The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame has announced the 20-player preseason watch lists for the 2027 Jerry West and Ann Meyers Drysdale awards, featuring prominent collegiate shooting guards such as BYU's Delaney Gibb and Ohio State's John Mobley Jr. The announcements include candidates for both the men's and women's NCAA Division I shooting guard of the year honors.
Men's Watch List Highlights
The 2027 Jerry West Award, which is celebrating its 13th year, recognizes the top shooting guard in NCAA Division I men's college basketball. The award is named in honor of the late Class of 1980 Hall of Famer and 1959 NCAA Final Four Most Valuable Player. Among the 20 men's candidates named is John Mobley Jr., a junior guard from Ohio State.
Mobley Jr., a native of Reynoldsburg, Ohio, enters the season following an All-Big Ten Honorable Mention performance in the 2025-26 season. He averaged 15.7 points and 2.8 assists per game last year, ranking among the leaders in the Big Ten for both three-point percentage and three-pointers made per game. His 97 three-pointers during that season were the fourth-most in Ohio State history. Over two seasons, Mobley Jr. has appeared in 63 games with 53 starts, averaging 14.3 points per game and making 174 career three-pointers.
Women's Award Candidates
In the women's category, the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award is entering its 10th year of honoring the top shooting guard in NCAA Division I women's college basketball. The award is named for the Class of 1993 Hall of Famer who was the first player, regardless of gender, to be selected for an All-America Team in four consecutive college seasons.
BYU's Delaney Gibb has been named to the preseason watch list for the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award, according to a release from BYU. Other women's candidates include Taryn Barbot of Pitt, Mikayla Blakes of Vanderbilt, Asia Boone of Kentucky, Dani Carnegie of Iowa, Talaysia Cooper of Ole Miss, MiLaysia Fulwiley of LSU, Avery Howell of Washington, Donovyn Hunter of UCLA, Tessa Johnson of South Carolina, Riley Nelson of Duke, Oluchi Okananwa of Maryland, Tajianna Roberts of Louisville, Taliah Scott of Baylor, Syla Swords of Michigan, Lulu Twidale of Cal, JuJu Watkins of USC, Riley Weiss of Columbia, and Ruby Whitehorn of Arizona State.
Selection and Voting Process
The selection process for these awards involves multiple stages of evaluation. Fan voting for the awards is scheduled to begin on Friday, October 30. The watch list of 20 players for both the Jerry West and Ann Meyers Drysdale awards will be narrowed to 10 players in February, and then to five players in March.
In late March, the five finalists will be presented to the Hall of Fame's selection committees, as well as the families of Jerry West and Ann Meyers Drysdale, where the final winners will be chosen. The selection committees consist of top collegiate basketball personnel, including head coaches, media members, sports information directors, and Hall of Famers.
Other Hall of Fame Awards
The Hall of Fame also oversees several other prestigious awards presented alongside the West and Meyers Drysdale honors. These include the Bob Cousy and Nancy Lieberman Awards for point guards, the Julius Erving and Cheryl Miller Awards for small forwards, the Karl Malone and Katrina McClain Awards for power forwards, and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Lisa Leslie Awards for centers.
The 2027 winners will be announced on a date to be determined, along with the four other members of the Men's and Women's Starting Five.
About the Hall of Fame
The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, is an independent nonprofit organization. The museum, which is home to nearly 500 inductees, hosts approximately 200,000 visitors annually and features the Jerry Colangelo "Court of Dreams.
As the season progresses, players may play their way onto or off the watch lists at any point during the 2026-27 season.
Upcoming Buckeyes Matchup
Ohio State's upcoming schedule includes a regular-season opener on Monday, Nov. 2, against No. 25 BYU in Salt Lake City.
