Arizona Basketball: Top 5 Wildcat Freshmen of All-Time

No.4 Lauri Markkanen

The Finnisher! Lauri Markkanen, set the bar real high as a freshman big man who could do it all. Not many knew about this guy before the season started, but Coach Sean Miller and his coaching staff saw something special in this guy and made the right choice. Markkanen quickly became a Wildcat fan favorite with his work ethic and ability to shoot the ball from all over the court.

Markkanen only stayed one year as a Wildcat, which many knew that would be the case. He averaged 15.6 points per game, 7.2 rebounds per game, shot 42.3% from beyond the arc and had recorded six double doubles. Markkanen started in every game for Coach Sean Miller, including a 30 point performance at home against the Arizona State Sun Devils.

The way Markkanen used his size on both offense and defense made him special. His release on his three-point shot was so fluid, natural and a thing of beauty. Towards the end of the season, he worked more on taking shots inside the paint. But this big man loved shooting those threes and so did Wildcat fans!

For his achievements, he was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team and Pac-12 All first team. Markkanen was also named to several pre-season national awards, including the Karl Malone award for best power forward in college basketball and was a finalist for the John Wooden award. Unfortunately he was not chosen for any individual awards, but that didn’t stop him from taking the next step into the NBA.

Markkanen has gone on to have a remarkable rookie season with the Chicago Bulls. He has set several NBA records for three-point shots made, including the fastest to record 100 three in NBA history!