ST. LOUIS (USBWA) U.S. Basketball Writers Association President Dana O'Neil of ESPN.com announced today the USBWA's early-season Watch Lists for men's national player and freshman of the year in college basketball.
Heading the lists are preseason picks Marcus Paige of North Carolina for the Oscar Robertson Trophy for player of the year and Jahlil Okafor of Duke for the Wayman Tisdale Award for freshman of the year.
The player and freshman of the year awards, along with the Henry Iba Award for national coach of the year, will be announced in March and presented to the winners at the Devon Energy College Basketball Awards gala at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City on April 14, 2015.
Following are the complete watch lists:
Ron Baker, Wichita State
Branden Dawson, Michigan State
Sam Dekker, Wisconsin
Jerian Grant, Notre Dame
Montrezl Harrell, Louisville
Aaron Harrison, Kentucky
Andrew Harrison, Kentucky
Stanley Johnson, Arizona
Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin
Caris LeVert, Michigan
Jordan Mickey, LSU
Larry Nance Jr., Wyoming
Georges Niang, Iowa State
Jahlil Okafor, Duke
Marcus Paige, North Carolina
Kevin Pangos, Gonzaga
Terran Petteway, Nebraska
Bobby Portis, Arkansas
Angel Rodriquez, Miami
Juwan Staten, West Virginia
Karl-Anthony Towns, Kentucky
Fred VanVleet, Wichita State
Justise Winslow, Duke
Delon Wright, Utah
Cliff Alexander, Kansas
James Blackmon Jr., Indiana
Daniel Hamilton, UConn
Justin Jackson, North Carolina
Robert Johnson, Indiana
Stanley Johnson, Arizona
Tyus Jones, Duke
Kaleb Joseph, Syracuse
Kevon Looney, UCLA
Trey Lyles, Kentucky
Chris McCullough, Syracuse
Jahlil Okafor, Duke
Chinanu Onuaku, Louisville
Kelly Oubre Jr., Kansas
D'Angelo Russell, Ohio State
Karl-Anthony Towns, Kentucky
Reid Travis, Stanford
Myles Turner, Texas
Tyler Ulis, Kentucky
Rashad Vaughn, UNLV
Isaiah Whitehead, Seton Hall
Justise Winslow, Duke
In mid-March, the USBWA will announce its 2013-14 All-America Team and, at that time, finalists will also be chosen for the each award. Once finalists are announced, the entire USBWA membership will vote for the winner of the Oscar Robertson Trophy and the Wayman Tisdale Award.
Since the 1958-59 season, the USBWA has named a National Player of the Year. In 1998, the award was named in honor of the University of Cincinnati Hall of Famer and two-time USBWA Player of the Year Oscar Robertson. It is the nation's second-oldest player of the year award and the only one named after a former player. Creighton's Doug McDermott was the USBWA national player of the year last season.
The USBWA has chosen a national freshman of the year since the 1988-89 season when LSU's Chris Jackson was the recipient. Last season, Duke's Jabari Parker became the fourth winner of the Wayman Tisdale Award. Other notable previous winners of the national freshman of the year award include Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, Jason Kidd and Chris Webber.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With more than 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. It has selected an All-America team since the 1956-57 season. For more information on the USBWA and the Oscar Robertson Trophy, contact executive director Joe Mitch at 314-795-6821.
Related links:
• Oscar Robertson Trophy
• USBWA logos