Dime Magazine recently named their top ten NBA Players under the age of 25. Four former Kentucky players made the list. #10 Eric Bledsoe, #8 DeMarcus Cousins, #5 Anthony Davis, and John Wall comes in at #4.
10. ERIC BLEDSOE
AGE: 24
TEAM: PHOENIX SUNS
Eric Bledsoe has excelled in the spotlight this season, to say the least. After being cast in the shadow of John Wall at Kentucky and Chris Paul in Los Angeles, Bledsoe jumped at the opportunity to start and act as the leader for a youthful team in Phoenix. The result? A 16-8 record to start the season that surprised the basketball world, which previously thought the Suns were in tanking mode. The Bledsoe-Goran Dragic backcourt is a success for Phoenix and an absolute headache for opponents to guard.8. DeMARCUS COUSINS
AGE: 23
TEAM: SACRAMENTO KINGS
When the Sacramento Kings drafted a 19-year-old DeMarcus Cousins, his pure basketball talents led to a promise of ushering in a new era of competitive basketball in California’s capital. Despite his extreme potential, his attitude and behavior continued to overshadow his talent.In his fourth year as a pro, the former Wildcat is playing his best basketball, and is likely to receive a reserve frontcourt spot in the Western All-Star team later this week. In 40 games this season, Cousins is averaging a career-high in points (22.6), rebounds (11.6), steals (1.8), assists (3.0) and field goal percentage (48.8). DMC is a beast in the low post, a skilled passer, and has a decent midrange game. But for the first time in his career, he is focusing on becoming a solid defender as well, specifically in protecting the rim and cleaning up on the glass.
[adsenseyu4]
5. JOHN WALL
AGE: 23
TEAM: Washington Wizards
Since entering the NBA as the first draft pick in 2010, John Wall had fallen short of expectations set on the former Wildcat. Sure he could dazzle the fans with speed, but the Wizards remained stuck in the mud. An injury that sidelined Wall for the first half of last season was the best thing that happened to the young point guard. The long-awaited light finally went off inside Wall’s head while he watched his fellow teammates on the floor without him.Wall’s blazing speed is now controlled, as he picks the right time and place to use his quickness to the team’s advantage. Individually, he’s averaging career-highs in points (19.9), assists (8.4), steals (1.9), and three-point shooting (33.1 percent). While his previously criticized jump-shot’s percentage may not show it, Wall’s midrange shot is becoming more consistent, as he now looks when to use it to beat the defense instead of forcing up ill-advised shots. He attacks the rim with insane craftiness, he chases down opponents to deny them in transition, and he is an impressive passer.
4. ANTHONY DAVIS
AGE: 20
TEAM: NEW ORLEANS PELICANS
During his rookie campaign in 2012-13, the No. 1 pick in the draft was out-shined by Damian Lillard’s explosive performance. While his promise and potential remained high, there were whispers around the league that Anthony Davis was the wrong first pick. What a difference a season makes. Despite missing a brief stint of the early season with a fractured hand, Davis has become one of the most versatile bigs in the game, if not the most versatile young big. In his sophomore season, Davis is already a 20 and 10 player.As the game ushers in a new breed of big men – more athletic and quipped with a broader range – recently, Davis is the perfect example of what is wanted out of this new breed. Davis has the seventh highest Win Shares/48 minutes among qualified (by minutes played) players according to Basketball-Reference. As you can see in the chart below from Basketball-reference.com, the only player under 25 rated higher in this category is Paul George.
[adsenseyu4]
Read THE 10 BEST NBA PLAYERS UNDER 25 by clicking here.
