It’s summer optimism time. August is the slowest month of the calendar year for college basketball coaches, and they’ve spent the last two months getting sneak peeks at their teams during summer school.

Last month at Peach Jam, I asked coaches one question: Who has been good this summer? Mainly, my focus was on new players. Then, I spent the last couple of weeks calling more coaches and NBA scouts to find out which newcomers — both freshmen and transfers — have had great summers and could exceed expectations.

First up is the freshmen. I look at this list like this: If we were to poll the college basketball media and ask for projections on how the rest of someone’s college career plays out, who would I bet on to outperform those projections?

Obviously, it’s hard to get intel on every team, but four of these freshmen I got eyes on myself, and the two others kept coming up in conversations with NBA scouts.

(Note: Players appear in alphabetical order.)

Matt Able, guard, NC State

Able’s name kept coming up with NBA scouts this summer. He was on the summer circuit, attending camps hosted by Damian Lillard, Donovan Mitchell and Chris Paul, and his stock shot up.

“My phone’s been ringing off the hook,” NC State coach Will Wade said.

Able doesn’t precisely fit with the rest of this list, because he was a top-30 recruit, but it’s possible we could look back and wonder why he wasn’t ranked higher based on the feedback from the summer.

A 6-foot-5 guard, Able’s scoring and shooting helped generate the buzz and belief that he can be a star right away. And one reason why he’s prepared to shine so quickly, Wade believes, is his maturity.

“When we signed him, we knew he was a really talented player, really good player, but you don’t know how their disposition is on the court, how they’re going to be day to day,” Wade said. “And that’s one of the biggest separators, is sometimes you get these kids that are 18 years old going on 8 years old. He’s 18 going on 28.”

That, of course, required a follow-up. What exactly does it look like to be 18 going on 28?

To start, even with some newly earned name, image and likeness money, Wade said, Able is still driving a Nissan Altima. And recently, when Wade was with him in California, they were at the mall and there was a Louis Vuitton store.

“He said, ‘Man, I’d really like that. I’m gonna wait. I can’t do it. I’m going to wait.’ He’s not into the status stuff that a lot of those kids are into,” Wade said. “I think that just shows a very mature outlook.”

Trevin Jirak, center and Tate Sage, guard, Iowa

In late July, I took a trip to Iowa and instantly fell in love with Jirak’s game. The one thing first-year Hawkeyes coach Ben McCollum did not have last year at Drake was a pick-and-pop big man, something his best offenses have typically featured. Jirak, at 6-11, is that and so much more. He’s going to excel in the two-man tangos with Iowa’s guards that are so common in McCollum’s offense, with endless ball screens and dribble handoffs. Jirak makes quick decisions, has excellent hands and understands spacing.

“When he starts to understand the offense, he is so smart,” McCollum said.

What’s exciting for McCollum is that he’s never coached a big man like this at previous stops, Drake and Division II Northwest Missouri State. “We don’t get 6-11 guys at that level,” he said.

McCollum’s eye for under-the-radar players helped him build a four-time Division II national champion and then win the Missouri Valley in his lone season at Drake. Jirak fits the mold. He ranked 192nd in the class according to 247Sports, and he initially committed to Northern Iowa. Jirak is a lifelong Iowa fan, so when McCollum, who recruited him at Drake, got the job, Jirak made the correct assumption that he’d want him at Iowa.

Sage, a 6-7 guard, could be the type of player McCollum sneaks away with and leaves everyone else wondering why he didn’t end up at a higher level. He initially committed to Drake last fall.

Sage was unranked by 247Sports after averaging 13.1 points per game his senior year at Weatherford High in Oklahoma, where he won the state title after back-to-back runner-up finishes. His high school team went 110-12 in his four years.

“He doesn’t put up like a ton of numbers, but he wins a lot,” McCollum said. “The thing with his game is it translates levels, meaning he’s really athletic and he’s just such a good shooter that he’s great at playing off people. He’s a good passer and all that stuff, and then he won in high school.

“So naturally, your numbers aren’t going to be 25 points a game, because that’s not his game. But it also is why he can translate quicker, because he doesn’t change roles as much.”

It could take some time for Jirak and Sage to see the payoff. McCollum typically plays a tight rotation, and it’s hard for freshmen to crack Big Ten rotations. Unlike the others on this list, these two may not be instant contributors. However, within a few seasons, they’ve got the potential to play important roles for a winning team.

Acaden Lewis could be a key player immediately for Villanova in Kevin Willard’s first season. (Stu Boyd II / The Commercial Appeal / Imagn Images)

Acaden Lewis, guard, Villanova

Lewis is not a completely under-the-radar prospect, as he was ranked 48th by 247Sports and was once a Kentucky commit. However, one scout told me he was better than he remembered.

New Villanova coach Kevin Willard had a similar experience.

“Sometimes you don’t see this in high school, he is so competitive,” Willard said. “He works. He has an unbelievable work ethic. But he’s a competitor, man. He doesn’t like to lose in anything, and he’s gonna go at ya.

“Every second he’s on the floor, he’s coming at ya, and you know in high school, he had such great ball skill and he plays with a lot of pizzazz and flash that I think sometimes I didn’t even realize just how much of a competitor he really was.”

When Willard was at Maryland, he recruited Lewis, who is from Washington, D.C. Willard got the impression Lewis didn’t want to stay close to home, so he backed off. Still, when Lewis decommitted from Kentucky, Willard had a pitch ready: I’m coming back to a blue blood program that’s been down for a little bit. You’re going to be my guy. Let’s rebuild this thing back up.

“He stepped on campus with that attitude,” Willard said.

One example: Willard’s teams always have a summer weight room competition, and Lewis, a 6-2 guard, finished fifth.

