UK dominates SI's top 100 NBA players

[JFCats22]

https://www.si.com/nba/2017/09/14/nba-top-100-players-2018-lebron-james-stephen-curry-kevin-durant

UK had 9 of the top 100, nearly 10% of the best players in the league went to UK.

Duke and KU each had 3.

8. Anthony Davis
13. John Wall
14. Karl-Anthony Towns
23. DeMarcus Cousins
38. Eric Bledsoe
64. Devin Booker
86. Nerlens Noel
94. Julius Randle
98. Patrick Patterson

 

[Smashcat]

 

[MWes11]

Booker is too low, but awesome to see our players succeeding at the next level.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

Well Kansas has zero in that time, sooo..

 

[LineSkiCat14]

I have to say, something isn't right about Randle and PPat being so close.. I feel like the gap should be bigger. I freaking love me some PPat, but Randle is practically doubling his numbers and doing it with many years of improvement ahead of him.

.. as I went to look more I realized their entire website is a mess. What is wrong with these websites? Do you want me to give you hits at work? Then don't put a vacation ad up on half the screen, that I can't quickly close in 0.05 seconds.

 

[Lovebaskelball]

Kentucky: 9 (Anthony Davis, John Wall, Karl-Anthony Towns, DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, Devin Booker, Nerlens Noel, Julius Randle, Patrick Patterson)
Texas: 5 (Kevin Durant, LaMarcus Aldridge, Tristan Thompson, Avery Bradley, Myles Turner)
UCLA: 4 (Russell Westbrook, Kevin Love, Jrue Holiday, Trevor Ariza)
Wake Forest: 3 (Chris Paul, Jeff Teague, James Johnson)
USC: 3 (DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic, Taj Gibson)
North Carolina: 3 (Harrison Barnes, Danny Green, Marvin Williams)
Marquette: 3 (Jimmy Butler, Jae Crowder, Dwyane Wade)
Kansas: 3 (Joel Embiid, Andrew Wiggins, Markieff Morris)
Indiana: 3 (Cody Zeller, Victor Oladipo, Eric Gordon)
Duke: 3 (Kyrie Irving, J.J. Redick, Rodney Hood)

 

[gossie21]

https://www.si.com/nba/2017/09/14/nba-top-100-players-2018-lebron-james-stephen-curry-kevin-durant

UK had 9 of the top 100, nearly 10% of the best players in the league went to UK.

Duke and KU each had 3.

8. Anthony Davis
13. John Wall
14. Karl-Anthony Towns
23. DeMarcus Cousins
38. Eric Bledsoe
64. Devin Booker
86. Nerlens Noel
94. Julius Randle
98. Patrick Patterson

Closer to 9% if I've done my calculations correctly.

 

[Soupbean]

Anybody forward this to Cowherd yet?

 

[white10]

I believe Devan Booker, Eric Bledsoe and Patrick Patterson, were all 4 star recruits not top 20 guys !! So much for those who say these kids would of made it anyways no matter who coached them because their top 10 to 20 guys !!

Go get them Cal!!

 

[GonzoCat90]

Also: Kawhi (4), Chris Paul (7) and Draymond (10). Imagine if a team had all of those guys on one squad together.

They'd probably lose to the 60 games Anthony Davis plays per year and Uncle Flat Earth, but other than that, man, what a trio.

But go Cats.

Now back to the Cut Nets attention hour.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

Also: Kawhi (4), Chris Paul (7) and Draymond (10). Imagine if a team had all of those guys on one squad together.

They'd probably lose to the 60 games Anthony Davis plays per year and Uncle Flat Earth, but other than that, man, what a trio.

But go Cats.

Now back to the Cut Nets attention hour.

Paul and Green would certainly break the single season team record for hitting the opponent in the testicles.

 

[BourbonBalz]

I'm sorry, but there are not 7 players better than Davis and there are not 13 players better than KAT.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

8, but should be at the very least, 10 right now.

Hard to debate. But I'll say this, you isolate Curry or Green from GSW and yeah, I'm ranking Kat, Davis, and maybe even Wall ahead of them. Really don't think either carry their weight well. Curry did step up a bit defensively.. but I really really really can't wait for the day that he doesn't have Klay and Green to help keep the team afloat. And now with his contract, it's going to be hard for him to be continually surrounded by top talent.

 

[MdWIldcat55]

Will Fox be the next to crack this list? Does Jamal Murray have a shot in a couple years?

 

[gossie21]

Hard to debate. But I'll say this, you isolate Curry or Green from GSW and yeah, I'm ranking Kat, Davis, and maybe even Wall ahead of them. Really don't think either carry their weight well. Curry did step up a bit defensively.. but I really really really can't wait for the day that he doesn't have Klay and Green to help keep the team afloat. And now with his contract, it's going to be hard for him to be continually surrounded by top talent.

