The Arizona basketball program has produced some incredible talent, and this is our list of the 30 greatest ever to call themselves Wildcats.
Arizona basketball is a storied basketball program with one NCAA championship and two Final Four appearances in program history. But even more than the banners hanging from the rafters are the incredible players who have come through Tuscon.
With so many names from which to choose, putting together a list of the Top 30 greatest Arizona basketball players in school history is no easy task.
There are 42 Arizona Wildcats who have been chosen in the NBA Draft in the last 30 years. There are 16 former Wildcats playing in the NBA and NBA G-League. Division I colleges Kentucky, Duke, UCLA, North Carolina, Arizona, and Kansas are the top of the list and have one or more former players on 2018-19 NBA opening-day rosters. There are also plenty of coaches who used to wear Arizona uniforms in college coaching on the NCAA, NBA and G-League level.
Arizona has won 26 Pac-12 regular-season Conference Championships and seven Pac-12 Tournaments. The program has earned 35 NCAA Tournament bids including 18 Sweet 16’s, 11 Elite Eights, four Final Fours, two NCAA Finals (Duke – lost and Kentucky -won) and one Championship in 1997.
There are moments we will never forget like Derrick Williams block to win the game against Washington in the final seconds, Rawle Alkins posterized dunk on USC’s Elijah Stewart, and TJ McConnell kissing the Block A on the Lute and Bobbie Olson court after playing his last game at McKale.
Kenny Lofton was always a fan favorite, so we are mentioning him here, he remains one of the most beloved Wildcats making his mark in Major League Baseball. There are also milestones like Kaleb Tarczewski (110) and Dusan Ristic (111) winning the most games ever as a Wildcat.
We took into consideration each player resume while playing for the University of Arizona as well as awards won in college as well as professionally in the NBA. The list begins with a few honorable mentions.
Honorable Mentions
Current NBA Assistant Coach Matt Brase, grandson of Lute Olson, started his coaching career at Arizona and took his talents to Grand Canyon University. From there he was hired as the Houston Rockets Development Coach, then he took on the Head Coach position for the Rockets Affiliate Rio Grande Vipers winning the D-League Championship in 2013.
Current NBA G-League Coach Joseph Blair makes our honorable mention. Blair has developed several players on his Rio Grand Vipers team (Houston Rockets Affiliate) elevating their game for 10-day and two-way NBA Contracts. Served as Assistant Coach to Matt Brase earning a D-League Championship in 2013.
Current NBA Assistant coaches Jesse Mermuys and Isaiah Fox for the Los Angeles Lakers working for Luke Walton.
Josh Pastner not only was on the 1997 Championship team, but he has also been a prominent NCAA coach for years now with Georgia Tech and previously with Arizona and Memphis.
All the 1997 Wildcats who were on the National Championship team earned a mention even if they didn’t get a spot:
A.J. Bramlett
Bennett Davidson
Donnell Harris
Eugene Edgerson
Jason Lee
Jason Stewart
John Ash
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 30 – Brian Williams (aka Bison Dele)
Position: Center
Years at Arizona: 1989-1991
College Stats: 12.4 pts, 6.8 Reb, .5 Ast, .7 Stl, 1.2 Blk
College Awards: 1991 1st-team All-Pac-10
NBA Draft: 1991 / Round: 1 / Pick: 10th overall Selected by the Orlando Magic
Years in the NBA: Eight
NBA Awards: 1997 NBA Champion
FIBA Silver Medalist: 1987
Brian Williams, a 6-foot-9 235-pound center started off at Fresno State, transferred to Maryland and then spent two years in Arizona playing for the Wildcats. His high school, Saint Monica Catholic High School in Santa Monica, California, retired his jersey.
Williams, with fellow Wildcat Jud Buechler, earned an NBA Championship over the Utah Jazz with the Chicago Bulls in 1997 who went 69-13 that year.
In what was a sad turn of events at the height of his NBA career, Dele sailed with his girlfriend off the coast of Tahiti and was never seen or heard from again. He was presumed dead.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 29 – Loren Woods
Position: Center
Years at Arizona: 1998-2001
College Stats: 11.1 pts, 6.5 reb, 1.3 Ast, .7 stl, 3.4 blk
College Awards:
2001 NCAA All-Tournament
2001 NCAA Tournament All-Region
NBA Draft: 2001 / Round: 2 / Pick: 46th overall Selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves
Years in the NBA: Seven
Teammates with Richard Jefferson and Gilbert Arenas at Arizona, Loren Woods started his college career at Wake Forest playing with NBA All-Star and Champion Tim Duncan. After transferring, Woods sat out a year and as a Junior averaged 15.6 ppg (lead the team), 7.5 rpg and 3.9 blocks per game earning 14 blocks against Oregon (a school-high).
Both Woods and Jefferson decided to stay another year and they took the team to the NCAA title game and lost to Duke. Making it to the finals is not easy as we are fully aware.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 28 – Salim Stoudamire
Position: Point guard
Years at Arizona: 2001-2005
College Stats: 15.2 pts, 2.2 reb, 2.0 Ast, 0.8 stl, 0.1 blk
College Awards:
2002 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year
2005 NCAA Tournament All-Region
2005 Consensus second-team All-American
2005 1st-team All-Pac-10
NBA Draft: 2005 / Round: 2 / Pick: 31st overall Selected by the Atlanta Hawks
Years in the NBA: Three
BIG 3 League: 2013 Drafted – 2nd round – Team: 3 Headed Monsters coached by Gary Payton
Fun Fact: Published a Rap album in 2011 International Revolution
Salim Stoudamire is the younger cousin of Arizona legend Damon Stoudamire. Lute Olson once said that he was a better shooter than JJ Reddick (currently on the Sixers). Salim’s NBA career was stunted by the fact that he suffered a severe groin injury.
Stoudamire hit the game-winning shot against Oklahoma State in the 2005 NCAA Tournament (Regional Semi-Finals).
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 27 – Jud Buechler
Position: Shooting Guard
Years at Arizona: 1986-1990
College Stats: 8.7 pts, 4.9 reb, 2.0 Ast, 0.3 stl, .1 blk
College Awards: 1990 First-team All-Pac-10
NBA Draft: 1990 / Round: 2 / Pick: 38th overall Selected by the Seattle SuperSonics
Years in the NBA: 12
NBA Awards:
NBA champion 1996, 1997
1998 NBA champion NBA Asst. Coach (Lakers)
2017 NBA Vegas Summer League Champion – Head Coach Lakers
2018-Present NBA Asst. Coach (Knicks)
Jud Buechler is currently the Knicks Assistant Coach which may be why Allonzo Trier and Kadeem Allen are getting attention in New York. As the head coach for the Los Angeles Lakers Summer League team in 2017, he coached the team to the Championship and fostered a lot of team chemistry that carried on through the season. Jud had to deal with Lonzo Ball and his dad Lavar as the Big Baller Brand hype was swirling around his young crew.
Buechler is an NBA Champion who won the title with the Chicago Bulls in 1996 and ironically the team beat the Seattle SuperSonics (in six games) who drafted Buechler. There are two Wildcats with Bulls contracts in 2019, Lauri Markkenan and Rawle Alkins. Let’s hope the good luck rubs off on them.
