CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia’s Thijs De Ridder was one of 50 players named to the 2026-27 Mike’s Naismith Trophy Men’s College Player of the Year Watch List, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced Monday (Nov. 2).
De Ridder earned All-ACC first-team honors last season after leading Virginia in scoring (15.6 ppg) and rebounding (6.2 rpg). In 2026-27, De Ridder joined Malcolm Brogdon as the lone Cavaliers to garner preseason ACC Player of the Year honors. Brogdon was selected as co-Player of the Year prior to the 2015-16 season.
The No. 9 Cavaliers host Drexel in their season opener on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Tipoff at John Paul Jones Arena is set for 7:30 p.m. The game will be televised on the ACC Network and broadcast on the Virginia Sports Radio Network.
2026-27 Mike’s Naismith Trophy Men’s College Player of the Year Watch List
Amari Allen, Alabama
Flory Bidunga, Louisville
John Blackwell, Duke
Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, Duke
Elliot Cadeau, Michigan
Rueben Chinyelu, Florida
Alex Condon, Florida
Jason Crowe Jr., Missouri
Thijs De Ridder, Virginia
Silas Demary Jr., Connecticut
Mason Falslev, Utah State
Jeremy Fears Jr., Michigan State
PJ Haggerty, Texas A&M
Juke Harris, Tennessee
Thomas Haugh, Florida
Shelton Henderson, Miami
Aden Holloway, Alabama
Caleb Holt, Arizona
Josh Hubbard, Mississippi State
Braden Huff, Gonzaga
Thomislav Ivišić, Illinois
Nigel James Jr., Marquette
Trey Kaufman-Renn, Kansas
Ivan Kharchenkov, Arizona
Motiejus Krivas, Arizona
Acaden Lewis, Miami
Tamin Lipsey, Iowa State
Trey McKenney, Michigan
David Mirković, Illinois
John Mobley Jr., Ohio State
Milan Momcilovic, Kentucky
Braylon Mullins, Connecticut
Paulius Murauskas, Arizona State
Patrick Ngongba II, Duke
Tahaad Pettiford, Auburn
David Punch, Texas
Malik Reneau, Miami
Rodney Rice, USC
Pryce Sandfort, Nebraska
Jackson Shellstad, Louisville
Jordan Smith Jr., Arkansas
Andrej Stojaković, Illinois
Tyran Stokes, Kansas
Tyler Tanner, Vanderbilt
JT Toppin, Texas Tech
Joseph Tugler, Houston
Mataas Vokietaitis, Texas
Nolan Winter, Wisconsin
Robert Wright III, BYU
Tounde Yessoufou, St. John’s