| 01 March 2011
Of all the articles I’ve written since starting this site, my “College Basketball Most Valuable Player,” column I wrote last February might be my favorite.
If you missed it last year (and I’m assuming most of you did), the premise started back in college, when my buddy John and I spent ample amounts of time ignoring our girlfriends, procrastinating from work, and watching and talking sports. Yes we were losers, but it sure beat the alternative of watching The Notebook for the 312th time with our significant others (Believe me, in comparison, a Warriors-Kings game on a Friday night wasn't nearly as bad).
Anyway, one day we were killing time in our poli-sci class, when John said to me, “Why don’t you put together ‘a list of your Top 50 college basketball players, and I’ll do the same. At the end of class we’ll compare. Truthfully, I don’t remember much from that first list, other than John looking mine over and saying to me, “Who the hell is Jordan Farmar?” Seven years later, John (a Nets fan) is now rooting for Farmar. Can you feel the irony?
So with that, the premise for this list was born. Here are a few rules for determining the rankings:
1. Competition Matters: My buddy Steve mentioned this last year and I liked it so much, I decided to keep it in, "AT I watched Northern Iowa last week, and it was a joke. It was a bunch of pale of 6'3 jump shooters running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Any team in the Big East would beat them by 50. And they're ranked No. 22 in the country! What a joke."
Granted, that Northern Iowa team ended up getting to the Sweet 16 and beating No. 1 ranked Kansas. But still, his point was clear: It's harder to get 21 points and 10 rebounds a night in the Big East than it is in the MEAC or America East. Sorry it's just true...
2. NBA Draft Positioning Does Not Matter: This isn't a list of who the best pure basketball talents are, or what a guy might be like in 10 years. It's based on what they're doing right now.
For example, Perry Jones might be the first overall pick in the upcoming NBA Draft (for reasons that are still somewhat unbeknownst to me). Yet he’s playing for a team that’s 18-10 and might miss the NCAA Tournament all together. Would Baylor really be that much worse without him?
3. If Your Team Stinks, Your Value Suffers: It's great that you're getting your 20 and 10 every night. Seriously I'm happy for you. But if your team is 10-20, how important is what you're doing?
4. How Replaceable Are Your Stats: The example I used last year was Pitt, and I’ll do it again this year.
Look, I love Ashton Gibbs (you know, despite his Twitter deficiencies this past weekend). He’s smart and skilled, a team player, and the leading scorer for a Pitt club that’s been in the Top 10 all year. But he also missed three games in the middle of the season, and his team went 3-0 without him, with two road wins against Top 25 teams immediately after he got hurt. Would the same have happened if Cory Joseph went down for Texas or William Buford for Ohio State? I don’t think so.
Obviously it’s not Gibbs’ fault that Jamie Dixon has set up a system where the next guy is ready to go when someone goes down. But it does have to be factored into these rankings.
5. While Stats Do Matter, This Is A List of Value. In Other Words, How Replaceable Is What You Do?: Again, let me give you another example.
Say you took a hardcore NBA fan that's never seen a Louisville game the entire season. If you showed them the stat sheet, Preston Knowles and Peyton Siva aren't really all that different. Knowles gets a few more points, and Siva more assists and steals. How could someone who's never seen Louisville play definitively say that one is better than the other?
Now, take that same logic, and ask a Louisville fan. They’ll tell you about all the little things that Siva does, splitting the defense, jumping passing lanes, creating shots for teammates. While they wouldn’t want to part with Knowles, they’d give up their first born to keep Siva. What Knowles does is somewhat replaceable. There might not be a guy better at his specific role than Siva right now.
With that, here is the list. It starts at No. 40 and works its way down, meaning No. 39 is more valuable to his team than No. 40 is.
And if you think I missed any players, let me know. This is supposed to be fun. I just wish I could include everybody.
Today, we'll reveal Part I of this list, players 40-21. No's 20-1 will be revealed Wednesday.
Hope you enjoy this list, as much as I enjoyed making it.