Buechler retired from the NBA as a player in 2002 after having scored a total of 2,385 total points, dishing 560 assists, and grabbing 1,266 rebounds. He was a two-sport athlete in Tucson earning the nickname Buechler was also an All-American volleyball player at Arizona, earning the nickname “The Judge.”
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 26 – Jordan Hill
Position: Power Forward, Center
Years at Arizona: 2006-2009
College Stats: 12.5 pts, 7.9 reb, 0.8 Ast, 0.5 stl, 1.4 blk
College Awards:
2009 Wooden Award – Finalists
2009 3rd-team All-American – SN
2009 1st-team All-Pac-10
NBA Draft: 2009 / Round: 1 / Pick: 8th overall Selected by the New York Knicks
Years in the NBA: Eight
Jordan Hill left Arizona as a junior (2008-2009) ranked fifth all-time in field goal percentage (57.8%), starting in all 34 games and averaging 18.3 points and 11.0 rebounds. Hill along with Nic Wise and Budinger led Arizona to a Sweet 16 appearance. Former Memphis and Arizona coach Josh Pastner believed in Hill as he recruiting him in high school.
Hill grew up under tough circumstances. He lived in four different houses and was parented by six caregivers. Finishing high school was another challenge he overcame. His goal was to be picked high in the NBA Draft, and he was. He spent eight years in the NBA.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 25 – Sean Rooks
Position: Center
Years at Arizona: 1988-1992
College Stats: 11.6 pts, 4.5 reb, 1.1 Ast, 0.5 stl, 1.1 blk
College Awards:
1992 1st Team Pac-10
1990 Pac-10 49 (1st) In Blocks
NBA Draft: 1992 / Round: 2 / Pick: 30th overall Selected by the Dallas Mavericks
Years in the NBA: 11
NBA achievements:
NBA Asst. Coach
NBA G-League Coach
Sean Rooks came to play in Tucson the year after the Wildcats got to the Final Four in 1988. He played alongside Sean Elliott, Matt Meuhlebach (current Pac-12 sportscaster), Kenny Lofton (Currently a filmmaker), and Harvey Mason (Current Music Producer and mogul). The Wildcats went 17-1 and earned first place in the Pac-12 in his freshman year. It wasn’t until his final year with Arizona that he shined and won some awards.
After being drafted by the Dallas Mavs 30th in the second round, Rooks continued to play 11 years in the NBA. Rooks was just getting his coaching career solidified
Rooks passed away way too soon in June of 2016 at the age of 46, he was beloved by many. Rooks, on the morning of his passing, visited with Knicks president Phil Jackson and GM Steve Mills for an assistant coaching position. He had just been relieved of his duties as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia 76ers, who published this statement:
"“Sean will long be remembered not for his accomplishments on the court — of which there were many — but for his vibrant personality, positive outlook and the genuine care he had for everyone in his life.”"
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 24 – Mustafa Shakur
Position: Point Guard
Years at Arizona: 2003-2007
College Stats: 10.1 pts, 3.7 reb, 5.1 Ast, 1.2 stl, 0.1 blk
College Awards:
2003 McDonald’s All-American
2004 Pac-10 All-Freshman Team
2004 Member of the preseason Naismith Award watch list
2007 Pac-10 6.9 (1st) Assists per game
NBA Draft: Undrafted (2007)
Years in the NBA: 2 (2011 Washington Wizards, 2014 Oklahoma City Thunder)
Years in the NBA G-League: Four and counting (Currently with the Oklahoma City Blue)
Years Playing professionally overseas: Nine
NBA Awards:
2010 All-NBA D-League Second Team
NBA D-League All-Star 2010, 2011
Other:
2008 PLK champion
Mustafa Shakur is still actively playing basketball in the NBA G-League. We had a chance to follow up with him after a South Bay Lakers game. Undrafted coming out of college, Shakur has bounced around the world. Starting with playing professionally overseas, he has played for five G-League teams and spent one season with the Washington Wizards in 2011.
Coming out of high school, Shakur was a McDonald’s All-American and made the All-Freshman team at Arizona. In his sophomore year, he was named a member of the preseason Naismith Award watch list. Also in his Junior year, he racked up 455 career assists and was the only Wildcat to start every game played that season. He proved he was a legitimate distributor when he ranked No. 1 in assists per game in his senior year averaging 6.9.
Former Arizona Basketball standout Mustafa Shakur playing in the G-League
Former Arizona Basketball star Mustafa Shakur was just signed by the NBA G-League Oklahoma City Blues. We caught up with Shakur after the SB Lakers game.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 23 – Hassan Adams
Position: Shooting Guard, Small Forward
Years at Arizona: 2002-2006
College Stats: 14.0 pts, 5.4 reb, 2.0 Ast, 1.8 stl, .7 blk
College Awards:
2005 NCAA Tournament All-Region
2006 1st-team All-Pac-10
FIBA Gold Medalist (U20) – 2006
NBA Draft: 2006 / Round: 2 / Pick: 54th overall Selected by the New Jersey Nets
Years in the NBA: Three
Hassan Adams was a high school star, a product of Westchester, California. In 34 games, he averaged 18 pts, five rbs, and three assists winning 32 games. Adams led his team to a CIF Division IA Championship and earned a USA Today No. 1 ranking as a senior.
Adams started in only five games as a Freshman under Lute Olson, but quickly became a starter as a sophomore and never looked back. He averaged 17.5 points per game in his senior year and made an average of over 50% of his 2-pt field goals, 60% in his sophomore year. He played with Channing Frye and Mustafa Shakur who also started in all 37 games in 2005 earning an Elite 8 appearance that year. He and ranked No. 1 in field goals (236) in 2006 and also ranked No. 1 in the Pac-10 in steals in 2005 (69) and 2006 (82).
Drafted in the 2nd round, Adams played only a few years in the NBA, maybe because he started his career with a foot injury care of PJ Tucker. Adams played all over the world in countries such as the Philippines and Singapore.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 22 – Chase Budinger
Position: Small Forward
Years at Arizona: 2006-2009
College Stats: 17.0 pts, 5.8 reb, 2.8 Ast, 1.3 stl, 0.4 blk
College Awards:
2006 McDonald’s All-America Game co-MVP
2006 California Mr. Basketball
2007 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year
2008 3rd-team All-Pac-10
2009 1st-team All-Pac-10
NBA Draft: 2009 / Round: 2 / Pick: 44th overall Selected by the Detroit Pistons
Years in the NBA: Seven
Chase Budinger was selected 44th over pick by the Detroit Pistons in the 2009 NBA draft after leaving Arizona after his junior year. Both a volleyball and basketball player at La Costa Canyon High School, the McDonald’s All-American led his basketball team to the 2006 CIF San Diego title.
Budinger Committed to Arizona after being heavily recruited by many schools including USC and UCLA. He averaged 15.6 points in his freshman season and started in all 30 games. In his sophomore year, he tested the NBA Draft waters but did not hire an agent. He returned to Arizona and then declared for the draft in 2009.
On draft night the Pistons traded Chase to the Houston Rockets where he spent four years. In 2011, Budinger scored a career-high 35 points on 12 of 21 shooting, including 4 for 8 from 3-point range in his final game of the season against the Timberwolves.
