Ranking the Most Complete Players for the 2015-16 College Basketball Season
With so many sports debates nowadays centering around whether an athlete is elite, wouldn't it make more sense to wish they were complete?
The game of college basketball is still played using a version of the longstanding five-player, five-position model the sport was built around. But over time many players have learned how to be effective at more than just the skills they're supposed to do well at and are becoming more and more capable of playing multiple positions. They can impact the game in a variety of ways, to the point that they're much harder to slow down.
The more positions players can play, the more complete the player is considered to be. It doesn't mean they have to be superb at everything, or even most things, but rather it's less likely that there are any facets of their game that could be considered weaknesses.
If a big man has learned how to hit the outside jumper, it's a huge boost to his team and his personal stock, but if he can't hit free throws, that negates the value he added from taking on other roles. However, if he's solid in each area, there's a completeness to that player that makes him an essential piece of a team.
We've picked the 20 most complete players in college basketball heading into the 2015-16 season, ranking them based on their ability to perform well as a scorer, shooter, rebounder, distributor and defender. We're only including returning players, since freshmen and junior-college transfers have yet to prove themselves at the Division I level.
Honorable Mention
1 of 21
There were more than 20 players worthy of being ranked on this list, using the following minimums as benchmarks:
- 10.0 points per-game scoring average
- 40 percent field-goal shooting
- 65 percent free-throw shooting
- 5.0 total rebound percentage
- 5.0 assist percentage
- 103.0 defensive rating or better
Three-point shooting percentage was also factored in for ranking purposes, but no minimum efficiency was established. Each player was ranked in all seven categories, and the 20 highest-rated made the cut.
Here are the ones who just missed out:
- John Brown, High Point
- Anthony Gill, Virginia
- A.J. Hammons, Purdue
- Marvelle Harris, Fresno State
- Dyshawn Pierre, Dayton
- Josh Scott, Colorado
- Tim Quarterman, LSU
- Ryan Taylor, Marshall
- Jarrod Uthoff, Iowa
- Devin Williams, West Virginia
20. Malcolm Brogdon, Virginia
2 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
Virginia's rise from a program with promise to one of the nation's elite teams has been built on solid, efficient offense and suffocating defense. Those are among the many things Malcolm Brogdon has exemplified in his career, particularly the past two seasons.
Brogdon won't have the raw numbers that other players on this list have (he averaged 14 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game last season) because of the Cavalier's low-scoring offense, but looking at advanced stats will tell a better story. According to Sports-Reference.com, he collects 7.5 percent of the available rebounds and assists on 16.5 percent of Virginia's field goals.
Virginia lost some big pieces from last year's team in Justin Anderson and Darion Atkins, but Brogdon is the kind of well-rounded player who can help fill a lot of voids.
19. Gary Payton II, Oregon State
3 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
Before last season, all Gary Payton II was known for was being the son of one of the best Pac-12 and NBA players ever. But after putting together a tremendous debut season for Oregon State—father Gary Payton Sr.'s alma mater—he's moving toward being just as well-regarded as his parent.
The 6'3" Payton II averaged 13.4 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game last season, finishing first on the Beavers in scoring and rebounding and second in assists. He had OSU's second triple-double in school history—his father had the other—when he went for 10 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists against Grambling.
Payton had eight games with 10 or more rebounds, despite being one of the smaller players on the court. And his defense was superb, leading to a rating of 86.2, per Sports-Reference.com.
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18. Perry Ellis, Kansas
4 of 21
Position: Forward
Year: Senior
While Kansas fans might think Perry Ellis hasn't done enough during his career because the Jayhawks haven't made any deep NCAA tournament runs during his three seasons, the fact is, Ellis has been one of the game's most consistent and efficient players the past two years.
In 2014-15 he led Kansas in scoring (13.8 points per game) and rebounding (6.9) while also playing ironclad defense. For his career he's averaged 10.9 points and 5.8 rebounds, which aren't wow numbers, but they don't tell the full story of the 6'8" forward's value, especially how much his not being at 100 percent meant to Kansas late last season.
"I really believe...if Perry stayed healthy he could have been a first-round pick," Kansas coach Bill Self said (via Gary Bedore of the Lawrence Journal-World) in April after Ellis announced his return for his final year.
Ellis suffered a knee injury on March 3, missed two games and then shot only 35 percent (compared to 45.7 percent for the season) over the final four contests.
17. Kyle Collinsworth, BYU
5 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
There are few truer signs of a player's ability to affect all parts of the game than by recording a triple-double. Only a few dozen times in one season do we see someone reach double digits in three statistical categories, most often in points, rebounds and assists.