40) Dogus Balbay, Texas:
39) Gary Johnson, Texas:
Last year when I did this list, I put too much stock into stats, and not enough into actual, tangible value. Believe me, I’m still hearing it from Kentucky fans who were upset that I left Patrick Patterson out.
Well this year, I’m not making the same mistake. Which is why I present you Balbay and Johnson.
In Balbay, you’ve got my favorite Turkish import since Mehmet Okur’s wife, not to mention one of the most underrated point guards in the country, a deceptively skilled athlete, and- for my money- the best perimeter defender in college basketball. Truthfully, I didn’t fully appreciate everything Balbay does on the defensive end until watching Texas’ win over Iowa State last week, when he blocked back-to-back shots on driving layups. How many guys in the country can do that? Honestly, I just can’t say enough good things about Balbay. He’s my 2011 College Basketball man-crush.
As for Johnson, well he’s quietly refined his offensive game nicely, and helps take pressure off Tristan Thompson down low and on the boards. Johnson might not put up the numbers Thompson does, but there’s no way Thompson is getting those same numbers without Johnson. If that makes sense.
Most importantly, it’s about leadership with these guys. They’re two seniors who are sacrificing minutes and stats for wins, which is definitely something you couldn’t say about previous Texas teams. And while Jordan Hamilton and Thompson have the talent to put Texas over the top, they wouldn’t be in the Top 10 right now without their seniors. That is the definition of value.
(Aaron's Note: If you're wondering yes, I saw Monday night's game, and am fully aware how lousy the two of these guys (especially Balbay) were. But remember, this is a season long list, and for the first 80 percent of the season, Texas was maybe the scariest team in the country. So I stand by this ranking. Now let's get back to the list...)
38) Chandler Parsons, Florida:
It’s the same thing with parsons at Florida. He’s the definition of “How replaceable is what you do?” Because while the Gators could get Erving Walker and Kenny Boyton’s scoring from somewhere else, I’m not sure they could get Parsons leadership and defensive toughness from anywhere else.
Also, the fact that Parsons looks like Justin Bieber’s cool older brother, who may be a professional surfer, and may just have an ounce of pot in his pocket, doesn’t hurt either.
37) Mickey McConnell, St. Mary’s:
Speaking of cool, I had to throw Mickey McConnell on this list. The guy seems like a certainty to win the West Coast Conference Player of the Year award, and is averaging 17 points and six assists on a St. Mary’s team that seems likely to make another nice run in the NCAA Tournament.
Plus, hanging out with all the Australian guys on that team, you know he’s got no problem meeting the ladies. As a matter of fact, I’m not letting my girlfriend watch any St. Mary’s games the rest of the year. You know, just in case.
36) Keith Benson, Oakland:
I first noticed Benson during last year’s NCAA Tournament against Pitt, when he was far and away the best player on the court. Come to think of it, I’m still convinced that if one of Oakland’s guards didn’t get hurt (I don’t remember which) early in the game, the Golden Grizzlies would’ve won.
Well anyway, this year Benson hasn’t missed a beat, averaging 17 points, 10 boards and just under four blocks a game. And if you don’t think he’s doing it against quality competition, well, I submit to you the 26 and 10 he put up against Tennessee earlier this year (Although, knowing what we know now about Tennessee, I guess it wasn’t quite as impressive).
Look, I know you probably don’t know much about Benson, but just take my word: There isn’t a team in the country that he wouldn’t be a major contributor on.
35) Trevor Mbakwe, Minnesota:
Mbakwe is the classic, “How much should the quality of your teammates factor into how high you end up on this list?” Obviously Minnesota is struggling right now, I get that. At the same time, should Mbakwe be punished because his point guard got hurt and the Golden Gophers have no one to run their offense?
I don’t know. But what I do know is that the more I watch Mbakwe, the more amazed I am. He isn’t just an elite athlete; he’s in the 99th percentile among all college basketball players. Seriously, the dude is like a cyborg. Go ahead and watch him some time. He does 3-4 things a game that no one else inall of college basketball can do. Athleticism oozes from him, like sweat dripping from Gary Williams pores.
