Naismith POTY Midseason List: Zach Edey and Kansas' $847k NIL-valued center emerge as probable winners

Zach Edey is looking to become the third men's basketball player to win the Naismith College Player of the Year award - awarded since 1969 - more than once.

The Purdue Boilermakers star, along with Kansas Jayhawks center Hunter Dickinson, who has an NIL valuation of $847,000, is among 30 players named to the Naismith Men's College Player of the Year Midseason List.

Check out the full Naismith Men's College Player of the Year Midseason List below:

• Texas Longhorns guard Max Abmas
• North Carolina Tar Heels forward Armando Bacot
• Auburn Tigers forward Johni Broome
• Northwestern Wildcats guard Boo Buie
• Providence Friars guard Devin Carter
• Houston Cougars guard L.J. Cryer
• North Carolina Tar Heels guard RJ Davis
• Florida Atlantic Owls guard Johnell Davis
• Kansas Jayhawks center Hunter Dickinson
• Purdue Boilermakers center Zach Edey
• Duke Blue Devils center Kyle Filipowski
• Clemson Tigers center PJ Hall
• Dayton Flyers forward DaRon Holmes II
• Memphis Tigers forward David Jones
• Tennessee Volunteers guard Dalton Knecht
• Marquette Golden Eagles guard Tyler Kolek
• San Diego State Aztecs forward Jaedon LeDee
• Iowa State Cyclones guard Tamin Lipsey
• Arizona Wildcats guard Caleb Love
• Kansas Jayhawks guard Kevin McCullar Jr.
• UConn Huskies guard Tristen Newton
• Kentucky Wildcats guard Antonio Reeves
• Creighton Bluejays guard Baylor Scheierman
• Alabama Crimson Tide guard Mark Sears
• Houston Cougars guard Jamal Shead
• Colorado Buffaloes guard KJ Simpson
• Purdue Boilermakers guard Braden Smith
• Colorado State Rams guard Isaiah Stevens
• Texas A&M Aggies guard Wade Taylor IV
• Michigan State Spartans guard Tyson Walker

The four finalists will be named next month before the winner is announced.

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Could Zach Edey become the third player to win at least two Naismith Men's College Player of the Year awards?

Former UCLA Bruins center Bill Walton and former Virginia Cavaliers center Ralph Sampson are the only players to win the Naismith Men's College Player of the Year more than once, with both doing so thrice.

Former Bruins center Lew Alcindor, more popularly known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, would have been on the list, but the award debuted during his final season of college basketball.

Zach Edey is looking to become the first player in over four decades to repeat as Player of the Year. The Purdue Boilermakers star appears to be the favorite to take home the prestigious award for the second straight season.

He entered play on Thursday averaging 23.3 points, 11.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.3 steals and 2.3 blocks per game, shooting 62.3% from the field and 71.0% from the free-throw line.