Budinger is a dunker! He was invited to participate in the 2012 Slam Dunk Contest. One of his dunks was a wheelhouse slam over P. Diddy. The second was a blindfolded reverse dunk where he honored Cedric Ceballos, a former Slam Dunk Contest winner Cedric Ceballos, He came in second, like Aaron Gordon, to Jeremy Evans. He is now a professional volleyball player.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 21 – Khalid Reeves
Position: Point Guard, Shooting guard
Years at Arizona: Point Guard, Shooting guard
College Stats: 15.0 pts, 3.3 reb, 3.1 Ast, 1.5 stl, 0.1 blk
College Awards:
1990 McDonald’s All-American MVP
1994 Consensus All-America (2nd Tm)
1994 NCAA Tournament All-Region
1994 First-team All-Pac-10
NBA Draft: 1994 / Round: 1 / Pick: 12th overall Selected by the Miami Heat
Years in the NBA: Five
FIBA U19 Gold Medalist: 1991
In his book, 100 Things Arizona Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die, Steve Rivera explains how Khalid Reeves and Sean Elliot were the reasons behind the naming of Arizona Basketball being “Point Guard U.” Rivera goes on to say that Reeves was well respected by Lute Olson and his teammates, that it was obvious he had a ton of talent but that Reeves didn’t necessarily concentrate only basketball.
One of Reeve’s claim to fame in Tucson is when he scored 40 points going 13-14 and 11-12 at the free-throw line in the Fiesta Bowl Classic title game against Michigan’s Fab Four. He led the Wildcats to the 1994 Final Four (24.2 apg) and set the UA record in a single-season by scoring 823 points.
The McDonald’s All-American is a New York Christ the King product, just like Rawle Alkins, and one of few East Coast recruits for Olson. It was the head coach at Christ the King, Bobby Oliva, that called Olson to tell him Reeves wanted to visit.
The Hall of Famer ended his college career third in all-time scoring points. He earned an NBA first-round draft pick by the Miami Heat at No. 12 overall and spent five years in the NBA.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 20 – TJ McConnell
Position: Point Guard
Years at Arizona: 2013–2015
College Stats: 9.4 pts, 3.7 reb, 5.8 Ast, 1.9 stl, .1 blk
College Awards:
2015 NCAA Tournament All-Region
2015 AP honorable mention All-American
2015 First-team All-Pac-12
2014 Second-team All-Pac-12
Pac-12 All-Defensive Team 2014, 2015
NBA Draft: Undrafted
Years in the NBA: Four
TJ McConnell, born Timothy John McConnell Jr, has to be this era’s most favorite player and truly exemplified what Point Guard U was all about. McConnell started his college career in Philadelphia, his home state, at Duquesne University.
He transferred to Arizona after his sophomore year and had to sit out a season. He played his final two years for Sean Miller in Tucson as a Wildcat, two of the most fun seasons ever in Wildcats history. McConnell was the ultimate floor general, an extension of Miller on the court.
Not surprising, as the senior team captain at Chartiers Valley High School, McConnell averaged 34.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 9.1 assists per game.
TJ will forever be remembered as the Wildcat who loved playing for Arizona so much, he kissed the Block /A\ on the Lute and Bobbie Olson Court after coming out of his last game at McKale.
McConnell went undrafted in the 2015 NBA draft, then joined the Philadelphia 76ers for NBA Summer League where he impressed the organization. He is in his third season and is a fan favorite. The media keeps projecting the team will drop McConnell each time they draft or trade for a new guard, but that won’t happen because the fans will scream loudly.
He has taken on Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and other huge NBA Legends and doesn’t back down. He shot a buzzer beater on Carmello Anthony and went wild on the court after making that acrobatic shot.
Wildcats fans love TJ and we had to include him in this list even though his career is just beginning.
Here is Sean Miller bragging about McConnell, “He played for the win every game, he was more concerned with getting the other guys to the NBA than himself.” There is a clear love and admiration between the two in this interview:
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 19 – Deandre Ayton
Position: Power Forward
Years at Arizona: 2018
College Stats: 20.1 pts, 11.6 reb, 1.6 Ast, .6 stl, 1.9 blk
College Awards:
2018 Consensus All-America (1st Tm)
2018 Naismith Award Finalists
2018 Pac-12 Conference Player of the Year
2018 1st Team All-Pac-12
2018 Pac-12 Tournament MOP
2018 Freshman of the Year
2018 The Karl Malone Award
2018 USBWA Player of the Year Finalists
2018 Wooden Award – Finalists
2017 McDonald’s All-American
Hall of Fame (Drafted No. 1 overall)
NBA Draft: 2018
Years in the NBA: One
NBA Awards: None yet, Rookie of the Year a possibility
Deandre Ayton is a beast on the court. He earned 24 double-doubles and 66 blocks while playing his freshman year at Arizona. Announcers couldn’t say enough about Ayton while he played. His dunks and domination in the paint was a sight to see.
The number of awards and nominations he racked up was unbelievable. He is the only Wildcat to be selected No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft. This earned him a spot in the Hall of Fame the year following his departure.
Ayton has a contagious personality. He loves to dance and play video games, he brings a smile to your face at all times. He found King Rawle Alkins for the Dunk of 2018 in the Pac-12 on Elija Stewart.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 18 – Derrick Williams
Position: Forward
Years at Arizona: 2009-2011
College Stats: 17.8 pts, 7.7 reb, 0.9 Ast, 0.8 stl, 0.7 blk
College Awards:
2010 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year
1st Team All-Pac-10 2010, 2011
2011 Consensus All-America (2nd Tm)
2011 NCAA Tournament All-Region
2011 Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year
2011 Wooden Award 10-player All-America team
2011 Wooden Award – Finalists
2012 NBA All-Rookie Second Team
2011 Three-time Pac-10 Player of the Week
2011 USBWA District IX Player of the Year
2011 First-team All-American by Sports Illustrated
2011 2nd Team by the Associated Press
2011 2nd Team by Sporting News
2011 2nd Team by the United States Basketball Writers Association
2011 2nd Team by the National Association of Basketball Coaches
2nd Team Second-team by Fox Sports 2010, 2011
NBA Draft: 2011 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2nd overall Selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves
Years in the NBA: Seven
When you think about Derrick Williams, monster dunks and blocks come to mind. Without Williams’ heroics at the end of some games in the NCAA Tournament, Arizona may not have made it to the Elite Eight. Head Coach Sean Miller had wooed him away from USC where he originally committed.
He had about three tries to get the team to the Final Four, but the ball wouldn’t fall. Williams averaged 17.8 points and shot 58.6%. He won earned spots on numerous first and second teams and was a Wooden Award finalist
Williams came out of school the year of the NBA lockout. When the NBA was back in session, Derrick was drafted No. 2 overall by the Timberwolves where he played for two seasons, then moved to the Sacramento Kings, then the Cavs where he received praises from LeBron James. He bounced around to another few teams including the Knicks and the Lakers and finally took his talents overseas.
