Syracuse Orange center Eddie Lampkin joins teammate Donnie Freeman as a preseason candidate for top player at their respective position. For Lampkin, it means being on the watch list for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, given annually to the best center in men's college basketball.

Lampkin is one of four nominees in the ACC, the other three being Duke's Khaman Maluach, Wake Forest's Efton Reid II, and Stanford's Maxime Raynaud. Strong performances throughout the season can knock some players off the watch list in favor of others, but there are good reasons for Lampkin's early inclusion.

During his sole year at Colorado, Lampkin averaged 10.6 points and 7.0 rebounds per game and played a crucial role in guiding the Buffs to the NCAA Second Round. He dropped 21 points, six rebounds and five assists in their 102-100 win over Florida in the First Round.

Now with the Orange, Lampkin looks to play a prominent role in their offense as well. He brings postseason experience to a lineup that includes returning shooters J.J. Starling and Chris Bell, impact freshmen Elijah Moore and the aforementioned Freeman, and three other 5th-year transfers.

Fan voting for the award has just begun and will involve three rounds: beginning with 20 now, then narrowed to 10 players in February and five in March. A Syracuse player has not been selected since the award was introduced in 2014-15.