And before you blame him for Minnesota’s struggles, just look at Mbakwe’s recent stat lines. Yes Minnesota is 0-3 in their last three games, but Mbakwe has gone for 16 and 12, 13 and 10 and 18 and 7. Now imagine is this guy had a real point guard to get him the ball in position to score what he might be doing?
34) Jackson Emery, BYU:
The best thing that came out of BYU’s spanking of San Diego State on Saturday was that it finally made people realize what I’ve been saying for a month: This team is way more than just Jimmer Fredette.
And Emery may be the best wing man in college basketball (Which is kind of an ironic statement, you know, since Emery is married). He’s making over two 3-pointers a game, shooting over 81 percent from the line and if he didn’t look like a long lost Jonas Brother, more people would realize what an underrated athlete he is. Not to mention Emery has the unenviable task of having to make up for Jimmer’s lack of “prowess” on the defensive end. To put it nicely.
Emery is simply the Scottie Pippen of college basketball this year. BYU obviously wouldn’t be 27-2 without Fredette. But they wouldn’t be 27-2 without Emery either.
33) Marshon Brooks, Providence College:
And now, the award for “Volume Scorer On A Crappy Big East Team, Whose Value Is Impossible To Justify,” goes to… Marshon Brooks! Marshon, please accept this award on behalf of last year’s winner, Jeremy Hazell.
Alright, so obviously you could make the case that Brooks shouldn’t be here. I get it. Still, the dude is second in the country in scoring, putting up 25 points per game, doing it in college basketball’s toughest conference and with teammates that at best would be described as “mediocre,” and at worst, “an abomination.” And if recent close losses to Georgetown (by two points) and Notre Dame (by one) proved anything, it’s that any time Brooks is on the floor, no lead is safe. For those scoring at home, Brooks combined for 95 points in those two games. Wow!
Also, isn’t this list about value? Yes Providence is 14-15 overall and 3-13 in the Big East, but I’ve got to ask, what would their record be without him? Would they have won a single Big East game? More than five or six games overall all season? Truthfully, I don’t know.
32) Kendall Marshall, North Carolina:
Now this is where the list gets really interesting, because I’ve got to ask, how high should Marshall be? It’s pretty tough to gauge, considering that he really had a minimal role for the first three months of the season (He didn’t play more than 26 minutes in any game before February 1) and didn’t start any of North Carolina’s first 17 games.
Still, how far can we drop him? Especially considering that in no particular order he has: Completely revitalized the Tar Heels season; Transformed them into the team that has everyone saying “Good God are they scary, I want nothing to do with them come tournament time”; Has gone 10-1 as a starter; And in the process, forced Larry Drew’s transfer, which in turn led us to realize that Larry Drew’s mom really might be the craziest woman in America? How can you put a price on that?
I don’t know. But what I’ll say is this: While North Carolina was a decent team without him in the starting lineup, they weren’t one that ultimately scared you. But now? I firmly believe that with the right matchups and a lucky break or two, the Tar Heels could find themselves in the Final Four.
31) Brandon Knight, Kentucky:
Brandon Knight is another curious case.
Look, obviously Kentucky isn’t having the season anyone expected them to. But don't blame Knight. He’s averaging 17.7 points and four assists a game, and has become Kentucky’s 
most reliable outside shooter. Plus, he seems like the only guy on Kentucky’s roster capable of, or interested in being a leader. Is it his fault that he’s playing with a bunch of nervous freshmen and overmatched upper classmen, who tend to wet themselves every time they’re thrown into a tight situation?
Also, the thing that I think hurts the perception of Knight the most, is something that’s completely unfair to him: All those other guards John Calipari has coached.
