10 sophomore breakouts heading into 2026-27 that may have already started

Predicting potential breakout players is an exceedingly fun exercise. Everyone wants to see players find the best version of themselves during their college careers. Prognosticators also love to be right. But pinpointing the right players can be hard; either they have already done too much to be truly considered “breakouts,” or it’s just a shot in the dark based on a larger expected role than the season prior. 

Looking at rising sophomores, in particular, could late-season surges in their freshmen years indicate big years to come...or are they just fool’s gold? 

Regardless of your view, players who finished their freshman seasons strong should at least be on the radar for continuing those leaps in their sophomore years. And as the 2026-27 season draws nearer and those players enter their second collegiate seasons, let’s take a look at how 10 may have already soft-launched a sophomore-year breakout last year:

Amare Bynum, Ohio State

A top-50 prospect heading into last season, Amare Bynum logged solid minutes through the opening month before a breakout against West Virginia (17 points in 38 minutes in a double-OT win) catapulted him into the starting lineup. He started the remaining 24 games for the Buckeyes, and while his averages didn’t change much (8.4 PPG off the bench, 10.3 PPG as a starter), his impact flipped. Ohio State went from 8.7 AdjP/100 worse with him on the floor as a reserve before WVU to 14.0 AdjP/100 better after he joined the starting lineup.