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Rank the LSU Bball freshman of the last decade

Posted on 12/27/20 at 4:10 am
Posted by PhillyFan1994
Member since Sep 2012
2032 posts
Posted on 12/27/20 at 4:10 am
The Candidates (Skipping over some years because I am only listing players whose freshman years I believe deserve mention):

2011:Johnny O'Bryant, Anthony Hickey

2013: Jarell Martin, Jordan Mickey

2015: Ben Simmons, Antonio Blakeney

2017: Tremont Waters

2018: Naz Reid, Javonte Smart

2019: Trendon Watford

2020: Cam Thomas

Assuming Ben is clear number 1 who else would make up a top 5 for you?

My top 5 would be:

1) Ben Simmons
2) Cam Thomas (I know its early but he is leading the SEC in scoring. Could be 1st team All-SEC)
3) Naz Reid
4) Tremont Waters
5) Trendon Watford
This post was edited on 12/27/20 at 4:21 am
Posted by atomic31
Member since Aug 2018
1450 posts
Posted on 12/27/20 at 4:49 am to
Tremont Waters was the man
Posted by Shiftyplus1
Regret nothing that made you smile
Member since Oct 2005
13365 posts
Posted on 12/27/20 at 6:32 am to
In terms of production and expectations, I'd put Cam before Ben.
Posted by GorgeousGeorge
Nola
Member since Jul 2014
2006 posts
Posted on 12/27/20 at 6:51 am to
1. Simmons
2. Cam Thomas
3. Tremont
Posted by Solo Cam
Member since Sep 2015
32665 posts
Posted on 12/27/20 at 7:51 am to
Waters was better than simmons. Ben just had way more potential
Posted by SaintTiger80
Member since Feb 2020
453 posts
Posted on 12/27/20 at 7:55 am to
1) Tremont - put everything on the court, had game winning shots and blocks, led the team to success
2) Naz Reid - super star talent that actually got the team to the post season
3) Ben Simmons - Great stats but was not motivated while playing at LSU. Team underwhelmed
4) Cam - extreme scoring talent, too early to tell full contribution
Posted by geauxtigers33
Baton Rouge
Member since Jan 2014
13734 posts
Posted on 12/27/20 at 8:18 am to
quote:

5) Trendon Watford


If LSU would have had a postseason last year he would be much higher on the list. He was playing great at the end of the season.
Posted by CP3forMVP
Member since Nov 2010
14941 posts
Posted on 12/27/20 at 9:49 am to
I would like to see how Cam handles SEC play
Posted by TheTexasTiger7
Dallas - Baton Rouge
Member since Jun 2018
9387 posts
Posted on 12/27/20 at 11:11 am to
Anyone who doesn’t have Simmons at 1 is just butthurt as frick. Simmons was night and day the best out of everyone.

1. Simmons
2. Waters (this could change by the end of the year)
3. Thomas (could move to second on this list, but only played 6 games so far.
This post was edited on 12/27/20 at 11:13 am
Posted by LSU82BILL
Fort Lauderdale, FL
Member since Sep 2006
10331 posts
Posted on 12/27/20 at 11:19 am to
frick Simmons.....the original “Opt-out.
This post was edited on 12/27/20 at 11:21 am
Posted by Alt26
Member since Mar 2010
28439 posts
Posted on 12/28/20 at 9:00 am to
Still WAY too early to rank Thomas. LSU has only played one decent opponent this season. That said, Thomas is well on his way to being one of the best Freshman to have ever played for LSU...if he can sustain his production in SEC play.

My top 5 would be:

1. Simmons. He gets a lot of flack here (some deserved) for "not living up to the hype." However, his overall numbers are some of the best in LSU history. A singularly dominant player. Unfortunately, Jones was just not a coach capable of managing that roster.

2. Waters. Without him, Wade's first team likely has a losing record. Best LSU PG since Chris Jackson. He could completely control a game from start to finish and was never afraid to take (and make) the huge shot

3. Mickey. 13ppg/8rpg/3bpg. Top 5 in the SEC in rebounds, blocks and FG% as a Freshman. Best pure shot blocker since Shaq. Made up for a lot of poor defense from the rest of the team.

4. Thomas. Has a chance to move up this list. As mentioned, it has been against pretty weak competition, but (so far) he looks to be in that realm of great pure scorers like Henderson, Thornton, even Waters. What he does in SEC play will decide if he moves up, down, or off this list. But the early returns are great. You're pretty good if a "bad" game is 16 or 19 points.

5. Watford. His and Reid's stats are almost identical (so I could see the argument for Reid here). But I give the nod to Watford simply because he had to shoulder the load more than Reid. For as good a player as he was, Reid had help inside from KBW (on defense) and Waters was still the focal point. Watford had to battle last season essentially being LSU's only true post threat (though Williams contributed his fair share on the glass and defensively).
Posted by mmcgrath
Indianapolis
Member since Feb 2010
35456 posts
Posted on 12/28/20 at 12:54 pm to
1. Simmons
2. Waters
3. Watford
4. Reid
5. Wayde Sims (fight me)
This post was edited on 12/28/20 at 12:59 pm
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