The truth is, Knight isn’t Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans or John Wall, in stature or style of play. Those were guys who were best with the ball in their hands, and either creating for others, or getting to the rim off the dribble. Knight isn’t that guy. He’s much better playing off the ball, coming off screens and attacking the rim off the catch. I’ve been saying that for weeks, and the more I think about it, the more I think he’d be perfect playing the role that Eric Bledsoe did for this team last year. Is it Knight’s fault that none of his teammate’s skill-sets match what he does best? Not as far as I’m concerned.
Also, let’s get back to the leadership thing for a second. Because as good as those other Calipari guards were, none had as much weight on their shoulders as Knight does now. Rose and Evans were the final piece on a pair of veteran teams, and even Wall had Patrick Patterson around to help him out. Knight doesn’t have anything close to that kind of support system.
So what’s my whole point with Knight? I think that given a different circumstance (or even just one more veteran guy on this team), we’d see him in a completely different light than we do now. Maybe we wouldn’t quite put him on the level of Rose, Evans or Wall, but who is? Knight deserves to be on this list.
(If you're enjoying this list, be sure to follow Aaron on Twitter for college basketball coverage all March long)
30. Kenneth Faried, Morehead State:
Whenever anyone is averaging over 14 rebounds per game, regardless of what school they play at, they’re going to make this list. Even if their name makes them sound like a forgotten member of the Wu-Tang Clan.
While we’re here, I’ve got one more thing to say on Faried that I think is worth noting: He is obviously a great rebounder. I don’t think I’m breaking any new ground there. But I do think rebounding is a skill we don’t give people enough credit for having. Rebounding is about reading angles and positioning your body, as much as it is raw athleticism or skill. You can be a naturally good scorer or passer, but rebounding is much more an art form than anything else in basketball.
And because of that, there is always one guy every year that’s a rebounding menace in college, who always ends up getting overlooked come NBA draft time. It’s usually because he’s an inch too short or from a school nobody has ever heard of. And that guy always ends up killing it once he gets his shot in the NBA. It happened with Paul Millsap. It happened with Chuck Hayes. It happened with DeJuan Blair. And it’s going to happen with Faried too.
All I’m saying is go ahead and keep an eye on this guy going forward. He might not be a first round draft pick, but will make an NBA team, and carve out a niche once he’s there. And when it happens, just remember I told you so. Ok?
29) Corey Fisher, Villanova:
What’s that? Yes, I know that Villanova is falling apart faster than Charlie Sheen’s personal life. I’m fully aware. But this is a season long list, and Fisher is still the leader of a team that’s been in the Top 25 all year.
Granted he might be leading that team right into the ground. But still.
28) Marcus Denmon, Missouri:
Honestly, it’s hard for me to accurately assess anyone on Missouri, if only because their stats are so skewed by the style of play. The analogy I’d make, is that it’d be like claiming one of your buddies gets “way more,” girls than another, and failing to mention that he lives in a penthouse in Manhattan, while the other just got fired from his job, and had to move back into his parent’s basement. Sure your first friend gets more girls. But is he getting them because he’s really better than the ladies? Or just that his circumstance is more ideal for hooking up? Well that’s the Missouri paradox.
Still, I don’t want to punish Denmon too much, because he really is a great scorer who would put up points for any team in the country. Whereas last year Demon was most a jump shooter, this year he’s taking guys off the dribble and finishing at the basket.
Of every Missouri guy, I do believe that he is the one who would most thrive in any other system in college basketball.
27) Austin Freeman, Georgetown:
I had Freeman way higher on this list until I realized that really, all the guy does is score. Yes those 17 points a game are nice, but Austin, my man, how are you only getting 2.5 assists and 3.7 rebounds a game? You’re better than that!
The one caveat I will add though, is that this is a column about value, and Georgetown is a completely different team when Freeman is getting his points. In the Hoyas 21 wins, Freeman is averaging a solid 19.1 points per game. In their losses, 13.8.
I feel like that might be important.
