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Horizon League Basketball: Early Player of the Year Candidates

By Bryan Mauro

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 17: Drew McDonald is one of the best players in the Horizon League, and he is leading the most talented team in the league. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 17: Drew McDonald is one of the best players in the Horizon League, and he is leading the most talented team in the league. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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CHICAGO, IL – MARCH 12: Kendrick Nunn former Illinois player has made his mark on the Horizon League this year, and is the frontrunner for Player of the Year in the conference (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, IL – MARCH 12: Kendrick Nunn former Illinois player has made his mark on the Horizon League this year, and is the frontrunner for Player of the Year in the conference (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

Who are the early Player of the Year candidates in the Horizon League?

The Horizon League has shown us some of the best games of the year so far and the conference has been extremely competitive thus far. The league has some of the best under the radar prospects in the NCAA. The league also has some transfers from high major schools, who are doing their best to keep their teams in the league race.

The following players are in a tight race for the Horizon League player of the year:

Kendrick Nunn — Oakland

Nunn is an elite scorer and is showing his scoring prowess every night on display for the Golden Grizzlies. Nunn is a transfer from Illinois, and, while at Illinois, he was one of the better guards in the Big Ten. With Nunn going to Oakland and being looked upon to provide the scoring punch is nothing new for him.

Nunn has been exceptional this year for Oakland. He is averaging 26.3 points per game, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game. He is doing all of this while shooting 45 % from the floor, 43% from three, and 83% from the line. Nunn has eye-popping shooting numbers, and Oakland has needed every single one of his points to win some games this year.

While Nunn was the preseason favorite to win this award, it would seem he is still the frontrunner half-way through the conference season. It would be a major upset if Nunn did not win the award at the end of the year.

One of the areas that Nunn should look to improve upon before embarking on what will most likely be an NBA career would be his defense. Nunn is known as a scorer that has numerous deficiencies on the defensive end of the floor, and it does seem at times that he doesn’t put forth as much effort into the defensive side of the ball as he does into the offensive end of the floor. Oakland is going to need Nunn to buy in on the defensive side of the ball more if Oakland wants to make the NCAA tournament.