When it comes to comparing the NBA to college basketball, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
But according to Jay Williams, there’s no question about which level is currently more appealing.
“The college basketball product is better than the NBA product right now,” the former Duke star said on Thursday’s episode of ESPN’s Get Up. “I firmly believe that. Because each night in college basketball, you’re having top-15 matchups, and the best players are actually playing in the games and competing each and every night.”
Williams proceeded to predict that the first 13 picks in the 2026 NBA Draft will all be current college freshmen, which is indicative of the current level of talent in the college game. It also ties to the recent criticism that the NBA has faced over egregious examples of teams tanking — a strategy deployed in an effort to acquire such prospects.
“When you see all these NBA teams tanking, it’s because the true amount of talent, the depth of the freshman class, is maybe the best it’s ever been in the history of college basketball,” Williams continued.
“The college basketball product is better than the NBA product right now. Each night in college basketball, you’re having top-15 matchups, and the best players are actually playing in the games and competing every night.”
—@RealJayWilliams on the league landscape amid tanking… pic.twitter.com/RdQIElay0w
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) February 12, 2026
To Williams’ point, this year’s college basketball season has been particularly loaded, with top-level freshmen including BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, Duke’s Cameron Boozer, Kansas’ Darryn Peterson and North Carolina’s Caleb Wilson. Perhaps it’s not a coincidence that two of those players — Boozer and Wilson — just faced off in what was the highest-rated rivalry game between UNC and Duke since Mike Krzyzewski’s final home game in 2022.
As for the NBA part of the equation, Williams is hardly the first person to call attention to the league’s issues, which were also the primary topic of conversation during Nick Wright’s recent appearance on The Bill Simmons Podcast. During the episode, Simmons even went so far as to question whether NBA commissioner Adam Silver is the right person to be leading the league, while pointing to problems like tanking, load management and the length of the regular season.
As for whether the NBA’s issues have reached the point that college basketball is now the more appealing product, that’s ultimately a matter of opinion. But this also seems like the first time in a long time that such an argument could be made, which perhaps speaks to both the current talent in the college ranks and problems facing the pros.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.