On December 7, Wofford’s Fletcher McGee broke into the top two percent of all basketball players, enough to make me tune into Wofford’s fun trip to UNC to drop to 0-24 all-time against ranked teams. Only they did not lose.
Instead, McGee torched the UNC defense for 27 points to surge into the top 1% of all players (25th ranked of 4,072). But he wasn’t even the best player on the team that day as Cam Johnson blocked six UNC shots to help the 22-point underdog team shock the Tar Heels.
To make the top one percent of income earners in New York you must earn at least $888,520, but to make the top 1 percent of college basketball players you need to be one of the 41 most valuable players of the 4,072 in the updated www.valueaddbasketball.com database.
And for only the fifth time in history, a freshman is the top player in the country. Oklahoma freshman Trae Young stayed in first place (worth 12.31 points more than a replacement) after dishing out 22 assists in a game, many spectacular, to hold off West Virginia’s Jevon Carter (11.95) and then Brunson (10.89, 3rd).
The only four freshman to ever finish No. 1 in the 16 seasons in the Value Add database were Duke’s Shelden Williams (2006), Texas’ Kevin Durant (2007), Kansas State’s Michael Beasley (2008), and the greatest in Value Add history, Kentucky’s Anthony Davis (2012).
The explanation of the system and national news coverage after its invention can be found here. It is the one college system that takes into account defense as well as the level of opponents played in addition to a precise measurement. To review past seasons or projections, click on the all time rankings, but you can click here to just review this season now that almost all transfers have taken the court, then search by conference, team or anything else you want.
Notre Dame’s Bonzie Colson is the top ranked defensive player, erasing -5.09 points per 100 opponents’ trips down the court, and Colson ranks 6th overall to have a solid chance at backing up his Value Add projection as the best player in the country.
When it comes to the top one percent in basketball, here are the most valuable 41 players so far this season:
| Rnk | Players in Top 1% | Team | Value Add v5.0 Pts/Game | Conf |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trae Young #11 | Oklahoma | 12.31 | B12 |
| 2 | Jevon Carter #2 | West Virginia | 11.95 | B12 |
| 3 | Jalen Brunson #1 | Villanova | 10.89 | BE |
| 4 | Deandre Ayton #13 | Arizona | 10.84 | P12 |
| 5 | Justinian Jessup #3 | Boise St. | 10.61 | MWC |
| 6 | Bonzie Colson #35 | Notre Dame | 10.23 | ACC |
| 7 | Mikal Bridges #25 | Villanova | 9.81 | BE |
| 8 | Kevin Hervey #25 | Texas Arlington | 9.76 | SB |
| 9 | Luke Maye #32 | North Carolina | 9.75 | ACC |
| 10 | Gary Clark #11 | Cincinnati | 9.7 | Amer |
| 11 | Ria’n Holland #10 | Mercer | 9.65 | SC |
| 12 | Ajdin Penava #11 | Marshall | 9.63 | CUSA |
| 13 | Tookie Brown #4 | Georgia Southern | 9.59 | SB |
| 14 | Jock Landale #34 | St. Mary’s | 9.39 | WCC |
| 15 | Marvin Bagley #35 | Duke | 9.23 | ACC |
| 16 | Jordan McLaughlin #11 | Southern California | 9.22 | P12 |
| 17 | Shamorie Ponds #2 | St. John’s | 8.97 | BE |
| 18 | Jordan Murphy #3 | Minnesota | 8.96 | B10 |
| 19 | Kenrich Williams #34 | Texas Christian | 8.84 | B12 |
| 20 | Collin Sexton #2 | Alabama | 8.8 | SEC |
| 21 | Yante Maten #1 | Georgia | 8.78 | SEC |
| 22 | Devonte’ Graham #4 | Kansas | 8.77 | B12 |
| 23 | Jeremiah Martin #3 | Memphis | 8.77 | Amer |
| 24 | Tyus Battle #25 | Syracuse | 8.71 | ACC |
| 25 | Fletcher Magee #3 | Wofford | 8.69 | SC |
| 26 | Tra Holder #0 | Arizona St. | 8.67 | P12 |
| 27 | Keita Bates-Diop #33 | Ohio St. | 8.67 | B10 |
| 28 | DJ Hogg #1 | Texas A&M | 8.66 | SEC |
| 29 | Dean Wade #32 | Kansas St. | 8.62 | B12 |
| 30 | Devon Hall #0 | Virginia | 8.55 | ACC |
| 31 | Rob Gray #32 | Houston | 8.51 | Amer |
| 32 | Nick King #5 | Middle Tennessee | 8.43 | CUSA |
| 33 | Nick Weiler-Babb #1 | Iowa St. | 8.36 | B12 |
| 34 | Allonzo Trier #35 | Arizona | 8.36 | P12 |
| 35 | Keenan Evans #12 | Texas Tech | 8.33 | B12 |
| 36 | Josh Cunningham #0 | Dayton | 8.33 | A10 |
| 37 | Isaiah Wilkins #21 | Virginia | 8.31 | ACC |
| 38 | Jeff Roberson #11 | Vanderbilt | 8.25 | SEC |
| 39 | Zach Thomas #23 | Bucknell | 8.2 | Pat |
| 40 | Landry Shamet #11 | Wichita St. | 8.19 | Amer |
| 41 | Reid Travis #22 | Stanford | 8.19 | P12 |
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