Former Duke Blue Devils star Jay Williams recently appeared on ESPN’s Get Up, making it clear that he believes college basketball produces a better on-court product than the NBA.
"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."
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—@RealJayWilliams on the league landscape amid tanking… pic.twitter.com/RdQIElay0w
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) February 12, 2026
“The college basketball product is better than the NBA product right now,” Williams said. “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 also praised the current talent level in CBB, predicting that the first 13 picks of the next NBA draft will all be freshmen. He went as far as to say this current class could be the greatest freshman class of all time.
While the current state of college basketball has been exciting, the NBA is facing rising concerns of tanking across the entire league.
As fines increase for player mismanagement and injury report policy violations, Williams’ point seems to be getting stronger.
James Parker is a sports writer for Ball Exclusives, follow him on X @TheJames_Parker