The So Cal native is rocking Eurobasket in Germany for FC Bayern Munich, he is on fire recently earning MVP accolades:
"With the best performance of his brief Turkish Airlines EuroLeague career, FC Bayern Munich forward Derrick Williams not only made the difference in his team’s dramatic 88-84 win over Zalgiris Kaunas, but in the process earned the MVP honor for Round 12. Williams’s 27 points and performance index rating of 35 were personal bests for the 27-year-old EuroLeague newcomer, and both marks rank second in Bayern’s 56-game EuroLeague history."
We would love to see him back in the NBA playing for the right coach and the right system on a winning team where he can thrive.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 17 – Jason Gardner
Position: Guard
Years at Arizona: 1999-2003
College Stats: 14.6 pts, 3.4 reb, 4.6 Ast, 1.7 stl, .0 blk
College Awards and Achievements:
2000 USBWA Freshman of the Year
2001 NCAA Tournament All-Region
2003 Consensus All-America (2nd Tm)
2003 NCAA Tournament All-Region
2003 The Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award
1st-Team All-Pac-10 2000, 2002, 2003
NCAA Head Coach (IUPUI – Current)
NCAA Asst. Coach (Memphis, Loyola Chi)
NBA Draft: Undrafted
Years in FIBA: Seven
FIBA Awards:
2009 German League MVP
All-German League Team 2008, 2009
Jason Gardner was the point guard for the 2001 Arizona Basketball finals team which lost to Duke. Gardner played along with Luke Walton, Channing Frye who just announced his retirement from the NBA, Isaiah Fox, and Salim Stoudamire to name a few.
Gardner did not get drafted, go figure, but he did find success overseas. In Germany, he was an All-Star and earned the 2009 regular season MVP of the German Basketball Bundesliga team.
After his playing career, Gardner’s coaching career took off. Coaching for Loyola University Chicago and then joining Josh Pastner’s staff at the University of Memphis, Gardner is now the Head coach of IUPUI.
Former Arizona Wildcat Jason Gardner having coaching success at IUPUI
Former Arizona Wildcat Jason Gardner is now in his fifth year as head coach at IUPUI and is having a successful year so far.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 16 – Jerryd Bayless
Position: Point Guard, Shooting guard
Years at Arizona: 2007-2008
College Stats: 19.7 pts, 2.7 reb, 4.0 Ast, 1.0 stl, .1 blk
College Awards:
2007 McDonald’s All-American
2007 1st-team Parade All-American
2008 2nd-team All-Pac-10
2008 Wooden Award – Finalist
NBA Draft: 2008 / Round: 1 / Pick: 11th overall Selected by the Indiana Pacers
Years in the NBA: Nine and counting
FIBA U18 Gold Medalist: 2006
Jerryd Bayless scored career-high 52 points for St. Mary’s high school in Phoenix in a loss to eventual state champions. He averaged 37.9 points in his Junior year in high school. It’s no wonder Bayless was a McDonald’s All-American.
More from All-Time Basketball Lists
- Arizona Basketball: Which teams have the Wildcats never beaten?
- Former Wildcat Steve Kerr is one of the best NBA Coaches ever
- Bennedict Mathurin is a clutch player and hands down best in the NCAA
- Arizona Basketball: What Hall of Fame coach Lute Olson means to me
- Arizona Basketball: Aari McDonald earns 2020 Naismith Shooting Award
Bayless spent one season playing for Kevin O’Neill instead of Lute Olson on the Arizona Wildcats. He was the first one-and-done player and the first freshman in University of Arizona Basketball history to lead in scoring (592 total points averaging 19.7 points per game with 45.8% shooting), well as the first freshman to win team MVP honors since Sean Elliott.
Bayless was the star on a team that struggled to win, ending his one season with a 19-15 overall and an 8-10 record in the Pac-10. O’Neill was extremely complimentary when it came to Bayless, telling media that the Wildcat was a very hard-working player.
According to Steve Rivera, Bayless was the first Wildcat to score 39 points against the Arizona State Sun Devils, the most ever. Rivera also wrote the both he and Olson were disappointed they didn’t get a chance to work together.
Drafted No. 11 overall in 2008, Bayless currently plays for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 15 – Chris Mills
Position: Small Forward
Years at Arizona: 1990-1993
College Stats: 16.5 pts, 7.6 reb, 2.3 Ast, 1.0 stl, 0.4 blk
College Awards:
1993 Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year
1993 3rd-team All-American – AP, NABC, UPI
1993 Pac-10 Player of the Year
1st-team All-Pac-10 1992, 1993
NBA Draft: 1993 / Round: 1 / Pick: 22nd overall Selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers
Years in the NBA: Eight
Another McDonald’s All-American, Chris Mills made a total of $37,370,000 playing in the NBA. Ironically Mills was involved in a pay-for-play controversy while playing for Kentucky. Lucky for the Arizona Wildcats, Mills transferred to Arizona. He played at Arizona for the remainder of his eligibility.
Lute Olson called Mills a “tough hard nose guy” according to Rivera. Mills was a Fairfax High School (Los Angeles, California) graduate Olson recruited, but Mills dad wanted him to play at Kentucky.
Mills was a very versatile player who could play multiple positions and that carried him through his 10-year NBA Career.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 14 – Lauri Markkanen
Position: Power Forward
Years at Arizona: 2017
College Stats: 15.6 pts, 7.2 reb, 0.9 Ast, 0.4 stl, 0.5 blk
College Awards:
2016 Nike Hoop Summit
2017 1st All-Pac-12 Team
2017 Pac-12 All-Freshman Team
2017 Wooden Award – Finalists
NBA Draft: 2017 / Round: 1 / Pick: 7th overall Selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves
Years in the NBA: Two
NBA Awards:
2018 NBA All-Rookie 1st team
2017 Finnish Player of the Year
2017 Fastest player to score 100 3-pointers in a season
The Finnisher, Lauri Markkenan, wasted no time gaining admiration in the NBA after one year of college basketball in Tucson. The 7-foot 240-pound versatile and exciting power forward from Finland. Lauri has rarely disappointed a fan base, from shooting and making three’s to rebounding and dunking the ball, he gets fans on their feet.
Most recently Markkanen earned a spot on the Rising Stars NBA All-Star team along with Deandre Ayton, the two had never played together. He was the fastest player and rookie to score 100 3-pointers in one season.
Even though his Bulls are in tank mode in the 2019 season, Lauri is the one player who never disappoints his fans. He is always smiling and happy and raising his son with his wife in Chicago. And he always seems relaxed and there to have a good time! It is just the beginning for Lauri.
W. #MOOD pic.twitter.com/ucxGeztShx
— Lauri Markkanen (@MarkkanenLauri) February 23, 2019
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 13 – Michael Dickerson
Position: Shooting Guard
Years at Arizona: 1994-1998
College Stats: 13.8 pts, 3.7 reb, 1.5 Ast, 0.8 stl, 0.2 blk
College Awards:
1994 Washington Mr. Basketball
1997 NCAA Champ
1997 Pac-10 233 (1st) in made field goals
1998 3rd-team All-American – AP
1st-team All-Pac-10 1997, 1998
NBA Draft: 1998 / Round: 1 / Pick: 14th overall Selected by the Houston Rockets
Years in the NBA: Four
NBA Awards:1999 NBA All-Rookie Second Team
Michael Dickerson is one of the hero’s to Arizona Basketball as he won the 1997 national championship Jason Terry, Mike Bibby, and Miles Simon. He was drafted 14th overall in the 1998 NBA Draft and spent four years in the NBA to the Houston Rockets.