25. William Buford, Ohio State:
Here's my defense of putting Pullen so high: If you’ve watched Ohio State lately, you know that Jared Sullinger hasn’t played quite as well as he did earlier in the year. Why, I’m not sure. Maybe he’s hitting the freshman wall. Maybe he’s a bit out of shape. Maybe he’s just now realizing how truly awful the Miley Cyrus video was. But whatever it is, he just isn’t the same player he was earlier in the year. It’s subtle, and you might not have noticed it if you weren’t looking closely. It is there though.
Either way, with Sullinger slowing down just a little, to Buford’s credit, he’s picked up his game when his team has needed him to. He’s more aggressive taking the ball at the hoop, and when Buford is taking jump shots, his numbers are up across the board from last year. Currently, Buford is shooting 46 percent from the field, 44 percent from three and 85 percent from the line. Not too shabby.
25) Jacob Pullen, Kansas State:
I know what you’re thinking: This ranking is way too high. Especially for a guy who mentioned the words “boxed,” and “wine,” together in the same sentence once upon a time.
And up until a few weeks ago, I might’ve agreed with you. But what I can’t deny, is that with his team’s back against the wall the last few weeks, Pullen has played the best basketball of his career. After Kansas State’s February 12 loss to Colorado dropped them to 16-9 overall and 4-6 in the conference, Pullen put up 38, 27, 27 and 24 points in the next four games, leading the Wildcats to four straight wins. Included in those victories were wins over Kansas and Missouri. And obviously there was last night, when he put up 20 points in an upset at Texas.
For everything that Pullen lacked early in the season (from a leadership and basketball standpoint), he’s more than made up for it of late.
24) Isaiah Thomas, Washington:
Isaiah is one of the toughest guys on this list to rank. His numbers are excellent, and at just under 17 points and six assists per game he will be first team All-Pac 10. Also, he absolutely needs to be commended for completely altering his game when Abdul Gaddy went down with an injury earlier this year.
The problem is, that while Thomas needs credit for becoming a selfless pass first point guard, his team hasn’t been better with him in that role. They’re just 9-6 since Gaddy went out, after starting the year 10-2 with him.
Is that Thomas’ fault? Of course not. But you can’t deny that his team was better with him playing off the ball than they are now.
23) E’Twaun Moore, Purdue:
The last time I checked in on Moore (in my mid-February Power Rankings) he was struggling, and I was convinced that unless he picked up his play, the Boilermakers were in trouble. Like, “they might not get out of the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament,” kind of trouble.
Well since then, Moore is averaging 22 points per game, and the Boilermakers are 5-0 with wins against Wisconsin and Ohio State at home, and Michigan State on the road.
I guess it’s safe to say that he didn’t care much for what I had to say, huh?
22) Tyler Zeller, North Carolina:
I went back and forth on Zeller vs. John Henson and their value, and in the end settled on this: Zeller’s scoring is more important to North Carolina’s success than Henson’s rebounding and defense.
Now understand, that’s not to take anything away from Henson. But quietly, Zeller has turned himself into one of the best low post scorers in college basketball. He has a nice little jumper from 15 feet, has a basically un-blockable jump hook and can finish in the lane. And remember, he’s still putting up close to 15 points per game despite not playing with a real point guard for the first half of the season. Imagine what he might’ve been capable of if Marshall had been starting since Day 1.
21) Rick Jackson, Syracuse:
Speaking of guys who carry the offensive load in the post, I present to you Rick Jackson.
Forget the fact that Jackson is averaging 13 points, 10.8 boards, 2.4 blocks a game, while shooting darn close to 60 percent from the field. What’s incredible is that he’s basically doing it all as the only real low post threat the Orange have. Freshman Baye Moussa Keita isn’t quite there yet, and Fab Melo can’t be on the court for more than six seconds without committing a foul, turning the ball over, dropping an entry pass, or doing something else that sets the sport of basketball back 10 years.
Jackson has basically been on an island all season, and has more than held his own. There isn’t a player in the country that’s more improved from last year than he is.
Make sure to check back Wednesday for Part II of the Most Valuable Players!
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