There were 19 of these triple-doubles during the 2014-15 season, according to the NCAA, and Kyle Collinsworth had six of them. Not only is that a record for one season, it also puts Collinsworth in a tie with LSU's Shaquille O'Neal and Drexel's Michael Anderson for the career record, according to ESPN College BBall.
Overall, the 6'6" Collinsworth averaged 13.8 points, 8.7 rebounds and six assists per game. His numbers were helped by the fact BYU ranked second in the country in scoring, at 83.7 points per contest, but that doesn't take away from what he accomplished last season.
16. Nigel Hayes, Wisconsin
6 of 21
Position: Forward
Year: Junior
Wisconsin's veteran-laden lineup gets most of the credit for Madison's past two seasons of superb play, including consecutive Final Fours and a trip to the 2015 national title game. And while the loss of guys such as Sam Dekker, Josh Gasser and Frank Kaminsky might make it hard for the Badgers to continue that run, Nigel Hayes will keep them from falling too far.
Hayes went from talented bit player as a freshman to a key part of last year's run to the final. He averaged 12.4 points and 6.2 rebounds, shooting 49.7 percent from the field and showing an unexpected touch from outside by hitting 40 of 101 three-point shots.
15. Buddy Hield, Oklahoma
7 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
Throughout last season there were signs that Oklahoma had the talent and ability to make a deep run in the NCAA tournament, but it was going to take someone turning up a notch to get the Sooners to reach that level. Enter Buddy Hield, who had a strong overall year but a pretty stellar one down the stretch.
Over Oklahoma's final 16 games (of which it won 11), Hield averaged 17 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. Those match closely with the 6'4" guard's season averages of 17.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists, though where he really stepped it up was with the defensive pressure that helped the Sooners allow only 62.7 points per game.
Hield's return to Norman for 2015-16 gives the Sooners a great chance to challenge Kansas' long run as Big 12 regular-season champion, and his solid overall play will keep them from having too many inconsistent performances.
14. Ron Baker, Wichita State
8 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
Ron Baker is one of the most fun players to watch in college basketball, a scrappy kid who seems to be giving no less than 100 percent on each and every play. This tireless dedication is a big reason why Wichita State has ascended to the top of the mid-major ranks and possibly eschewed that label to become an elite program.
But the 6'4" Baker doesn't just play hard, he also gets results. He averaged 14.7 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game last season, shooting 43.3 percent overall and 38.3 percent from three-point range.
Though often overshadowed by equally complete teammate Fred VanVleet, Baker is no slouch and makes the Shockers one of the country's toughest teams to play against.
13. Fred VanVleet, Wichita State
9 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
Wichita State's second half of its dynamic backcourt duo (along with Ron Baker), Fred VanVleet was the slightly more complete of the two, thanks to his defensive play and the involvement of his teammates in the offense. Otherwise, the two seniors could be carbon copies of each other.
The 6'0' VanVleet averaged 13.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 5.2 assists last season, shooting 43 percent overall and 35.7 percent from outside. His 66 steals were integral to VanVleet recording a defensive rating, per Sports-Reference.com, of 91.4, fifth-best among candidates for this list.
Having such well-rounded players as VanVleet and Baker is more than enough reason to explain why Gregg Marshall opted not to take a lucrative offer to coach Alabama for 2015-16.
12. Caris LeVert, Michigan
10 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
Michigan's disappointing 2014-15 season hit rock bottom when top all-around player Caris LeVert was shut down in late January with a foot injury. Before he got hurt he was averaging 14.9 points, a team-high 4.9 rebounds and 3.7 assists while shooting 40.5 percent from three-point range.
The injury likely impacted LeVert's decision to hold off on going to the NBA, which bodes well for the Wolverines this year because it means they'll be getting back a player who impacts every part of every possession.
Without the 6'7" LeVert, Michigan went 5-9 and finished with a 16-16 record, missing the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2010.
11. Kris Dunn, Providence
11 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Junior
It was somewhat surprising when Kris Dunn decided to return to college rather than head to the NBA draft after an amazing sophomore season. CBS Sports' Sam Vecenie had him 10th on his draft board at the time, but despite putting up monster numbers in 2014-15, he opted to spend another year in school and work on flaws in his game.
What those are, it's hard to find them.
Dunn averaged 15.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists per game last season, ranking third nationally in assists and first, per Sports-Reference.com, in assist percentage. At 50 percent, that meant if a Providence player was scoring a basket off a pass from a teammate odds are it was coming from Dunn since most of the others were ones he was scoring.
