Big Ten Basketball: Ranking of 25 best players from last decade (2013-23)

By Joey Loose | Jul 12, 2023

Mar 15, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Wisconsin Badgers forward Frank Kaminsky (44) posts up against Michigan State Spartans guard/forward Branden Dawson (22) and guard Denzel Valentine (45) during the first half in the championship game of the Big Ten Tournament at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-USA TODAY Sports /

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Big Ten Basketball Penn State Nittany Lions forward Lamar Stevens David Banks-USA TODAY Sports /

25. Lamar Stevens

A 6’8 wing from North Wales, Pennsylvania, Stevens played his college days under Pat Chambers at Penn State. Stevens started all 135 games he played with the Nittany Lions, arriving in 2016 all the way until the national pandemic ended his senior season prematurely. He certainly made himself known in that time.

Early in his career, Stevens was already a talented scorer, putting up at least 12 points in each of those four seasons, with the numbers increasing as time went on. As a sophomore, he helped lead Penn State to an NIT title, scoring 30 points at Marquette in the quarterfinals and 28 against Utah in the final. His best numbers came as a junior, averaging 19.9 points and 7.7 rebounds, though the senior year team was Penn State’s best, likely making the NCAA Tournament had the pandemic not interrupted the season.

One of the Big Ten’s best interior scorers during his career, he was twice named First Team All-Big Ten and won the highly-coveted honor of NIT Most Valuable Player as a sophomore. He actually finished 4th in the conference in scoring for three straight seasons while putting up decent rebounding numbers as well. It was more about the stats for Stevens, as he helped lead one of the Big Ten’s most dormant programs to decent success during his time in the league.

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