ESPN has put together a list of the top 25 freshman seasons in the last 25 years of men’s college basketball.
The the surprise of no one, Kentucky has several players on the list, including No. 1 Anthony Davis.
Davis won the Wooden Award, MVP of the NCAA Tournament and NABC defensive player of the year awards while leading the Wildcats to the national title.
John Wall, Karl-Anthony Towns, DeMarcus Cousins and Malik Monk are also on the list.
Here are some excerpts of UK players on the list:
1. Anthony Davis, F (Kentucky, 2011-12)
Davis ended his lone season in college basketball with Kentucky’s first national championship in 12 years and a collection of accolades no freshman in America has matched over the past 25 seasons. That list includes the Wooden Award, Most Outstanding Player in the NCAA tournament and the NABC defensive player of the year award. Davis (14.2 PPG, 10.4 RPG, 4.7 BPG in 2011-12) also led the nation in blocks.
11. John Wall, G (Kentucky, 2009-10)
The “John Wall dance” was the former Kentucky star’s most viral contribution to college basketball in 2009-10 — also John Calipari’s first in Lexington. Wall was also memorable because few collegiate freshmen have ever played with his explosiveness and aggression. In his lone season in Lexington, Wall averaged 16.6 PPG, 6.5 APG and 1.8 SPG, led his team to the Elite Eight after earning a spot as a Wooden Award finalist, winning SEC player of the year and being named to the AP All-America first team. He also finished third in the country in assists per game.
17. Karl-Anthony Towns, C (Kentucky, 2014-15)
The 2014-15 Kentucky team is one of the greatest that failed to win a national title. And Towns was a key piece for the Wildcats, who went on a 38-game winning streak before losing to Wisconsin in the Final Four. While the raw numbers don’t seem significant, it’s important to note Towns (10.2 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 2.3 BPG) played just 21 minutes per game on a squad with nine future NBA players before he became a second team AP All-American and the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NBA draft.
20. DeMarcus Cousins, C (Kentucky, 2009-10)
Cousins was the first superstar big man at Kentucky under John Calipari. With John Wall anchoring the action on the perimeter, Cousins was a dominant force, averaging 15.1 PPG, 9.8 RPG and 1.8 BPG. He finished second in offensive rebounding percentage that year, per KenPom, and helped Kentucky end its season with a 35-3 record and an Elite Eight appearance. He earned a first team AP All-America spot, and remains one of most dominant post players on this list.
23. Malik Monk, G (Kentucky, 2016-17)
Kentucky’s 2016-17 season featured a trio of freshmen — De’Aaron Fox, Bam Adebayo, Monk — who would all go on to have varying levels of success in the NBA. While Monk hasn’t quite reached the all-star status of the other two, he had the best collegiate season. The team lost to North Carolina in the Elite Eight, but Monk won SEC player of the year after averaging 19.8 PPG that season for the Wildcats.