Dunn also had 90 steals, helping him to a strong 94.2 defensive rating. His 47.4 shooting percentage was also effective, though Vecenie noted that Dunn's jump shot still needs work.
"Dunn is taking a risk and betting on himself here, given that he would have at least been a first-round pick in 2015 with a chance to go in the lottery," he wrote. "Hopefully it works out for him and the best is still yet to come from his play."
10. Shonn Miller, Connecticut
12 of 21
Position: Forward
Year: Senior
Outside of Harvard, not many Ivy League events that happened last season drew much national attention. But with Shonn Miller transferring to Connecticut for his final year of college, many people might be surprised to learn such all-around players could be found in that conference.
In 2014-15 the 6'7" Miller averaged 16.8 points and 8.5 rebounds, both of which were among the best of players we considered for this list. His 26.9 percent three-point percentage lowered his overall shooting numbers, but where Miller was most valuable was on defense.
At 85.7, his defensive rating, per Sports-Reference.com, ranked seventh in Division I. Guys who finished ahead of him include noted defensive gurus such as Kentucky's Willie Cauley-Stein and Karl Anthony-Towns and Virginia standout Darion Atkins.
Connecticut didn't have a player with a defensive rating better than 92.7 last season.
9. Georges Niang, Iowa State
13 of 21
Position: Forward
Year: Senior
There isn't anything about Georges Niang's game that's the best in the business and neither is any aspect among the best overall. But there's also nothing he's particularly bad at, instead he's the kind of player who's often referred as a "glue" guy because he can do a little bit of everything.
Niang is more than a cohesive player, though, as he's been Iowa State's most consistent player the past three seasons. Last year his numbers were slightly down from the season before, but the 6'8" wing still managed to average 15.3 points with 5.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists while shooting 40 percent from three-point range and 46.1 percent overall.
"If there's a better college basketball player in the country, I want to see him, in terms of being complete in passing and catching and shooting and taking advantage of mismatches and pump fakes and those kind of things," TCU coach Trent Johnson said (via Tommy Birch of the Des Moines Register) after a January game in which Niang had 23 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
8. Damion Lee, Louisville
14 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
Complete players aren't just found on good teams. Look at Damion Lee, who was one of the nation's most prolific scorers, averaging 21.4 points per game for a Drexel team that went 11-19 and had an embarrassing home loss to a Division II school along the way.
Now Lee is playing for Louisville, having taken advantage of the graduate transfer rule to move over to a program where his scoring ability and overall aggressiveness will be more valuable.
Not just a pure scorer, Lee also isn't afraid to get down and dirty. That enabled him to get to the foul line 195 times last season, hitting better than 81 percent of those free throws. Strong rebounding (6.1) and assist (2.3) numbers helped his cause.
The only area Lee struggled with was defense, as his rating, per Sports-Reference.com, was over 100, but that was as much a product of Drexel's overall performance when he was on the court as it was his own efforts. Expect that number to drop significantly when he joins Louisville, which had eight of its top nine players last season register defensive ratings of 93.8 or lower.
7. Thomas Walkup, Stephen F. Austin
15 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
The two-year run Stephen F. Austin has been on to make consecutive NCAA tournaments has been built around efficient players who aren't flashy; instead they get the job done and have few weaknesses. The Lumberjacks had several of those complete guys, most notably Thomas Walkup.
The 6'4" Walkup heads into his final season with a .558 career field-goal percentage, including .567 for last year's SFA team that went 29-5 and nearly beat Utah in the second round. The 'Jacks pride themselves on being methodical on offense and stifling on defense, and Walkup was a big part of that 93.7 defensive rating, per Sports-Reference.com, that was fueled by 40 steals.
Walkup does most of his work in the paint, making only 26.2 percent of 42 three-point attempts last year, but he makes the most of his interior opportunities by hitting 61.3 percent of his two-point shots.
6. Terry Tarpey, William & Mary
16 of 21
Position: Forward
Year: Senior
William & Mary remains one of a small handful of longtime Division I basketball programs never to have made the NCAA tournament, and the Tribe again came up just short in 2014-15, when it lost to Northeastern in the Colonial Athletic Association tourney title game. If that streak finally ends this season, expect Terry Tarpey to trigger the achievement.
Tarpey wasn't William & Mary's biggest name last year—that would be Marcus Thornton—but he was by far the most well-rounded contributor. He averaged 11.8 points per game while shooting 53 percent from the field, and despite being only 6'5" he far and away was the Tribe's top rebounder at 8.4 per game. He was a defensive-glass wizard, often starting transition plays Thornton and others would complete.
