Mitchell Layton/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — The entire starting five for Kentucky is expected to declare for the NBA draft, but in Las Vegas, Kentucky remains one of the teams to beat in 2016.
On Tuesday, the William Hill sportsbook opened the Wildcats as 8-1 favorites to win next year’s NCAA tournament. North Carolina is second at 9-1, followed by Virginia at 10-1.
Defending national champion Duke opened at 15-1, along with Iowa State, Kansas, Michigan State and Maryland. National runner-up Wisconsin opened at 30-1.
Kentucky coach John Calipari said Monday he expects five to seven of his players to declare for the NBA draft, including each of the five starters in the Wildcats’ semifinal loss to Wisconsin: Willie Cauley-Stein, Karl-Anthony Towns, Trey Lyles, and Aaron and Andrew Harrison. Key reserves Dakari Johnson and Devin Booker also could make the leap.
Oddsmakers believe Calipari will reload again with another vaunted recruiting class. Kentucky’s 2015 recruiting class is ranked No. 1 by ESPN Insider.
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