I'm not sure it would be possible for me to disagree with a take more. Maybe if someone called MKG lazy or something, but that's probably it.

 

[Mike-D]

So why did my true posts get deleted?

 

[LineSkiCat14]

I'm not sure it would be possible for me to disagree with a take more. Maybe if someone called MKG lazy or something, but that's probably it.

We'll get to find out in due time. This iteration of GSW can't exist in after a few years. Let's see where Curry, and more importantly, Draymond are then.

Also, you think Draymond is better than Kat and Davis??

 

[LineSkiCat14]

I don't think Curry is bad, average or even decent. He's great. Top3? No. Just think him and Green have an awful lot to be thankful for when it comes to each other, Klay, and hell of a prolific bench. Not even going to bring up Durant, either. Strictly 2016 and prior.

Wall and Davis have yet to be apart of a team that has even close to the talent that Curry and Green have had.

 

[gossie21]

We'll get to find out in due time. This iteration of GSW can't exist in after a few years. Let's see where Curry, and more importantly, Draymond are then.

Also, you think Draymond is better than Kat and Davis??

No. I can't stand Draymond. I think Green would wither on the vine if he were to leave GSW. More than any other player on that team he needs to be surrounded by other great players to be great himself. If you dropped him on the Brooklyn Nets team today he would be terrible. While you could drop Steph, Klay, or Durant in Brooklyn and they would still be great.

My disagreement is mostly with Curry. I think he is the one creating the space and making it easier for everyone else on GSW. His shooting ability creates gravity on opposing teams, and they have to always chase him around. I don't know that we will find out much if anything over the next few years. Curry's window of being transcendentally great is probably only 3-4 more years. GSW should probably be able to keep enough pieces around him to contend during that time span.

 

[JFCats22]

Of players who went to college, over 11% of this list went to UK.

Damn

 

[TheySoSensitive]

9 out of 100 is literally 9%

Exactly 9%

Did we say nearly 10% because 10 looks way better than 9? Just don't understand why someone would cook the books on something so obvious.

 

[UKcats1988]

Espn is doing a top 100 as well, top 10 comes out tomorrow

20-11

20. Hayward
19.Klay
18. Lillard
17. Cousins
16. Jokic
15. Wall
14. Gobert
13. Paul George
12. Towns
11. Jimmy Butler

 

[GonzoCat90]

The logic just doesn't folllw on the Golden State detractors.

If Steph wouldn't be great without great players like Klay and Draymond

And Klay wouldn't be great without great players like Steph and Draymond

And Draymond wouldn't be great without great players like Steph and Klay

Then aren't they all great players who happen to play together? Their system is a product of having the perfect players for it. No good player does it alone.

And there sure isn't a team with three guys who wouldn't be very good without each other that just happened to win 73 games.

 

[hotelblue]

cousins #23. proof the game has changed. that is ludicrous.

 

[Lovebaskelball]

I'm sorry, but there are not 7 players better than Davis and there are not 13 players better than KAT.

So Davis and KAT are tied for #1?

 

[FrankUnderwood]

9 out of 100 is literally 9%

Exactly 9%

Did we say nearly 10% because 10 looks way better than 9? Just don't understand why someone would cook the books on something so obvious.

You're kinda negative a lot on this board bro. You aight ?

 

[Galbpt02]

This list is garbage - if you are ranking top 100 players in the NBA in terms of value - Jamal Murray would be on the list, so would Fox and Monk and I think Patrick Patterson would no longer be in that mix. Maybe I put too much emphasis on youth but I think we could easily have 11 or 12 on the list without stretching too much.

 

[SilentsAreGolden]

3....2.....1 until the chokehawk fans come running to tell us that doesn't matter since the "best player of all time" went to Kansas. Chamberlain.

 

[TheySoSensitive]

You're kinda negative a lot on this board bro. You aight ?

Read thy name. It's part of the schtick.

...and I'm curious as to how he got to 10%. I'm no math whiz but 9/100 seems to be pretty direct.

 

[Nkycatfan17]

I'd say in about 6-8seasons,we will have roughly 15-20 of the top 100. That's crazy

 

[floatingyou]

https://www.si.com/nba/2017/09/14/nba-top-100-players-2018-lebron-james-stephen-curry-kevin-durant

UK had 9 of the top 100, nearly 10% of the best players in the league went to UK.

Duke and KU each had 3.

8. Anthony Davis
13. John Wall
14. Karl-Anthony Towns
23. DeMarcus Cousins
38. Eric Bledsoe
64. Devin Booker
86. Nerlens Noel
94. Julius Randle
98. Patrick Patterson

I don't get it. This isn't negative at all. Why would you post this?