And Tarpey was very valuable on defense, on pace to be the only player in school history to finish his career with 100 blocks and 100 steals, per his online bio. He has 109 steals and needs another 20 blocks to hit the century mark.
5. Melo Trimble, Maryland
17 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Sophomore
While most of the 2014-15 top freshmen made the quick jump to the NBA, Melo Trimble will bless us with his all-around game for at least another season. Not only is that great news for Maryland—which ESPN has pegged as its preseason No. 1 team—but also for fans of players who like to mix it up in all areas.
Trimble was as good as advertised last year, averaging 16.2 points per game while shooting 44 percent from the field, including 41.2 percent from three-point range. Though his rebounding (3.9) and assist numbers (3.0 per game) weren't high, they were strong enough when compared to the available numbers while the 6'3" guard was on the court.
According to Sports-Reference.com, Trimble took care of 21.2 percent of the assists when he was playing. This need to be heavily involved was instilled during the early part of the season, when senior Dez Wells missed seven games with a hand injury. During that time, Trimble averaged 19 points, five rebounds and 4.3 assists.
4. Shawn Long, Louisiana-Lafayette
18 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
Shawn Long has averaged a double-double for all three of his seasons at Louisiana-Lafayette, with 16.4 points and 10.2 rebounds per game last year. The 6'9" Long began his career at Mississippi State, where he'd have been a huge program asset, but after one semester he decided to become arguably the Ragin' Cajuns' best player ever.
His long and lean body has enabled Long to be both a rebounding machine, particularly on the defensive glass where he's collected 26.6 percent of defensive boards in his career, per Sports-Reference.com. Long is also one of the best-shooting big men around when it comes to the three-point arc, making 36 percent over his career.
Long is the kind of player many power teams would love to have contributing to all facets of the game, and one that figures to be a valuable asset in the NBA. However, he's held off getting into the pros after the past two seasons and will again be Louisiana-Lafayette's top player.
3. Denzel Valentine, Michigan State
19 of 21
Position: Guard
Year: Senior
Veteran leadership and diverse play have always been a key to Michigan State's success. Seniors Branden Dawson and Travis Trice as well as junior Denzel Valentine spearheaded the Spartans' play late last season to surprisingly reach the Final Four.
Valentine is the group's holdover and also the one who contributed in the most areas in 2014-15. He was MSU's second-leading scorer and No. 2 rebounder, not to mention its top assist man.
Just look at some of Valentine's performances in March and April to see how involved he'd get. He had two 20-point games, six with at least seven rebounds and seven with at least six assists. The Spartans got 15 points, seven boards and six assists from him to beat Oklahoma and reach the Final Four.
Defensively, the 6'5" Valentine's ability to guard multiple positions enhances his value.
2. Alec Peters, Valparaiso
20 of 21
Position: Forward
Year: Junior
There's a reason Valparaiso has been one of the country's most successful mid-major programs, with nine NCAA tournament appearances in the past 20 years, including the last two seasons. It's because, in the search for hidden gems and off-the-radar players, coach Bryce Drew (and his father before him) always looked for guys who could do a little bit of everything.
Alec Peters is a perfect example of this, as the 6'9" forward was the Crusaders' leading scorer (16.8 points per game) and rebounder (6.7) while also being far and away their top three-point shooter, at 46.6 percent. An effective defender who could contain his man well—or lead him into the path of shot-blocker Vashil Fernandez—he also wasn't afraid to bang around inside on offense.
That led to him making nearly 83 percent of his free throws, and according to Sports-Reference.com, he contributed nearly 10 percent of the assists when he was on the court.
1. Kyle Wiltjer, Gonzaga
21 of 21
Position: Forward
Year: Senior
Kyle Wiltjer could be used as a textbook example of what a complete college basketball player looks like, but only since transforming himself at Gonzaga.
During his first two seasons at Kentucky, the 6'10" Wiltjer was primarily a catch-and-shoot player who took more than half of his field goals from beyond the arc. He was good at that, making 39 percent in those two seasons, but that's all he could do.
But after sitting out a year and searching for a way to fit into Gonzaga's talented lineup, Wiltjer used his time off to become stronger and more willing to use his size to his advantage inside. This led to him not just becoming a better scorer—going from 10.2 to 16.8 points per game—but someone who could grab key rebounds and disrupt on defense.
"You have a whole year to work on your weaknesses," Wiltjer told USA Today's George Schroeder.
Wiltjer's 6.2 rebounds per game last year weren't exceptional, but combined with everything else he's able to do, it was the area he needed the most improvement in. And with that, he's the most complete player in the game for 2015-16.
All statistics courtesy of Sports-Reference.com, unless otherwise noted.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
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