With the Rockets, Dickerson earned a spot on the All-Rookie 2nd Team and led the league with 50 games played in a season. Also in his first year, he ranked sixth in three-point field goal percentage at 43.3%.
Dickerson was traded to the Vancouver Grizzlies (now Memphis Grizzlies), not his choice, and started in all 88 games in his second season. Injury prone, he had to retire early in 2003 but staged a comeback in 2008 with the Cavs. After being waived he traveled overseas and played in Spain among other countries.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 12 – Aaron Gordon
Position: Forward
Years at Arizona: 2014
College Stats: 12.4 pts, 8.0 reb, 2.0 Ast, .9 stl, 1.0 blk
High School and College Awards:
2013 USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year
2013 McDonald’s All-American MVP
California Mr. Basketball 2012, 2013
CIF State champion 2011, 2012
CIF State Division II champion 2011, 2012
CIF Northern California champion 2011, 2012, 2013
2013 CIF Northern California Open Division champion
CIF Northern California Division II champion 2011, 2012
2013 CIF CCS Open Division champion
2014 Pac-12 Freshman Player of the Year
2014 NCAA Tournament All-Region
2014 Pac-12 All-Tournament Team
2014 AP Honorable Mention
2014 Third team All-America – Sporting News
2014 USBWA All-District Team
2014 NABC All-District Second Team
2014 Pac-12 1st-Team
2014 Pac-12 All-Freshman Team
2014 Pac-12 Student-Athlete of the Year
NBA Draft: 2014 / Round: 1 / Pick: 4th overall Selected by the Orlando Magic
Years in the NBA: Five
FIBA Gold Medalist: 2013
FIBA Under-19 World Cup MVP: 2013
Aaron Gordon is coming into his own in the NBA, in 2019, he is the highest Paid NBA Player of all the Wildcats. His splash wasn’t necessarily his first season with the Orlando Magic, but it was a huge splash. Gordon participated in the 2016 NBA Slam Dunk Contest and won! Well, he won, but a judge or two did not give Gordon the 10-score he deserved from jumping over his rotating huge mascot in a pike position, putting the ball under his knees and dunking it. They gave it to former UCLA Bruin and current Chicago Bulls star Zach LaVine.
Listen to the announcers, they thought Gordon had the contest wrapped up and then you see even LaVine had his draw dropped after the last dunk!
Gordon, another Southern California product, landed on the varsity team at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, California as a freshman. There are way too many championships and awards from his high school career to name here, just scroll up and you will be astounded if you missed it.
Gordon was another McDonald’s All-American, earning MVP honors by scoring 24-points and grabbing eight rebounds for Team West in a 110–99 victory.
While at Arizona, Gordon earned the Pac-12 Freshman Player of the Year award and was voted onto the Pac-12 All-Freshman team. He was a one-and-done and in 2014 was picked 14 overall by the Orlando Magic. He is still playing with the Magic and just signed an astounding
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 11 – Gilbert Arenas
Position: Point Guard, Shooting guard
Years at Arizona: 1999-2001
College Stats: 15.8 pts, 3.8 reb, 2.2 Ast, 1.9 stl, 0.2 blk
College Awards:
2000 Pac-10 All-Freshman Team
2001 NCAA Tournament All-Region
2001 1st Team Pac-10
NBA Draft: 2001 / Round: 2 / Pick: 31st overall Selected by the Golden State Warriors
Years in the NBA: 11
NBA Awards:
2003 NBA Most Improved Player
2003 NBA All-Star weekend Rookie Game MVP
NBA All-Star 2005, 2006, 2007
2007 All-NBA 2nd Team
All-NBA 3rd Team 2005, 2006
The notorious Gilbert Arenas was one of the best players in the world if not at Arizona and in the NBA. He spent 11 years for five teams in the NBA and racked up numerous awards including being voted an NBA All-Star in four years during his career.
Nicknamed Hibachi, Arenas along with Richard Jefferson, led his team to the final four then declared for the 2001 NBA Draft and was picked 31st overall. He brought unloaded guns into the Wizards locker room on his 28th birthday in January 2010 and was suspended. Arenas wrote an apology in the Washington Post in February, then was sentenced to probation and by May he was cleared and continued his career with the Wizards changing his number from zero to nine.
After losing to the Los Angeles Clippers in the Western Conference Championship with the Grizzlies, Arenas went to play for the Shanghai Sharks of the CBA in China.
We predict Arenas, or Agent Zero, will make a huge splash in his career comeback entering the BIG3 Draft in 2019. Just recently, Arenas made 95 of 100 3-pointers in practice.
Yes, he still has it, but he also makes waves with his social commentary, most recently chiming in on Khloe Kardashian’s cheating baby daddy. Arenas has also appeared on the YouTube show Out of Bounds where you can enjoy his commentary. Arizona went to the NCAA Final Four and finished as runner-up. Arenas talks about NCAA corruption, being the big man on campus and getting free meals from fans in Tucson in this episode which includes this quote, “We were Arizona, we were the shit!”
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 10 – Channing Frye
Position: Power Forward
Years at Arizona: 2001-2005
College Stats: 13.5 pts, 7.3 reb, 1.3 Ast, 1.3 stl, 0.6 blk
College Awards:
2005 NCAA Tournament All-Region
1st All-Pac-12 Team 2004, 2005
2002 Pac-10 All-Freshman Team
2001 McDonald’s All-American.
NBA Draft: 2005 / Round: 1 / Pick: 8th overall Selected by the New York Knicks
Years in the NBA: 14
NBA Awards:
2006 NBA All-Rookie 1st team
2016 NBA Champion
Channing Frye is an NBA Champion and he just announced his retirement last month after 14 years playing in the NBA for seven teams. Frye will retire from the Cleveland Cavaliers, the team he won the 2015 NBA Championship with along with former Wildcat Richard Jefferson and LeBron James. Rich already reached out to him on Twitter and reminded him he can work their Road Trippin’ podcast.
https://twitter.com/Rjeff24/status/1101712201902186496
At Arizona, the McDonald’s All-American and Arizona native (Phoenix), he shot a career 56.2%, never dipping below 54% in any season. He ranks No.2 in blocked shots (253). Frye arrived in Tucson as a player that would need development but ended up a star that ended up an NBA top-ten pick.
Frye played with current Lakers assistant coach Isaiah Fox and head coach Luke Walton as well as Gilbert Arenas and Jason Gardner. His last game for Arizona was in the Elite eight where his team lost to Illinois after scoring 24 points, grabbing 12 rebounds and blocking six shots.
