Saturday, December 13, 2008

Top Ten UConn NBA Players


1. Ray Allen. 18.9 points, 3.5 boards and 2.6 assists. While he doesn’t have the best numbers like several of the other huskies, he was the major reason that the Celtics have the best record in the NBA. He has been playing some of his best ball since arriving in Boston. His outside shooting has skyrocketed to .395 from deep. He is 16th in the NBA in free throw percentage and 37th in scoring.

2. Caron Butler. 22.3 points, 6.5 boards and 4.4 assists. Carrying the Wizards on his back has given Tough Juice a soar left knee and aching right foot but he continues to produce solid numbers, though his team is struggling in last place in the East at 4 and 16. With Agent Zero on the bench Caron is missing a valuable opportunity to become a legit superstar but he hasn’t been able to will his team to victories. He is 10th in the league in scoring and 14th in steals, but 20th in turnovers.

3. Ben Gordon. 20.5 points, 3.5 boards, and 3.8 assists. Gordon is a lock for most improved NBA Husky. He has moved off the bench and started 16 of the Bulls 22 games. He is fighting through a shooting slump and slow starts, shooting 23 for 48 in his last three games. He isn’t getting to the line as much as he should and is doing most of his damage from jump shots. He is 22nd in the NBA in scoring.

4. Rudy Gay. 20 points, 5.3 boards, and 1.7 assists. Rudy has been playing great ball lately, scoring 71 points in the last three games and his team is winning those games. He is gelling with Mayo and they are becoming a dynamic duo, but their slow start has put them well behind the pace for the playoffs. He is 28th in the NBA in scoring and 26th in steals, but 14th in turnovers.

5. Rip Hamilton. 17.4 points, 3.4 boards, and 3.5 assists. The Mask is starting to find his range, hitting 6 for 10 in his last three games. His team is struggling to find its identity with A.I. on the team. He has just signed a new three-year extension and rewarded the team with improved play. He is 47th in the NBA in scoring.

6. Emeka Okafor. 12.6 points, 10.8 boards, and 1.8 blocks. He is a double-double machine but is inconsistent with his play. He has only been to the line 11 times in his past three games and needs to be more aggressive on the offensive end. Other than field goal percentage, his season stats are below his career stats. He is 7th in the league in rebounding, 15th in blocks and 3rd in field goal percentage.

7. Charlie Villanueva. 12.8 points, 7.1 boards, and 1.1 assists. With Ben getting more starts, Charlie has become the best Husky six man. He is playing great basketball lately, scoring 45 points in his last three games, though he shot just 18 for 48 in those games. He is 22nd in free throw percentage.

8. Josh Boone. 7.5 points, 7 boards, and 1.2 blocks. He’s getting the starts and minutes but has shown little bump in his overall stats. He is still woeful from the line, shooting an ugly .267 from the stripe. While he is rebounding better of late, 15 in his last three games isn’t what New Jersey needs.

9. Hilton Armstrong. 4.7 points, 2.9 boards, and .5 blocks. Hilton is getting more minutes of late and has shown improvement. He isn’t big enough to bang against larger centers and isn’t fluid enough to match up against elite power forwards.

10. Donyell Marshall. 5.4 points, 1.9 boards, and .7 assists. He was dusted off and contributed right away. He’s shooting .500 from deep and has proved that an old man still can contribute in this young man’s sport. He is 8th in three point percentage in the league.

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