According to longtime writer and NCAA college basketball correspondent Andy Katz, Penn State men’s basketball guard Jalen Pickett is the ninth-best player in the Big Ten.

“Micah Shrewsberry has a team that’s going to challenge for an NCAA Tournament berth,” Katz said. “And it will happen if Jalen Pickett has a banner season in the Big Ten… I think he will.”

Katz has been counting down his list of Big Ten basketball’s top 20 players over the past few days. He announced pick No. 9 this past Saturday, nine days before the start of the season, placing the veteran guard in that slot.

Pickett played in every game during his junior campaign, which also happened to be his first season with the Nittany Lions after transferring from Siena. Pickett averaged a team-high 13.3 points per game, shooting 42% from the field along the way. To compliment his scoring, Pickett also averaged 4.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game.

This year, Pickett will be joined by fellow senior starter Seth Lundy as the Nittany Lions hope to take advantage of the highest-ranked recruiting class in program history, which is led by four-star center Kebba Njie.

Pickett and the Nittany Lions kick off their season on Monday, November 7, as they take on Winthrop at 7 p.m. in the Bryce Jordan Center.