I’d go Sister Jean, Jim Valvano, Gordon Hayward, & Stephen Curry. Maybe flip Larry Bird for Curry.

(05-07-2018 08:41 PM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote:  

I’d go Sister Jean, Jim Valvano, Gordon Hayward, & Stephen Curry. Maybe flip Larry Bird for Curry.

Sorry, people may hate him, but you cannot talk about March Madness without Christian Laettner. Leave Sister Jean off, add Laettner and you have a good start.

Laettner, Magic Johnson, Valvano, Bird

Curry was a bigger deal once he hit the NBA. The Magic Bird games carried over to the NBA, but that year, and those two, DEFINED March Madness, making it the spectacle it is today.

(05-08-2018 08:17 AM)jacksfan29 Wrote:  Curry was a bigger deal once he hit the NBA. The Magic Bird games carried over to the NBA, but that year, and those two, DEFINED March Madness, making it the spectacle it is today.

I'd want the GOAT college basketball player, Lew Alcindor, on there.

Valvano (greatest run), Ewing (3 final game appearances in 4 years), Wooden (Most titles), Bill Raftery (best announcer).

*obligatory Uconn-grad Kemba Walker plug*

If you don't put somebody from UK on there a bunch of whack jobs are going to torpedo your life

Bill Russell, Lew Alcindor, Bill Walton and Christian Laettner.

Gordon Hayward would have been a lock if that shot from half court had gone in. It would have been the iconic shot of the NCAA tournament.....

(05-08-2018 02:02 PM)Bogg Wrote:  *obligatory Uconn-grad Kemba Walker plug*

If it was a Rushmore of greatest combined conference tournament and NCAA tournament runs, he'd certainly be on it. The three weeks UConn had from the start of the 2011 Big East tourney onwards rival what NC State did in the ACC/NCAA tournaments in 1983. Incredible clutch play.

I think UConn 2011 doesn't get enough credit for that, probably because the title game was a fizzle against a weak opponent. They didn't slay a giant.

The one that is a surprise doesn't get more mention is Kris Jenkins. Only one to make a walk off shot to win the title.

(05-09-2018 08:14 AM)stever20 Wrote:  The one that is a surprise doesn't get more mention is Kris Jenkins. Only one to make a walk off shot to win the title.

I think to be on Rushmore you have to be instrumental in winning multiple titles. That's why i couldn't put my all-time favorite player, Patrick Ewing, up there. He just misses the cut.

The one exception would be Valvano, because the run of his NCST team has become iconic, and his death tragic, such that he has come to represent the "madness" aspect in a way that makes his one title larger than life, so to speak.

Enough about Valvano G-d dammit.

IIRC, the term "March Madness" wasn't in common use regarding the NCAAT until around 1980. While great players like Bill Russell and Lew Alcindor are iconic NCAAT figures, in an era when the field was much smaller, they are associated more with their highly successful pro careers. Few fans remember many specific details of their tournament performances.

Bill Walton comes closer, with one of his two titles including the iconic 21 for 22 shooting performance (against Memphis State, I believe).

You can't watch the NCAAT anymore without seeing Valvano running around the court looking for someone to hug in 1983 in what is arguably the greatest upset in tournament history. That kind of burned the term March Madness into the public consciousness for keeps.

Much as people love to hate Christian Laettner, he was the key player in a lot of classic tournament games, and his last second shot to sink UK is another iconic moment shown constantly in tournament promos.

As for Curry, I honestly didn't remember that he had played in the tournament. Some other players get mentioned due to "recency bias". Maybe in reverse it's why Jim Calhoun doesn't get mentioned more, even though his championship teams were also great tournament teams (compared with their regular season success).

(05-09-2018 08:14 AM)stever20 Wrote:  The one that is a surprise doesn't get more mention is Kris Jenkins. Only one to make a walk off shot to win the title.

Only one?

(05-08-2018 11:01 AM)RutgersGuy Wrote:  Valvano (greatest run), Ewing (3 final game appearances in 4 years), Wooden (Most titles), Bill Raftery (best announcer).

(05-08-2018 02:54 PM)stever20 Wrote:  Gordon Hayward would have been a lock if that shot from half court had gone in. It would have been the iconic shot of the NCAA tournament.....

Agree with both of these points. Each selection is representative of why March is so special (and, quite frankly, why there is no sporting event that comes close to matching it).

Mine would be:

Coaches: John Wooden, Mike Krzyzewski, Adolph Rupp, Dean Smith and Bobby Knight.

Players: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, Christian Laettner, Bill Walton and Oscar Roberston.

(05-09-2018 09:11 AM)RutgersGuy Wrote:  

(05-09-2018 08:14 AM)stever20 Wrote:  The one that is a surprise doesn't get more mention is Kris Jenkins. Only one to make a walk off shot to win the title.

Only one?

Technically, at least 1 second should have remained, if not 2, not that it would have made much of a difference.

Players only:

Alcindor, Walton, Laettner ... you fill in the blank with a fourth guy, probably Russell.

And yes, I hate Laettner as much as the next guy, but he made the Final 4 all four of his years, and won two titles, and was indeed involved in many classic tournament games. To deny his place would just be ... hating.

Everyone hates Laett.

(05-09-2018 10:53 AM)quo vadis Wrote:  Players only:

Alcindor, Walton, Laettner ... you fill in the blank with a fourth guy, probably Russell.

And yes, I hate Laettner as much as the next guy, but he made the Final 4 all four of his years, and won two titles, and was indeed involved in many classic tournament games. To deny his place would just be ... hating.

Not only that, but Laettner had maybe the most iconic made shot of anyone in history vs Kentucky in the Regional Final.

(05-09-2018 11:05 AM)stever20 Wrote:  

(05-09-2018 10:53 AM)quo vadis Wrote:  Players only:

Alcindor, Walton, Laettner ... you fill in the blank with a fourth guy, probably Russell.

And yes, I hate Laettner as much as the next guy, but he made the Final 4 all four of his years, and won two titles, and was indeed involved in many classic tournament games. To deny his place would just be ... hating.

Not only that, but Laettner had maybe the most iconic made shot of anyone in history vs Kentucky in the Regional Final.

I'll go to my grave thinking it was a crime he wasn't ejected for stepping on that UK player, never should have been on the court to make that shot.

But then again, it's just that kind of controversy that makes Laettner an indelible part of March history.