 

[Ryan Lemonds Diary]

Draymond Green sucks and if he played on a bad team like Davis, Cousins and even Booker has he wouldn't even be mentioned except when he kicks someone in the groin.

 

[Deli owl]

Knight should be on there

 

[floatingyou]

9 out of 100 is literally 9%

Exactly 9%

Did we say nearly 10% because 10 looks way better than 9? Just don't understand why someone would cook the books on something so obvious.

Considering the OP I'm surprised he didn't say "just over 8%" instead of "nearly 10%". That's a slightly more negative spin

 

[GonzoCat90]

Draymond Green sucks and if he played on a bad team like Davis, Cousins and even Booker has he wouldn't even be mentioned except when he kicks someone in the groin.

Going to bat for Boogie while deriding Draymond Green is homerism at its best.

No one mentions that he's one of the reasons Golden State is such a good team. His ability to guard every spot at an elite level, rebound, start the break, pass, take his man off the dribble, and shoot the three is exactly the way they play. It doesn't work without him.

He's one of the most complete, versatile players in the game. You not liking him doesn't make that untrue.

Do you honestly think a team of expert analysts ranked him at 10 but you're the only one who considered what team he plays for and that that fact actually means he's awful if not for them carrying him? The intro of the rankings even says they try and remove that element from the evaluation.

 

[GonzoCat90]

Knight should be on there

Sadly, he doesn't belong. Top 100 is some pretty rare air. With 30 teams, it's basically the three best guys from each team with a handful of exceptions from deeper squads. Knight wasn't one of the three best players on an awful Suns team.

 

[Deli owl]

Murray, Knight, Lyles, Fox, Bam, Monk

I think all will be better that PPat in the long run.

 

[Ryan Lemonds Diary]

Going to bat for Boogie while deriding Draymond Green is homerism at its best.

No one mentions that he's one of the reasons Golden State is such a good team. His ability to guard every spot at an elite level, rebound, start the break, pass, take his man off the dribble, and shoot the three is exactly the way they play. It doesn't work without him.

He's one of the most complete, versatile players in the game. You not liking him doesn't make that untrue.

Do you honestly think a team of expert analysts ranked him at 10 but you're the only one who considered what team he plays for and that that fact actually means he's awful if not for them carrying him? The intro of the rankings even says they try and remove that element from the evaluation.

The only comparison with Boogie and Draymond is they are both headcases. If you think he could thrive anywhere else, like he has at Golden State, I don't know what to tell you. While I will give you he is versatile, he would suffer from the Jared Prickett syndrome if he went to a bad team where he was the focal point of a defense just like Jared did when Mash left. Prickett's freshman year, lying Pitino was comparing him to Larry Bird but after Mash left he was more like Leroy Byrd. Draymond would not be near as effective if he wasn't the 4th or 5th option and having the 4th or 5th best defender on the other team guarding him.

 

[Lovebaskelball]

UK has 11.25% of college players in the top 100. 17 players were international and 3 high school players.

 

[GonzoCat90]

The only comparison with Boogie and Draymond is they are both headcases. If you think he could thrive anywhere else I don't know what to tell you. While I will give you he is versatile, he would suffer from the Jared Prickett syndrome if he went to a bad team where he was the focal point of a defense just like Jared did when Mash left. Prickett's freshman year, lying Pitino was comparing him to Larry Byrd but after Mash left he was more like Leroy Byrd. Draymond would not be near as effective if he wasn't the 4th or 5th option and having the 4th or 5th best defender on the other team guarding him.

Based on what though? He was the same player, plus a better scorer, in college, and everyone doubted him then. Naming an example of something happening to Jared Prickett of all people doesn't mean it would apply to any other case, particularly when we've seen the Warriors lose a huge game because Draymond was suspended. They aren't the same team without him.

Now, is Michael Jordan still Michael Jordan without Pippen and Rodman and Kukoc and Kerr and Phil and the supporting cast? We saw what Kobe did with Smush Parker and company alongside him. No great player or coach does anything alone, so yeah, it's fair to say it might be ugly at times if he played for the Nets, but what if he played for an average or above average team? Maybe he's what makes them elite.

All we can say, is that he's the second most important piece for the Warriors system, he's the best defender on what is a growing dynasty, he's the emotional leader of every team he's been on, he stuffs the stat sheet, and he's forcing the rest of the league to adjust from him being "too small" to be a 4 to everyone else trying to find a guy like him.

No one who averages 12/8/8/1.5/1.5 with a three per game from the PF spot while winning defensive player of the year is a bad player, even if their personality rubs a lot of fans the wrong way.