Teams › Big East · Compare Butler with another team
Butler
Butler returns 36% of last season's minutes and rates #104 on offense and #66 on defense of 365 teams. 80% range: +0.1 to +15.0.
Why we have them here
Butler's preseason projection of +7.5 (No. 86 of 365) starts from the roster: its players' ratings, weighted by projected minutes, add up to a roll-up worth +4.6, about the +3.9 typical of teams ranked near it. Last season's rating (No. 85 at the end of 2025-26) adds +1.1, about its neighbours' +1.1; the program's level two and three seasons back and the roster's experience and shape add +1.4. It returns 36% of last season's minutes, about the same as teams ranked near it (41%). The projection leans most on Michael Ajayi (+4.7), Treyson Anderson (+2.3) and Drayton Jones (+2.1); the newcomer who matters most is Treyson Anderson, a transfer from North Dakota State, at +2.3. Its 80% range, +0.1 to +15.0, is about as wide as that of teams ranked near it.
Generated from the published projection's own terms, not written by hand. "Teams ranked near it" are the thirty nearest in the preseason order. Preseason projection frozen 2026-10-23; how the projection is built.
Roster
Returning 29% · Transfer 46% · Freshman 6% · Other newcomer 8%
| Rank | Player | Pos | Ht | D1 yrs | Group | From | MPG | Rating | Contrib. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 97 | Michael Ajayi | F | 6-7 | 3 | Returning | Butler | 30 | +6.3 | +4.7 |
| 370 | Treyson Anderson | F | 6-9 | 2 | Transfer | North Dakota State | 21 | +4.2 | +2.3 |
| 420 | Drayton Jones | C | 6-11 | 3 | Returning | Butler | 21 | +4.0 | +2.1 |
| 705 | Eduardo Klafke | G | 6-5 | 2 | Transfer | Ole Miss | 17 | +2.7 | +1.2 |
| 1004 | Jordan Ellerbee | G | 6-2 | 1 | Transfer | Florida Gulf Coast | 25 | +1.3 | +0.8 |
| 1388 | Samis Calderon | F | 6-8 | 1 | Transfer | Kansas | 9 | +0.6 | +0.1 |
| 1582 | Herly Brutus | F | 6-5 | 0 | Freshman | High school | 12 | +0.1 | +0.0 |
| 2501 | Ethan McComb | G | 6-1 | 3 | Returning | Butler | 7 | -1.2 | -0.2 |
| 2687 | Bryson Cardinal | F | 6-7 | 0 | Other newcomer | 7 | -1.3 | -0.2 | |
| 3188 | Kevin Ndzie | F | 7-1 | 0 | Other newcomer | 8 | -1.7 | -0.3 | |
| 4151 | Christian Moore | F | 6-6 | 3 | Transfer | The Citadel | 20 | -1.7 | -0.9 |
A player's rating is points per 100 possessions better than an average Division I player while he is on the floor. Contribution weights it by the share of a rotation slot he is projected to play, so a star on the bench and a role player who never sits both read right. Rank is among all 5,249 rated players. MPG is the projected share of a rotation slot times 40. "From" is last season's team. The bars are contribution, the player's rating times his projected share; their sum is the roll-up the projection starts from.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Proj. margin | Win prob. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon Nov 02 | vs |  Lafayette #342 | +17.8 | 93% | |
| Wed Nov 04 | vs |  Fairleigh Dickinson #334 | +16.9 | 92% | |
| Sun Nov 08 | at |  Boise State #87 | -6.5 | 30% | |
| Fri Nov 13 | vs |  Pittsburgh #68 | +4.2 | 63% | |
| Tue Nov 17 | vs |  Western Carolina #152 | +10.5 | 80% | |
| Thu Nov 19 | vs |  Northeastern #296 | +16.0 | 90% | |
| Sun Nov 22 | N |  Nebraska #12 | -9.2 | 23% | |
| Fri Nov 27 | vs |  Bellarmine #305 | +15.5 | 90% | |
| Wed Dec 02 | vs |  Presbyterian #243 | +13.1 | 86% | |
| Sun Dec 06 | at |  North Carolina #54 | -9.8 | 21% | |
| Sat Dec 12 | at |  Providence #49 | conf | -6.9 | 29% |
| Wed Dec 16 | vs |  South Carolina Upstate #268 | +14.7 | 88% | |
| Sat Dec 19 | N |  Georgia Tech #140 | +4.4 | 64% | |
| Wed Dec 23 | vs |  Marquette #47 | conf | -1.0 | 47% |
| Thu Dec 31 | vs |  UConn #4 | conf | -8.5 | 25% |
| Sun Jan 03 | vs |  St. John's #21 | conf | -5.2 | 34% |
| Sat Jan 09 | at |  DePaul #97 | conf | -1.5 | 45% |
| Tue Jan 12 | at |  Xavier #57 | conf | -5.9 | 32% |
| Fri Jan 15 | vs |  Villanova #24 | conf | -4.4 | 36% |
| Mon Jan 18 | vs |  Georgetown #84 | conf | +2.4 | 58% |
| Sat Jan 23 | at | UConn #4 | conf | -14.1 | 13% |
| Wed Jan 27 | vs | Providence #49 | conf | -0.9 | 47% |
| Sat Jan 30 | at | Marquette #47 | conf | -7.6 | 27% |
| Wed Feb 03 | at |  Seton Hall #106 | conf | -0.7 | 48% |
| Sat Feb 06 | vs | Xavier #57 | conf | +0.2 | 51% |
| Sat Feb 13 | at | Georgetown #84 | conf | -2.4 | 42% |
| Wed Feb 17 | vs |  Creighton #41 | conf | -1.6 | 45% |
| Sat Feb 20 | at | Villanova #24 | conf | -10.6 | 19% |
| Tue Feb 23 | vs | DePaul #97 | conf | +3.5 | 61% |
| Sat Feb 27 | at | St. John's #21 | conf | -11.2 | 18% |
| Tue Mar 02 | at | Creighton #41 | conf | -7.6 | 27% |
| Sat Mar 06 | vs | Seton Hall #106 | conf | +4.7 | 65% |
Projected margin is from Butler's side, with home court where the game is not neutral (N). Games are the schedule as posted; tournaments and late additions appear as they are listed. Predictions are as of 2026-10-26 and reflect the roster as the model has it on that date.