
Numbers game
Sportsbooks are split on the title favorite. Duke is on top at Caesars and Boyd Gaming, while Houston leads the way at the Westgate and BetMGM.
The Blue Devils (+850 at Caesars, 16-1 at Westgate) lose Cooper Flagg, the presumptive No. 1 NBA draft pick, from a team that blew a late nine-point lead in a Final Four loss to Houston. But they will reload with the No. 2-ranked recruiting class led by former Duke star Carlos Boozer’s twin sons, Cameron (No. 3) and Cayden Boozer (No. 16).
“Jon Scheyer has gotten better each year he’s coached at Duke, and they’ve got a great freshman class coming in again,” Berbert said. “This team’s going to be loaded again next year, no doubt.”
Houston (8-1 at Westgate, 12-1 at Caesars), which squandered a 12-point second-half lead over Florida, will return three starters, including Desert Pines product Milos Uzan. The Cougars, for the first time in the modern era, will be bolstered by the top-ranked recruiting class in the country. It includes Creighton transfer Pop Isaacs and three five-star recruits, including Chris Cenac Jr., the No. 1 big man in the 2025 class.
“Kelvin Sampson has established that program,” Salmons said of Houston’s coach. “They always have the toughness there. They’ve never had recruits like that, ever. To me, Houston was the obvious starting point for the favorite.”
Contenders
Purdue and UConn, which won national titles in 2023 and 2024, are tied for the 15-1 third choice at Caesars.
“When you have a coach at UConn in Danny Hurley, you’re always going to be in the title mix,” Berbert said. “They’ve got some main pieces coming back, they have a great recruiting class coming in again, and he always seems to get one really good portal grab every year as well.”
The top three scorers from Purdue’s Sweet 16 team are expected to return, and the Boilermakers added 6-11 South Dakota State transfer center Oscar Cluff.
Louisville dropped from 25-1 to 20-1 at Caesars after the book took bets on the Cardinals at 25-1 and 22-1 to win the title. Louisville has added several key pieces from the portal.
“We’ve read they have an NIL budget this year upward of $10 million, and it has shown,” Berbert said. “They have four guys who shoot over 40 percent from 3. As long as you can hit the 3 well, you can make a run for it in the tournament.”
Contact reporter Todd Dewey at [email protected]. Follow @tdewey33 on X.
2026 NCAA Tournament odds
Up to 40-1
Team Caesars Westgate
Duke +850 16-1
Houston 12-1 8-1
Purdue 15-1 12-1
UConn 15-1 14-1
BYU 16-1 18-1
Arizona 18-1 30-1
Florida 20-1 25-1
Kentucky 20-1 16-1
Louisville 20-1 16-1
Michigan State 22-1 30-1
Arkansas 22-1 20-1
Auburn 22-1 20-1
Kansas 22-1 20-1
St. John’s 22-1 20-1
Alabama 25-1 20-1
Texas Tech 25-1 30-1
Baylor 30-1 40-1
Michigan 30-1 12-1
Gonzaga 40-1 30-1
North Carolina 40-1 60-1
Tennessee 40-1 30-1
UCLA 40-1 20-1
Iowa State 50-1 30-1
Wisconsin 50-1 30-1
