Whatchoo talkin' 'bout, Willis?

DJ White will return to Indiana for his senior year. The 6-9 power forward averaged 13.7 points and seven rebounds per game.

Indiana went 21-11 and made the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Hoosiers dropped a 54-49 decision to eventual Final Four visitors UCLA

Throw in returning contributors AJ Ratliff and Armon Barrett and the No. 6 recruiting class on Scout, and Indiana might be the best team in the Big 10 behind Ohio State (with or without Greg Oden). But Michigan State and Purdue are just ahead of Indiana in the recruiting rankings on Scout. Let's break down the top four teams in next year's Big 10.

The top shooting guard on Scout and No. 2 overall recruit on Rivals, Eric Gordon, a 6-4 stud, will probably get the nod at two. I'll bet on this starting lineup for Kelvin Sampson:

PG Bassett - Soph.
G Gordon - Frosh.
G Ratliff - Senior
F White - Senior
F 6-8 Lance Stemler - Senior

Then consider 6-9 center Eli Holman, a five-star recruit who defends and rebounds well with a lanky frame, will get considerable minutes off the bench. That's a core of six solid players.

Add solid 6-6 forward Mike White and three other highly touted recruits -- 6-4 Jordan Crawford (four stars), 6-5 Jamarcus Ellis (four stars) and 6-7 Brandon McGee (four stars) -- and the Hoosiers aren't just good, they're stacked.

Ohio State returns talent, too
The Buckeyes will reload and retain some talent, with or without Oden. Let's look at this as if Oden leaves, which I think we will eventually do.

Mike Conley, Jr. looked fantastic as the season progressed. He might be the best point guard in the nation with Ty Lawson. Look for him to take over this team.

PG Conley Jr. - soph.
SG Jamar Butler - senior. Averaged 8.3 points per game.
SF Daequan Cook - soph. Will shoot the lights out.
PF Othello Hunter - senior
C Kosta Koufos - frosh

Koufos is seven feet, a five-star recruit and loves to step out. If coach Thad Matta can get him to keep improving his post game, Koufos will be a stud.

Returning wing David Lighty will contribute and develop. Then 6-8 Matt Terwilliger played a lot this year and should play a bigger role in the post.

Four recruits join Koufos in another highly-regarded recruiting class: 6-6 forward Eric Wallace, 6-6 forward Evan Turner, 6-8 center Dallas Lauderdale and 6-4 shooter Jon Diebler. Ohio State might not have the Ron Lewis-Greg Oden combo, but it will have a slew of fantastic wing players.

Purdue stays hot
Sure, Carl Landry and David Teague graduated, but the next six players of the team's top eight scorers from last year are returning. And Purdue has the fourth-best Scout recruiting class.

E'Twuan Moore, a 6-3 shooting guard and five-star recruit, will play right away. That is, if he can defend. Matt Painter will want to keep playing his style of hoops -- physical and defensive.

The Boilermakers will be able to defend as well as they did this year, but now they'll be able to score. At least I think. This is, after all, the Big 10.

Spartans back on the map
After a few years of disappointing seasons, campaigns that fell well short of the preseason expectations of Tom Izzo's teams, Michigan State will be a tough out this year.

Michigan State -- get this -- doesn't graduate a single player from it's roster. The Spartans made the second round of the tournament and pushed UNC for 30 minutes.

Now MSU has Drew Neitzel leading his team for one more season, with everything from draft status to legacy to play for. And Izzo recruited the fifth-best 2007 class on Scout.

Shooting guard Durrell Summers, a 6-4 combination player who shoots the light out or slashes whenever he wants, will get minutes right away. In fact, he might be a better scorer than Neitzel.

Throw in two four-stars, and MSU has plenty of guys to carry this team deep.

More on other conferences later.