10. ELVIN HAYES – HOUSTON (1966-1968)
Houston’s first African-American basketball player , Hayes had a successful career leading the team to the Final Four for the next two seasons. He has owned five NCAA tournament games with 20 and in 1968, he received the title of Player of the Year.
9. MAGIC JOHNSON – MICHIGAN STATE (1978-1979)
Point guard Johnson had two great seasons with the Spartans, he started competing professionally within just two seasons in the NCAA under the Michigan State team. He led an inept college basketball team to a national championship game victory over the Sycamores in 1979.
8. LARRY BIRD – INDIANA STATE (1977-1979)
A true superstar since his junior season, with his participation Sycamores reached the pinnacle in the NCAA championship game. This college player averaged 30 points, 13 rebounds, and three steals per college game, grabbing all the limelight.
7. WILT CHAMBERLAIN – KANSAS (1956-1958)
In his first game against Kansas, this rookie scored 31 rebounds and 52 points. Although Kansas was defeated after three extra innings, Chamberlain’s stellar performance still earned him the title of Player of the Year.
6. JERRY WEST – WEST VIRGINIA (1957-1960)
This athlete had an admirable playing stat, West averaged 25 points and 13 rebounds in the NCAA tournament while playing for the Mountaineers. Jerry just missed national title in a 1959 game against Berkeley where they narrowly lost 71-70 at the last minute.
5. OSCAR ROBERTSON – CINCINNATI (1957-1960)
"Big O" consistently delivered outstanding achievements , averaging 15 rebounds,seven assists in his collegiate career. about 34 points per game. He was the owner of the three Consensus National Player of the Year titles.
4. BILL WALTON – UCLA (1971-1974)
During his tenure, Walton led UCLA into their own empire while dominating the NCAA tournament for a long time. He is the leader of two 30-0 teams, with 88 wins in total. Two consecutive NCAA championships in 1972 and 1973 contributed to the influence of Walton.
3. BILL RUSSELL – SAN FRANCISCO (1953-1956)
Undoubtedly, having the best defensive ability, Russell displayed consistency in strength throughout the NCAA tournament. After being selected in the NBA Draft, he ushered in a new era with 11 NBA championships with the Boston Celtics.
2. PETE MARAVICH – LSU (1968-1970)
True to his name, “Pistol” Pete Maravich had throws unbelievably accurate and fast. During his college basketball career, Maravich averaged 44.2 points per game; proving himself as one of the most significant point guards in college basketball.
Accompanied by three consensus All-American selections, none other than Alcindor deserves the title of the greatest college basketball player of all time. After joining the NBA and changing his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, he took the Lakers to the next level.