Frye was the first college senior selected in the 2005 NBA Draft at No. 8 overall. In his rookie season, he played so well he earned a spot on the All-Rookie first team.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 9 – Richard Jefferson
Position: Small Forward
Years at Arizona: 1998-2001
College Stats: 11.0 pts, 5.0 reb, 2.8 Ast, .6 stl, 0.8 blk
High School and College Awards:
2001 NCAA All-Tournament
2001 NCAA Tournament All-Region
1998 McDonald’s All-American
NBA Draft: 2001 / Round: 1 / Pick: 13th overall Selected by the Houston Rockets
Years in the NBA: 17
NBA Awards:
2016 NBA Champion
2002 NBA All-Rookie 2nd Team
FIBA Gold Medalist: 2003
Olympic Bronze Medalist: 2004
Richard Jefferson, now a Pac-12 and ESPN sports broadcaster, has given back to the University of Arizona in many ways. The very generous Wildcat donated $1 Million for the Richard Jefferson Gym where the Arizona Basketball team practices and trains. His 17 year NBA career is impressive including a Championship ring.
Jefferson played for 17 seasons in the NBA. He is an NBA Champion, a FIBA Champion and a medalist in the 2004 Olympics. A career Jefferson can look back on with pride playing in 1181
NBA games and staring in 809 of them.
Rich was born in Los Angeles, California, but like his bestie Frye, he was raised in Phoenix. While playing for Lute Olson, Jefferson became a great defensive player. The athletic forward held Illinois guards from scoring in the 2001 Elite 8 and Michigan State as well in the Final Four getting the team to the finals.
Jefferson is always happy it seems, in any circumstance he can lift the spirits of those around him. This attitude off the court and his grittiness on the court helped his teams to achieve greatness. He was instrumental in bringing the Championship Cavs team together and the chemistry created as a veteran helped the team bring Cleveland the trophy they so coveted.
The biggest donor to Arizona Basketball, the practice gym for the Wildcats is named the Richard Jefferson Gymnasium. The Gym is used for basketball and volleyball and was named after Jefferson donated $3.5 million on Dec. 8, 2008.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 8 – Luke Walton
Position: Small Forward
Years at Arizona: 1999-2003
College Stats: 9.1 pts, 7.3 reb, 1.3 Ast, 1.2 stl, 0.4 blk
College Awards:
2005 NCAA Tournament All-Region
2002 Second-team All-American
First-team All-Pac-10 2002 2003
2003 Pac-12 Champion
NCAA Assistant Coach (Memphis)
NBA Draft: 2003 / Round: 2 / Pick: 32nd overall
Years in the NBA: 11 as a player, Eight as a coach
NBA Awards:
NBA Champion (Lakers) 2009, 2010
2015 NBA Champion – Asst Coach (Warriors)
2016 Western Conference Coach of the Month (November)
NBA Positions:
Current NBA Head Coach (Lakers)
NBA Assistant Coach (Warriors)
NBA G-League Development Coach (D-Fenders)
Luuuuuuuukkkeeee! The chant sounds like a boo from Wildcats fans anytime Luke Walton is introduced to the crowd. Luke Walton chose Arizona instead of his dad Bill Walton’s alma mater UCLA. Luke went 6-3 over the Bruins in his college career and 179-27 overall when Luke was playing. Maybe he chose to move to Tucson because it was the year after Lute Olson coached the Wildcats to the National Championship? Whatever the reason, Walton is a beloved by Arizona Wildcats fans.
Walton scored a total 1,179 points and earned 662 rebounds and 582 assists during his college career.
Walton enjoyed going to the NCAA Tournament each season he played for Arizona getting to the Finals in 2001 and ranked No. 1 in the nation in 2003. Luke’s best man at his wedding was Richard Jefferson. Luke married his college girlfriend, former Volleyball player, Bre Ladd in front of Olson, Andre Iguodala, and Jason Gardner.
Both Luke and his dad Bill have two NBA Championships under their belt. The irony is they played for rival teams in the Lakers and the Celtics.
Luke served as assistant coach to Steve Kerr for the NBA Champion Golden State Warriors and when Kerr took a leave of absence, Walton coached the team to a 39-4 record in the first 43 games of the season. Kerr won coach of the Year with Walton’s help.
Walton has done a great job as a head coach for the Los Angeles Lakers, that is until his front office went out and got LeBron James. We all knew James would bring drama to the team, and after several injuries to key starters, it looks like the Lakers will miss the playoffs. Since someone has to get the blame, and you know Magic Johnson, Rob Pelinka and James won’t want to take it, Luke may be looking for a job. There are heavy rumors he is favored for the UCLA Head Coach position which is vacant at the time of this post (2019).
Whatever happens in his coaching career, it should be long and memorable.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 7 – Miles Simon
Position: Shooting Guard
Years at Arizona: 1994-1998
College Stats: 14.6 pts, 3.8 reb, 3.6 Ast, 1.1 stl, 0.1 blk
College Awards:
NCAA Assistant Coach (Arizona)
1997 NCAA Champ
1997 NCAA All-Tournament
1997 NCAA Tournament All-Region
1997 NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player
1998 Consensus All-America (1st Tm)
No. 34 retired by the University of Arizona
NBA Draft: 1998 / Round: 2 / Pick: 42nd overall Selected by the Orlando Magic
Years in the NBA: Six
NBA Position:
NBA Asst. Coach (Lakers)
CBA Awards:
2002 CBA champion
2002 CBA MVP
2002 CBA Playoff MVP
2002 CBA Newcomer of the Year
2002 All-CBA First Team
If you don’t know who Miles Simon is, then you had better check your Wildcats fan membership card to see if it is valid. Simon’s jersey has been retired by the University of Arizona.
While at Arizona, he and Mike Bibby became household names after defeating three No. 1 seeded teams (Kansas, North Carolina, and Kentucky in overtime) to win the 1997 NCAA Tournament Championship. Simon ended up winning the Most Outstanding Player in the Tournament.
After the Arizona Wildcats won their first and only NCAA Championship over a Rick Pitino coached Kentucky team. In the final seconds of the game announcer, Billy Packer exclaimed, “Simon says Championship!” Simon’s free throws, 17 points and play in overtime sealed the win for the Wildcats as the ball remained in his hands to end the game.
After playing a season for the Orlando Magic, Simon went on to the CBA in Canada and became the most honored player in the league in 2001–2002 including Player of the Week four times, playoff MVP and league MVP.
Simon recently was hired by Luke Walton as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers. Luke gave him the head coach position for the Vegas Summer League team. Simon’s Summer League team made it to the finals. He has been helping develop the talent on the Lakers, which is a challenge because the personnel keeps changing.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 6 – Damon Stoudamire
Position: Point Guard
Years at Arizona: 1992-1995
College Stats: 15.0 pts, 3.8 reb, 5.4 Ast, 1.4 stl, .1 blk
College Awards and Positions:
1994 NCAA Tournament All-Region
1995 Consensus All-America (1st Tm)
1995 Pacific-10 Conference Player of the Year
1995 Wooden Award finalist
NCAA Head Coach (University of the Pacific)
NCAA Assistant Coach (Arizona)
11 years as an NCAA Coach
NBA Draft: 1995 / Round: 1 / Pick: 7th overall Selected by the Toronto Raptors
Years in the NBA: 13
NBA Awards:
1996 NBA Rookie of the Year
1996 NBA All-Rookie 1st Team
1996 NBA Rookie Challenge MVP
Other Awards:
1994 Bronze Goodwill Games
1993 Gold Summer Universidade
The current head basketball coach of the University of the Pacific, Damon Stoudamire was drafted the No. 7 overall pick in the 1995 NBA draft by the Toronto Raptors. The 5-foot-10 point guard won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in 1996 and then continued to play 13 seasons in the League. His Arizona coach Lute Olson recruited him for years and wasn’t concerned about his size because he was so confident in his abilities.
