Busting Brackets
Fansided

NCAA Basketball: Top 10 players from college participating in 2019 NBA Finals

By Brandon Simberg

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 21: Stephen Curry #30, Kevin Durant #35 and DeMarcus Cousins #0 of the Golden State Warriors laugh on the bench during a 130-111 win over the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center on January 21, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 21: Stephen Curry #30, Kevin Durant #35 and DeMarcus Cousins #0 of the Golden State Warriors laugh on the bench during a 130-111 win over the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center on January 21, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, ON – MAY 25: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Toronto Raptors hoists the Eastern Conference Championship trophy after defeating the Milwaukee Bucks in Game Six of the NBA Eastern Conference Final at Scotiabank Arena on May 25, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Raptors defeated the Bucks 100-94 to win the Eastern Conference Championship 4 games to 2. NOTE TO USER: user expressly acknowledges and agrees by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Licence Agreement. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON – MAY 25: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Toronto Raptors hoists the Eastern Conference Championship trophy after defeating the Milwaukee Bucks in Game Six of the NBA Eastern Conference Final at Scotiabank Arena on May 25, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Raptors defeated the Bucks 100-94 to win the Eastern Conference Championship 4 games to 2. NOTE TO USER: user expressly acknowledges and agrees by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Licence Agreement. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images) /

With the NBA Finals right around the corner, I decided to take a look back at some of the NCAA Basketball careers of players on the Warriors and Raptors – constructing a power rankings of the players based solely on their college careers.

This list was certainly not easy as there were many things to factor in. Some players had huge statistical seasons but only played 1-2 years. Other guys really developed over their four years and were instrumental to their program’s success by their NCAA Basketball senior season.

I used a combination of these factors (individual stats, accolades, career longevity and team success) when creating the list. Also, the effect they had on college basketball. Kevin Durant may have played only one season at Texas, but it was a memorable season that shifted how we viewed freshman.

I did not use guys on two-way contracts (sorry Damion Lee, who was pretty good at Drexel) and international players who did not play in college like Marc Gasol. Serge Ibaka, and Jonas Jerebko were excluded as well. Additionally, Shaun Livingston came straight from high school.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Danny Green – North Carolina (2005-2009)

In terms of team success at the college level, no one player has more in the NBA Finals than Danny Green. Green started on the 07-08 Tarheel team that made the Final Four and the 08-09 team that won the National Championship. However he only averaged 9.4 points per game for his career, not becoming a full-time starter until his junior season. That Tarheel team was stacked with the likes of Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, and Wayne Ellington but Green’s shooting and defense were an integral part of their success. Green made All-ACC first team defense as a senior.

Damian Jones – Vanderbilt (2013-2016)

Jones had a really solid three-year career at Vanderbilt where he averaged double-digit points all three seasons. He was named to the All-SEC Freshman team , and second team All-SEC his sophomore and junior campaigns. Despite Jones’ strong play, the Commodores only made one tournament appearance in his three years where they were knocked out in the First Four.

Jodie Meeks – Kentucky (2006-2009)

Meeks, who is a reserve shooting guard for the Raptors, got off to a slow start his first two years at Kentucky averaging single digits his freshman and sophomore year. However, he exploded for a monster junior year in Lexington, scoring 23 points per game to lead the conference in scoring. He was a second team All-American and a finalist for the Wooden Award. Meeks played on Kentucky in the pre-Calipari era and the team struggled, never making it out of the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

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