Best Freshmen PG Seasons Since 1984 (Evaluation)

Posted on: August 30, 2016 at 10:36:10 CT

I keep seeing people post things about how none of our guards are SEC quality and how we are so doomed. So instead of simply spitting out an opinion, I broke down the following Point Guards that have played at Mizzou since 1984 to see who had the best Freshmen year ever.

This was my methodology. I looked at the following statistics. Minutes Per Game, Points Per Game, Reb Per Game, Assts Per Game, TO's Per Game, Steals Per Game, FG%, 3PT% and FT %. I then ranked these 14 point guards based on where they fell in each statistical category. A one was the best score (meaning you were the best in that category) and 14 means you were the worst statistically in that category.

I didn't include the following players:

Jimmy McKinney - Began as a SG
Miguel Paul - Not enough production
Tramaine Isabell - Not enough production
Ricky Clemmons - Juco Transfer
Randy Pulley - Juco Transfer
JT Tiller - Played primarily SG

And after ranking them on each statistical category, here are the results. The number below is the addition of all their statistical rankings against their other Mizzou Freshmen PG's. (Cumulative score)

From worst to best:
14. Troy Hudson (98)
13. Lynn Hardy (93)
12. Lee Coward (86)
11. Wes Clark (83)
10. Wesley Stokes (69)
9. Jason Horton (68)
8. Michael Dixon (64)
7. Melvin Booker (58)
6. Keyon Dooling (57)
5. Travis Ford (54)
3t. Phil Pressey (51)
3t. Terrence Phillips (51)
2. Brian Grawer (42)
1. Keon Lawrence (37)

Additional Comments:
- Yes, I realize less talented teams require players to play more, but generally will hurt their efficiencies and bring their overall rating down.
- Yes, I realize this doesn't always predict future success
- I do believe this shows that Terrence Phillips had one of the more impressive Freshmen years ever. To say we don't have any "SEC quality players" is a statistical fallacy, in my humble opinion.

Thoughts?