One of his NBA highlights came against New Orléans on January 14, 2005, when Stoudamire scored 54 points for the Portland Trailblazers.
These days being under six feet seems to be a death sentence in the NBA, but all they need to do is look back on this Wildcats performance to see they may be missing the boat on many players coming out of college.
Damon has two cousins that are also famous, Salim Stoudamire and Terrence Jones (current NBA player) but his fame started in high school ( Woodrow Wilson High School in Portland Oregon) where he led his team to a 74–4 record and won two state championships (1989,1991).
Roommate with Khalid Reeves in college, “Mighty Mouse” had a huge desire to win and that accounts for the following:
- He led the Wildcats to the Final Four
- He ranked first on the Wildcats’ all-time list in three-pointers made (272)
- He ranked second in points scored (1,849)
- Ranked fourth in assists (663)
- Scored 40 or more points in two games
- Conference Player of the Year (only third to have accomplished this honor)
After the NBA, Stoudamire went on to start a coaching career at Rice University, then Memphis University under Josh Pastner and then as an assistant for Sean Miller at Arizona and back to Memphis. His coaching experience includes a stint in the NBA with the Grizzlies with Henry Bibby (Mike Bibby’s father). Now an NCAA Head Coach, Stoudamire seems to be really enjoying himself. You can find him on Twitter as well at @Iambiggie503 posting inspiring quotes and more.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 5 – Jason Terry
Position: Point Guard, Shooting guard
Years at Arizona: 1996-1999
College Stats: 11.3 pts, 2.3 reb, 3.8 Ast, 1.9 stl, 0.1 blk
College Awards:
1997 NCAA Champion
1999 Consensus All-America (1st Tm)
1999 Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year
1999 1st Team All-Pac-10
1998-99 NCAA AP All-America (1st)
No. 31 Jersey Retired by the University of Arizona
NBA Draft: 1999 / Round: 1 / Pick: 10th overall Selected by the Atlanta Hawks
Years in the NBA: 19
NBA Awards:
2011 NBA Champion
2000 NBA All-Rookie Team
2008-09 Sixth Man of the Year
2007-08 NBA 82 (1st) Most Games Played
Jason “The Jet” Terry is one of the most well-recognized names in the NBA. He recently got his jersey retired in McKale after completing his degree and it was one of the most memorable ceremonies of this decade. TJ McConnell and Jason Terry (TJ and JT) were both awarded Best NBA Teammate in 2017. Fitting that two unselfish players that had already won the hearts of Wildcats fans won the hearts of their teammates, one at the beginning of his career and one near the end.
While at Arizona, he played with Miles Simon and Mike Bibby to win the 1997 NCAA Tournament Championship. Terry also earned the Pac-10 Player of the Year award as a senior as well as named to the All-Conference First Team selection. He completed his career ranked as a Wildcat. He is ranked No. 12 in points at 1,461, No. 5 in assists with 493 and No. 2 in 3-pointers at 192. On top of all that Terry is the only player in Arizona history to score 1,000 points and grab 200 steals in his college career.
According to Steve Rivera, Jason was so unselfish that when Miles Simon became eligible to play, Terry asked Coach Olson if he could start Simon because he didn’t want to quell the freshman’s spirit. So Terry became the 6th man in college well before he became famous for that spot later in his career.
Terry spent almost two decades playing in the NBA, 19 years, but by far the team he won’t ever forget is Dallas Mavericks. In 2009 Terry won the coveted 6th Man awards while playing for the Mavs and in 2011 his team won the NBA Championship. Terry last played for the Milwaukee Bucks in 2018. His career average was impressive considering the vast number of games he played in (1410 games total, 679 started). Terry scored a total of 18,881 points and 5,415 assists. His total NBA earnings amount to a whopping $108,253,648.
Jason officially retired in December 2018, but it was conditional. If the Lakers, Warriors or Mavericks wanted to sign him, he would come out of retirement. At the time of this post, he is 41 years old, so the hopes of getting signed may be dashed.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 4 – Mike Bibby
Position: Point Guard
Years at Arizona: 1996-1998
College Stats: 15.4 pts, 3.8 reb, 5.4 Ast, 1.4 stl, .1 blk
College Awards:
1997 NCAA Champ
1997 NCAA All-Tournament
1997 NCAA Tournament All-Region
1997-98 Consensus All-America (1st Tm)
1998 NCAA Tournament All-Region
1998 Pacific-10 Conference Player of the Year
1998 1st Team All-Pac-10
1997 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year
No. 10 Jersey retired by the University of Arizona
NBA Draft: 1998 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2nd overall Selected by the Vancouver Grizzlies
Years in the NBA: 14
NBA Awards:1999 NBA All-Rookie 1st Team
FIBA Gold Medalist: 2003.
Mike Bibby is another Arizona Wildcat that has an NCAA Tournament Championship ring playing alongside Jason Terry and Miles Simon in 1997. He scored 19 points in this overtime win. He and Miles Simon played almost like they could read each other’s minds.
The son of a coach and former player, Henry Bibby, the young Bibby came with a great pedigree. Both father and son have won NCAA Basketball Championships. A star in high school in Phoenix, Terry also led his Shadow Mountain High school to the Arizona state championship for Coach Jerry Conner.
Bibby won many awards during his time at Arizona and his jersey is retired. He was such a great college player that the Vancouver Grizzlies drafted him No. 2 overall in the 1998 NBA Draft. He played 14 seasons for six different teams ending his career with 14,698 total points and 5,517 total assists. He started in 950 of the 1,001 games he played in the NBA.
Bibby brought home a gold medal in 2003 playing for team USA in the FIBA Americas Championship. He was also an Arizona State Champion (High School).
Ice Cube asked Mike to play in his BIG3 league and he did not disappoint him. After bulking up, and we mean really putting on muscle, Bibby led the BIG3 in both 4-pointers and assists in 2017.
Bibby is currently the head coach for Shadow Mountain High School in Phoenix, Arizona, his alma mater. Bibby just led his team to win the Arizona State Championship, their seventh, in February and is hoping to coach in the college ranks next, his record is 170-6 at Shadow Mountain.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 3 – Andre Iguodala
Position: Small Forward, Shooting guard
Years at Arizona: 2002-2004
College Stats: 9.6 pts, 6.6 reb, 3.4 Ast, 1.5 stl, .5 blk
College Awards:
2004 1st Team Pac-12
NBA Draft: 2004 / Round: 1 / Pick: 9th overall Selected by the Philadelphia 76ers
Years in the NBA: 15
NBA Awards:
2012 NBA All-Star
2015 Finals MVP
NBA Champion (Warriors) 2015, 2017, 2018
2005 All-Rookie (1st)
2011 All-Defensive (2nd)
2014 All-Defensive (1st)
2009 NBA 3269 (1st) Minutes played
NBA 82 (1st) Games Played 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010
FIBA Gold Medalist: 2010
Olympic Gold Medalist: 2012
Andre Iguodala is an Olympic Gold Medalist (2012), a gold medals FIBA National Champion (2010), a three-time NBA Champion under fellow Wildcat Steve Kerr on the Golden State Warriors (2015, 2017, 2018), an NBA All-Star (2012), and an NBA Finals MVP (2015), the only Wildcat to ever earn the award.