“No freshman comes in fifth,” Willard said. “Because it’s all about competing. It’s not about lifting. It’s about how much weight. It’s how much reps you’re doing, how much output you’re doing, and no freshman ever is up there. And he was fifth, which was like unheard of.”

With freshmen, most coaches are going to try to temper expectations at least a little bit, but Willard isn’t holding back.

“I think he can get close to being a one-and-done (player),” Willard said. “I definitely think he might need two years. He worked hard on his shot this summer, which is great. I think he really improved his range this summer. He has the ball skills. He has the passing ability. He’s longer than people think. He defends at a very high level, again, which is something I didn’t really see it at the high school level, just because he didn’t have to.

“He’s on the cusp of being one of those guys that could be a one-and-done guy. If he shoots it at like a 36-37 percent clip from 3, he’s gonna have a good shot.”

Kohl Rosario, guard, Kansas

This spring, Bill Self felt like he needed one more piece. He was looking for a guy who could average 14-15 points per game, and the targets at that point were Texas Tech transfer Darrion Williams, the No. 3 transfer in our rankings, and Italian guard Dame Sarr, one of the top prospects overseas. KU missed on both, with Williams going to NC State and Sarr to Duke.

That led KU to Rosario, a 6-foot-5 shooting guard who was a sub-100 recruit in the 2026 entering the spring. Rosario became an option because of his play on Nike’s EYBL circuit, where he averaged 14.2 points and was the most efficient scorer on the circuit over the first two EYBL sessions. However, a 14-15 point scorer? From the player who ended up 72nd in the 2025 class?

Obviously, the priorities changed, and Kansas just needed another shooter who could realistically play in the rotation. And that’s likely what Self was hoping for when KU landed Rosario, but those expectations might be changing again — for the better — after Rosario’s summer on campus.

“We knew that when we got him that he was a good shooter,” Self said. “We knew he was a good athlete. I probably did not know that he is quite as bouncy as he is. I probably didn’t know the level of competitiveness that he has. I mean, he is a competitive young guy. Is he a surprise? No. But if anything, he is more than what I probably thought he would be this early.”

Rosario’s game is simple. He scores consistently in transition because he runs the floor hard. In the half court, he’s a floor spacer as a shooter who is always ready to shoot. He is also a sneaky offensive rebounder, whose effort and hops generate extra possessions.

Here’s why Rosario is a Self player: He sticks to what he’s good at. KU has encountered issues in fitting square pegs into round holes in the portal. Rosario fits neatly into the role he’ll be given. Will he average 14-15 points? That might be a reach, but he could win a starting spot and average double figures.

“He’s definitely going to play,” Self said when asked if he’ll end up a starter, “and probably play a lot.”

Keaton Wagler, guard, Illinois

The storyline dominating Illinois basketball is the Balkan Five. Brad Underwood signed three players from that region to go with returner Tomislav Ivisic (Croatia) and added transfer Andrej Stojakovic, whose father, Peja, is one of the all-time greats from Serbia.

However, Underwood also might have landed one of the best under-the-radar recruits in the 2025 class in Keaton Wagler.

Wagler was only being recruited by mid-majors during the summer of 2024 before several high-majors entered the picture late after the grassroots season. Illinois beat out schools like Minnesota and Colorado State for Wagler, who grew up in the Kansas City metro area but was overlooked by the local schools.

A reason Wagler was not more highly recruited was that he did not participate in any of the shoe circuits. Instead, he stayed loyal to former Oklahoma State guard Victor Williams’ team (VWBA). In full disclosure, I’ve been interested in where Wagler ends up because he played for my high school, Shawnee Mission Northwest (Kan.). My oldest son was also in his graduating class, and I’ve been playing pickup ball with Wagler and his dad for a few years.

Wagler started high school as a small freshman, grew to 6-6 and became the best player in the state. He won back-to-back state titles — the first in school history — playing alongside 7-footer Ethan Taylor, who is ranked 23rd in the 2026 class. The Illinois staff has been excited to share how good he’s been this summer.

“Without trying to put a lot of pressure on him, (Wagler) was maybe better than what we expected,” Underwood said last week. “He’s as good a player as we’ve had as a freshman in his decision-making. There are a lot of guys who are playmakers, and he’s a good playmaker. Kasparas (Jakučionis) was an elite playmaker, but I think the ability in a ball screen to get below the free-throw line and make decisions is another art. He is very, very, very gifted in that area.

“He’s (Wagler) got a great finishing package for a freshman. Great size, obviously. But very impressed with his ability to make decisions below the free-throw line and that will bode well for him.”

Wagler fits the Illini system well because of his positional size — he’s 6-6 — and his ability to play out of the pick-and-roll. He never gets rushed and glides to his spots. He has a smooth off-the-dribble jumper and can play multiple positions depending on who he is playing with. The Illini return veteran guard Kylan Boswell and added Mihailo Petrovic, a 22-year-old point guard who was an MVP candidate in the Adriatic League. Wagler is a good enough shooter to be valuable off the ball.

His body was the biggest thing he needed to work on, and Underwood happily reported that he’d put on some weight. Wagler said he’s added 11-12 pounds.

Because of his talent, Underwood takes exception to labeling Wagler “a steal” or “a hidden gem.”

“I mean, he played with the second-best center in the country, according to all the geniuses, and all he did was win state championships,” Underwood said. “But it’s great for us. You can call him sneaking through, but I think it’s a slap in the face to the kid.

“He’s got a very, very high basketball IQ, and I always say this: people see what they want to see in players. I think he’s elite. I’m very much into recruiting guys who can process and play the game mentally.”

(Top photo of Kohl Rosario: Courtesy of Kansas athletics)