ESPN Men's Basketball

Returning Wooden Award All-Americans J.J. Redick and Dee Brown head the list of 50 players on the preseason 2005-06 Wooden Award list.

The list is based on last year's individual performance and team records and represents an early approximation of the players considered most likely to be in contention for the Wooden Award, given to the nation's top player. Those who do not make the preseason list still are eligible for inclusion on the midseason top-30 list and the final national ballot to determine this year's award winner.

"With so many players jumping to the next level and so many standout athletes from last year, the committee had a tough time nominating these candidates from such a wide selection of tremendous players," said Duke Llewellyn, Wooden Award chairman, in a release. "These preseason selections represent the elite of college basketball, and our entire team at the Wooden Award is excited to see the best players in the nation prove their case as college basketball's player of the year."

Redick's Duke teammate, Shelden Williams, and Boston College's Craig Smith join Redick and Brown as the only preseason candidates named to last year's official voting ballot.

Eleven conferences are represented on the list, with the expansive Big East leading the way with nine players. Several schools, including Boston College, Connecticut, Duke, Michigan State, Stanford, Texas, and Wake Forest, had two players make the list. In total, over 90 players received at least one vote.

The midseason list will be released in mid-January and the Wooden All-American team will be announced on March 28. The Wooden Award presentation will be April 8 in Los Angeles.

Wooden Award preseason nominees:
• Hassan Adams, Arizona
• Maurice Ager, Michigan State
• Josh Boone, Connecticut
• Brandon Bowman, Georgetown
• Ronnie Brewer, Arkansas
• Aaron Brooks, Oregon
• Dee Brown, Illinois
• Nik Caner-Medley, Maryland
• Rodney Carney, Memphis
• Mardy Collins, Temple
• JamesOn Curry, Oklahoma State
• Chuck Davis, Alabama
• Glen Davis, LSU
• Paul Davis, Michigan State
• Taquan Dean, Louisville
• Guillermo Diaz, Miami
• Jared Dudley, Boston College
• Jordan Farmar, UCLA
• Nick Fazekas, Nevada
• Daniel Gibson, Texas
• Rudy Gay, Connecticut
• Justin Gray, Wake Forest
• Taj Gray, Oklahoma
• Vincent Grier, Minnesota
• Dan Grunfeld, Stanford
• Chris Hernandez, Stanford
• Jeff Horner, Iowa
• Jarrius Jackson, Texas Tech
• Ben Jacobson, Northern Iowa
• Carl Krauser, Pittsburgh
• Pops Mensah-Bonsu, George Washington
• Paul Millsap, Louisiana Tech
• Gerry McNamara, Syracuse
• Adam Morrison, Gonzaga
• Steve Novak, Marquette
• Kevin Pittsnogle, West Virginia
• Leon Powe, California
• J.J. Redick, Duke
• Rajon Rondo, Kentucky
• Brandon Roy, Washington
• Craig Smith, Boston College
• Steven Smith, La Salle
• Curtis Stinson, Iowa State
• Curtis Sumpter, Villanova
• Alando Tucker, Wisconsin
• P.J. Tucker, Texas
• Darius Washington, Memphis
• Eric Williams, Wake Forest
• Shelden Williams, Duke
• Curtis Withers, Charlotte