By JOSH NEWMAN
Special to ZAGSBLOG
The 50-player preseason watch list for the John R. Wooden Award was released on Tuesday afternoon. To the surprise of no one, with freshmen allowed on the list for the first time, the young guys are well-represented.
Kansas (Andrew Wiggins, Wayne Selden Jr. Joel Embiid), Kentucky (Andrew Harrison, Julius Randle, James Young) each got three first-year players on the initial list, while Arizona (Aaron Gordon) Duke (Jabari Parker) and Indiana (Noah Vonleh) each got one.
A upperclassmen-heavy list, the non-freshman contingent is headlined by Creighton senior forward Doug McDermott, who 23.2 points and 7.7 rebounds last season, the Bluejays’ final one as a member of of the Missouri Valley Conference. McDermott, who will play this season as a walk-on after Grant Gibbs was granted a sixth year of eligibility, was named Big East Preseason Player of the Year last month.
The entire Wooden Award preseason watch list is below.
Name/School/Conference/Ht./Yr./Pos.
Jordan Adams/UCLA/Pac-12/6-5/So./G
Kyle Anderson/UCLA/Pac-12/6-9/So./G/F
Keith Appling/Michigan State/Big Ten/6-1/Sr./G
Isaiah Austin/Baylor/Big 12/7-1/So./C
Jahii Carson/Arizona State/Pac-12/5-10/So./G
Willie Cauley-Stein/Kentucky/SEC/7-0/So./F
Semaj Christon/Xavier/Big East/6-3/So./G
Aaron Craft/Ohio State/Big Ten/6-2/Sr./G
Sam Dekker/Wisconsin/Big Ten/6-7/So./F
Spencer Dinwiddie/Colorado/Pac-12/6-6/Jr./G
Cleanthony Early/Wichita State/Missouri Valley/6-8/Sr./F
Joel Embiid/Kansas/Big 12/7-0/Fr./C
C.J. Fair/Syracuse/ACC/6-8/Sr./F
Aaron Gordon/Arizona/Pac-12/6-9/Fr./F
Jerian Grant/Notre Dame/Big Sky/6-5/Sr./G
Montrezl Harrell/Louisville/The American/6-8/So./F
Gary Harris/Michigan State/Big Ten/6-4/So./G
Joe Harris/Virginia/ACC/6-6/Sr./G
Andrew Harrison/Kentucky/SEC/6-6/Fr./G
Tyler Haws/BYU/WCC/6-5/Jr./G
Andre Hollins/Minnesota/Big Ten/6-2/Jr./G
Rodney Hood/Duke/ACC/6-8/So./F
Joe Jackson/Memphis/The American/6-1/Sr./G
Cory Jefferson/Baylor/Big /12/6-9/Sr./F
Sean Kilpatrick/Cincinnati/The American/6-4/Sr./G
Alex Kirk/New Mexico/Mountain West/7-0/Jr./C
James Michael McAdoo/North Carolina/ACC/6-9/Jr./F
Doug McDermott*#/Creighton/Big East/6-8/Sr./F
Mitch McGary/Michigan/Big/Ten/6-10/So./F
Jordan McRae/Tennessee/SEC/6-6/Sr./G
Shabazz Napier/Connecticut/The American/6-1/Sr./G
Kevin Pangos/Gonzaga/WCC/6-2/Jr./G
Jabari Parker/Duke/ACC/6-8/Fr./F
Adreian Payne/Michigan State/Big Ten/6-10/Sr./C
Elfrid Payton/Louisiana/Sun Belt/6-3/Jr./G
Dwight Powell/Stanford/Pac-12/6-10/Sr./F
Julius Randle/Kentucky/SEC/6-9/Fr./F
Juvonte Reddic/VCU/Atlantic/10/6-9/Sr./F
Glenn Robinson III/Michigan/Big Ten/6-6/So./F
LaQuinton Ross/Ohio State/Big Ten/6-8/Jr./F
Wayne Selden, Jr./Kansas/Big 12/6-5/Fr./G
Marcus Smart/Oklahoma State/Big 12/6-4/So./G
Russ Smith/Louisville/The American/6-0/Sr./G
Jarnell Stokes/Tennessee/SEC/6-8/Jr./F
Rasheed Sulaimon/Duke/ACC/6-4/So./G
Noah Vonleh/Indiana/Big Ten/6-10/Fr./F
Dez Wells/Maryland/ACC/6-5/Jr./G/F
Andrew Wiggins/Kansas/Big 12/6-8/Fr./G
Kendall Williams/New Mexico/Mountain West/6-4/Sr./G
James Young/Kentucky/SEC/6-6/Fr./G
Players listed alphabetically
* indicates player chosen to the 2013 Wooden All American Team
# indicates player chosen to the 2012 Wooden All American Team
Photo: Associated Press