It’s important to note that Andre won the NBA Finals MVP as a player that never started a game during the regular season, playoffs or finals. NBA Finals MVP is also an award that no Wildcat had won before. Being the sixth man and not a starting star was not easy to accept but Kerr implored him to buy into the team mentality and it brought the two a championship.
Even though LeBron James team lost that year, plenty of media and fans thought James should have won the award, but it was clear Iguodala was key to the Warriors success.
In 2002, as the No. 6 small forward and the No. 26 player in the nation, Iguodala signed a letter of Intent to play at Arkansas but after the head coach, Nolan Richardson was fired he opted to play with his friend Hassan Adams at Arizona. Iggy not only joined Adams, but also Luke Walton who would coach him later for the Golden State Warriors, Salim Stoudamire, Mustafa Shakir, and Channing Frye. It was a team full of future NBA players.
At Arizona, Iguodala earned many awards, but what may have been most impressive was logging three triple-doubles, one of only two Pac-10 players to be able to achieve two or more triple-doubles, the other being Jason Kidd.
Iguodala came out of school early only playing two seasons but making it to the NCAA Tournament both years. He signed with Rob Pelinka, the current Lakers GM and Kobe Bryant’s agent at the time.
Andre was picked No. 9 overall in the 2004 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers to which Dick Vitale commented that it was a mistake. Vitale eventually apologized for being wrong, but we are still waiting for an additional apology to Arizona for his year-long calling for Wildcats fans to push to fire Sean Miller, so this is additional historic proof he has no respect for Arizona.
Iguodala is not done in the NBA, but recently became the VP of NBA Player Association, his team is on his way to winning another championship in 2019.
Arizona Basketball Greatest Player No. 2 – Sean Elliott
Position: Small Forward
Years at Arizona: 1985-1989
College Stats: 19.2 pts, 6.1 reb, 3.4 Ast, .8 stl, .3 blk
College Awards:
1988 Consensus All-America (1st Tm)
1988 NCAA All-Tournament
1988 NCAA Tournament All-Region
1988 Pacific-10 Conference Player of the Year
1989 AP Player of the Year
Consensus All-America (1st Tm) 1988, 1989
1989 NABC Player of the Year
1989 NCAA Tournament All-Region
Pacific-10 Conference Player of the Year 1988, 1989
1989 Adolph Rupp Trophy
1989 Wooden Award
No. 32 Jersey Retired by the University of Arizona
2018 College Basketball Hall of Fame
NBA Draft: 1989 / Round: 1 / Pick: 3rd overall Selected by the San Antonio Spurs
Years in the NBA: 12
NBA Awards:
1999 NBA Champion (Spurs)
NBA All-Star 1993, 1996
1990 NBA All-Rookie Second Team
No. 32 Retired by San Antonio Spurs
NPBA First VP
FIBA Gold Medalist: 1986
Sean Elliott, born and raised in Tucson, Arizona, is one of the most recognized names in Arizona Basketball history. His jersey is retired in McKale Center by A Players Program as well as in San Antonio for the Spurs. Elliott is highly decorated and even earned a gold medal for Team USA in the 1986 FIBA World Championship.
Elliott played with Steve Kerr, Salim Stoudemire, and Khalid Reeves when they made it to the Final Four in 1988. He remains the University of Arizona’s all-time leading scorer with 2,555 total points in 133 games averaging 19.2 points per game. He broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time Pac-10 career record in scoring.
His college career was insane, just review his awards! He was awarded the John R. Wooden Award, the Adolph Rupp Trophy, an NABC and AP Player of the Year, and was a two-time All-American and PAC-10 Player of the Year.
Elliott’s success did not end in college, he was drafted No. 3 overall in the 1989 NBA Draft to the San Antonio Spurs where he played for four years and then returned later. While with the Spurs, teaming up with Kerr once more, he earned an NBA Championship along in 1999.
After winning the NBA Championship, Elliott was in need of a kidney transplant. After he recovered from getting a kidney from his brother Noah, Sean returned to the NBA. In March 2002, Elliott returned to play against the Atlanta Hawks becoming the first NBA Player to return after a kidney transplant. He retired in 2001 ending his career as the fifth highest franchise total three’s made (563) and averaged 14.2 pts, 4.3 reb, and 2.6 ast per game.
Arizona Basketball Greatest PlayerNo. 1 – Steve Kerr
Position: Point guard, Shooting Guard
Years at Arizona: 1984-1988
College Stats: 11.2 pts, 2.2 reb, 3.4 Ast, 1.0 stl, .1 blk
College Awards:
No. 25 Retired by the University of Arizona
1988 NCAA Tournament All-Region
1988 2nd Team All American AP
1988 3rd Team All-American NABC
1st Team All-Pac-10 1986, 1988
No. 1 3’s – 114 1988
No. 1 True Shooting % .782 1988
1990 NBA .507 (1st) FG %
1995 NBA .524 (1st) FG %
Career NBA .454 (1st) FG %
Career .454 (1st) FG %
NBA Draft: 1988 / Round: 2 / Pick: 50th overall Selected by the Phoenix Suns
Years in the NBA: 16 as a player, 5 as a coach
NBA Awards:
NBA Champion Coach (Warriors) 2015, 2017, 2018
2016 NBA Coach of the Year
NBA All-Star Game head coach 2015, 2017
NBA Champion Player 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003
FIBA Gold Medalist: 1986
Steve Kerr. Just his name alone is synonymous with the NBA and Arizona Basketball. He still reps his alma mater during press conferences and March Madness. He hired fellow Wildcat Luke Walton as his assistant coach which propelled both of their careers. Eventually, Walton would earn a head coaching position with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Kerr is one of the most beloved Arizona Wildcats of all time. An eight eight-time NBA Champion (five titles as a player: three with the Bulls, two with the Spurs) and two titles as a coach with the Golden State Warriors. He earned the highest career 3-point makes with 45.4%, more than any player in NBA history (Total made: 250).
Kerr has been a college player, an NBA Champion, an NBA president of basketball operations and general manager for the Phoenix Suns, and an NBA Head Coach. In April of 2015, Kerr broke the NBA record for most wins (regular season) for a rookie coach after beating the Dallas Mavericks. He also was the first rookie coach since Pat Riley in 1982 to win a championship.
In 2016, the Warriors broke the 1996 Chicago Bulls record for the most wins in an NBA Season. Ironically the Warriors broke the Bulls record which was a team Kerr was a player.
“STEEEVE KERRRR.” That’s the chant Wildcats fans would say every time it seemed Kerr got the ball. While winning the FIBA Championship for Team USA, Kerr got injured and he had to sit out a year before he got to play. In 1988, Kerr was teammates with Sean Elliott and the led the team to the Final Four.