Jimmer Fredette does not play in a conference with seven ranked teams. Nor does he have the majority of his games nationally televised. He will not wow you with a handle straight from the playgrounds of New York City or Chicago, and his athleticism leaves a lot to be desired.
But the Glen Falls, N.Y., native has emerged as the best player in college basketball.
Fredette is averaging 26.1 points, 4.4 assists and 3.4 rebounds for No. 11 Brigham Young, and has five 30+ scoring games, including a 47-point masterpiece against rival Utah Tuesday night.
Don’t make the mistake of saying he can only do this against lesser competition. Fredette dropped 49 at Arizona a season ago, torched Florida for 37 in the first round of the NCAA tournament last year and hit Zona for 33 again this season.
And while Kemba Walker was phenomenal for UConn the first two months, he hasn’t shot above 50 percent since Dec. 8., has only connected on 40 percent of his attempts once in his last five games and is just 8 for his last 32 from three.
Fredette, conversely, has 11-straight games of shooting above 40 percent, has drilled at least two 3s in 10-straight games, and has six games this year in which he’s made over 50 percent of his shots.
It’s hard to say a preseason first-team All-American is flying under the radar, but Fredette is doing just that. But he easily has my vote thus far for Naismith Player of the Year.
What do you think?
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