BTN.com staff, January 23, 2016
Who gets your vote for the best player in Illinois basketball history? We came up with a list of 12 Fighting Illini greats, and now it?s your job to rank them!
Then, tune into BTN tonight to watch the Illini take on Minnesota at 7:30 p.m. ET. Watch live on BTN/BTN2Go.
Read each player?s bio below, then scroll down and rank them, 1-12. The results of this fan survey will be announced on TV?s ?BTN Live? in February.
We?re rolling out a survey per school throughout the coming weeks.
Nick Anderson 1987-89: Named to 20-player Illinois All-Century team in 2005. 1989 Regional Most Outstanding Player. The leader of the Flying Illini Final Four squad, Nick Anderson averaged 18 ppg and 7.9 rpg during the 1988-89 season. He posted a career average of 17 points per contest, the ninth-best mark in school history.
Dee Brown 2003-06: Two-time All-American selection and first for Illinois in 53 years (2005-05). 2005 Big Ten Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. A co-captain of the 2005 squad that won 37 games and played for the national title, Brown was unstoppable as a scorer (1,812 points, third in school history), passer (674 assists, also third) and defender (231 steals, second).
Brian Cook 1999-2003: Named to 20-player Illinois All-Century team in 2005. 2003 Big Ten Player of the Year. 2003 Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player. 2000 Big Ten Freshman of the Year. A sophomore standout on Illinois? 2001 Elite Eight team, Brian Cook blossomed into a big-time star as a senior. Cook averaged 20 points and 7.6 rebounds a night that season, capping a career in which he racked up 815 boards (sixth-best in school history) and 1,748 points (fourth).
Bruce Douglas 1982-86: 1984 Big Ten Player of the Year. Two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year (1985-86). The 6?3? Douglas holds the school records for assists (765) and steals (324), and as a sophomore he helped take Illinois to its first Elite Eight since 1963.
Dave Downey, 1960-1963, Downey helped lead the Fighting Illini to the 1963 Big Ten championship and was a three-time All-Big Ten selection. He earned All-America honors in 1963 and was a three-time most valuable player for the Illini. He finished his career as the school's all-time leading scorer with 1,360 points, and his career scoring average of 18.9 points ranks fourth in school history and his career average of 11.0 rebounds per game still ranks third in school history.
Kiwane Garris 1993-97: He dished out 502 career assists, the fifth-most in program history, while also scoring 1,948 points to come within 80 of Deon Thomas? school record. Garris led Illinois in scoring three of his four seasons. He set the single-season record for free throws made and attempted during his senior year.
Kendall Gill 1986-90: Named to 20-player Illinois All-Century team in 2005. After running the point for the 1988-89 Flying Illini, Kendall Gill became a primary scorer the next season and averaged 20 points a game. For his career, the tenacious guard totaled 1,409 points (16th in school history) and 218 steals (third).
Johnny ?Red? Kerr, 1951-54: Named to 20-player Illinois All-Century team in 2005. 1954 Big Ten Player of the Year. Helped lead the Illini to the 1952 Big Ten Championship and the NCAA Final Four, where he was named a member of the 1952 Final Four All-Tournament Team. Scored 1,299 points during his three year career at Illinois.
Ken Norman 1985-87: Named to 20-player Illinois All-Century team in 2005. Norman earned consensus second-team All-America accolades in 1987 after averaging 20.7 points and 9.8 rebounds per game. A two-time first-team All-Big Ten selection, Norman led the conference in rebounding during his senior year and ranks sixth on the Big Ten's all-time career field goal percentage list at 61 percent.
Deon Thomas 1990-94: Thomas finished his career as the all-time leading scorer in Fighting Illini history, with 2129 career points scored and an 18.0 points per game scoring average. Thomas is the only men's basketball player in Illinois history to score at least 2000 career points. Thomas was elected to the "Illini Men's Basketball All-Century Team" in 2004.
Nick Weatherspoon 1970-73: Named to 20-player Illinois All-Century team in 2005. Weatherspoon?s career averages of 20.9 points and 11.3 boards per game have both stood as Illinois records for 40 years. Finished his college career as Illinois' career scoring leader with 1,481 career points, now ranking 10th on that list.
Deron Williams 2002-05: 2005 Final Four All-Tournament Team. 2005 Regional Most Outstanding Player. The co-captain and co-point guard for the winningest team in Illini history, Deron Williams dished out 6.8 assists a game for the 2005 national runners-up. That 37-win campaign capped a career in which Williams tied Bruce Douglas? record with 5.9 assists per contest and drained 163 treys for good measure.
Frank Williams 1999-2002: Named to 20-player Illinois All-Century team in 2005. 2001 Big Ten Player of the Year. Point guard of three consecutive Big Ten regular season championship teams. Ranks third in school history in steals/game (2.1) and sixth in assists/game (4.3). Averaged 16.2 ppg as a junior.