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

19. Jalen Pickett

Pickett is a 6’4 point guard originally from Rochester, New York who had quite the success in college basketball. He actually began his career in his home state, starring for three seasons at Siena in the MAAC, winning that league’s Player of the Year honors in 2020. He’d spend his final two years under Micah Shrewsberry at Penn State and became an even more outstanding talent.

After great play in those first three seasons, he averaged 13.3 points and 4.4 assists in his first season with the Nittany Lions. Penn State struggled but went on a mini-run in the Big Ten Tournament, success they’d certainly build on. Pickett was simply electric in his fifth collegiate season, averaging 17.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 6.6 assists as a major stat-stuffer. He had a triple-double against Butler and led the Nittany Lions to the Big Ten title game and to the second round of the Big Dance, upsetting Texas A&M in the first round.

We already knew that Pickett was great point guard when he was at Siena, but his breakthrough at Penn State proves it tenfold. He led Penn State to their first NCAA Tournament win in several decades and was named a Second Team All-American for that season. Pickett’s impact could certainly be felt on the court for the Nittany Lions and he finished 4th in the nation in assists. He truly did everything for Penn State, putting the program on his back throughout a surprisingly successful year.