Kemba Walker, Stephen Curry and Carmelo Anthony are behind some of the greatest individual March Madness runs in the history of NCAA hoops. What they displayed in their college years was a sign of things to come as they evolved into NBA stardom — the three have combined for 21 All-Star appearances and 11 All-NBA nods.
This isn't the case for every great college basketball player, however. Take Bo Kimble, for example, who joined Loyola Marymount for the 1987-88 season after spending a year at USC as a freshman. Kimble immediately erupted, scoring 22.2 points per game in his debut campaign with the Lions. A horrendous 3-21 shooting performance is how he ended his year, as the Lions lost in the second round of the 1988 NCAA Tournament to UNC.
His senior year is when he'd prove that what we saw in 1988 March Madness was a fluke. After dropping in a whopping 35.3 points per game over the course of the 1989-90 season, Kimble went off for 45, 37, 19 and 42 points in his four NCAA Tournament games that year, bringing No. 11 seed Loyola Marymount past No. 6 New Mexico State, No. 3 Michigan and No. 7 Alabama before they ultimately lost a 131-101 Elite Eight matchup with UNLV. UNLV, as it turns out, would go on to win the whole tournament.
The Clippers saw his unstoppable scoring prowess and decided to take a stab with the eighth overall pick of the 1990 NBA Draft. 105 games later, Kimble had finished his NBA career with measly averages of 5.5 points, 1.5 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game on an inefficient .386 shooting percentage from the field. His career was plagued with injuries, and the Clippers' system was not the ideal setup for an NBA hopeful bursting with talent. The story took an upsetting turn when Kimble revealed that he had suicidal thoughts while playing for the Clippers, as he felt his talent was going to waste without opportunities to prove himself on the court.
Who knows what would have happened had Kimble found his way on a better team, with a coaching staff that was more willing to give him a shot? And that's just one of the questions that we can ask about several of the players you'll find below, who set the bar very high after incredible March Madness performances before coming crashing down to mediocrity in the NBA. Injuries, bad teams, overall poor performance and other factors come into play in each case, but it doesn't change the fact that these players peaked in college and could never find that magic upon arriving to the pros.
All stats retrieved from Basketball Reference and College Basketball Reference.
Mateen Cleaves
Mateen Cleaves was a leader for Michigan State.(Doug Pensinger/ALLSPORT via Getty Images)Best tournament (2000): 6 games, 14.2 points, 2.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.2 steals, 0.3 blocks, .418/.444/.810
Cleaves led the Spartans to a 2000 NCAA Tournament victory, scoring in double figures in all six games, none of which were particularly close, and taking him the tournament's Most Outstanding Player award. Throughout his college career, Cleaves averaged 14.8 points and 5.6 assists per game in March Madness games. His greatness wasn't restricted to the NCAA Tournament, however, as he had several strong outings throughout his time at Michigan State.
NBA career: 14th overall pick in 2000 NBA Draft, 3.6 points, 1.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 167 games played
Cleaves played in the NBA for six years, spending time with four teams and never playing a prominent role for any.
Sean May
Sean May cut down the nets after UNC's 2006 title run.(Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)Best tournament (2005): 6 games, 22.3 points, 10.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.8 blocks, .667 FG%
May quite literally couldn't be stopped in the paint for the Tar Heels, with a tournament low of 14 points and four games over 20 points. He didn't shoot below 50 percent in any games, instead burrowing his way toward the basket with extreme efficiency, including a 90.9 effort in the National Championship.
NBA career: 13th overall pick in 2005 NBA Draft, 6.9 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 119 games
The third of four Tar Heels lottery picks in the 2005 NBA Draft, along with Marvin Williams, Raymond Felton and Rashad McCants, May played the least of them all. Injuries played a large role in keeping him sidelined early, and he was never able to overcome that hump.
Adam Morrison
Adam Morrison is one of the most well-known NBA Draft busts.(Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)Best tournament (2006): 3 games, 24.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 0.3 steals, 0.0 blocks, .473/.333/.727
Well-known in the world of NBA Draft busts, Morrison was an unstoppable scoring force throughout his entire stay at Gonzaga, kicking it into an amazing gear for the 2005-06 season (28.1 points on 49.6 percent shooting). Unfortunately, a moment he'll frequently be remembered by wasn't the best of times.
NBA career: 3rd overall pick in 2006 NBA Draft, 7.5 points, 2.1 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 161 games played
How's that for a forgettable career? Does it make it any better if I told you that Morrison is a two-time NBA champion? He was indeed, though he contributed a grand total of 13 minutes of playing time in his entire playoff career. Quite the step down from his role for the Zags.
Greg Oden
We'll never know what a healthy Greg Oden could have done in the NBA.(Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)Best tournament (2007): 6 games, 16.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.8 steals, 2.2 blocks, .621 FG%
There was only one tournament to choose from for the one-and-done Oden, but he put up quite the stat line regardless of his age or experience. His 25 points and 12 rebounds against Florida in the National Championship was perhaps his strongest effort of them all, though Ohio State ultimately came up just short.
A reminder Greg Oden made Al Horford, Joakim Noah and Marreese Speights look like children with ONE good hand in the national title game and was totally worthy of the No. 1 pick pic.twitter.com/N0kqStrsUJ
— Tyler Conway (@jtylerconway) June 28, 2020
NBA career: 1st overall pick in 2007 NBA Draft, 8.0 points, 6.2 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 105 games played
You know how this story goes. Injuries, injuries and more injuries prevented the Blazers from ever finding out what could have been, especially given the fact that Brandon Roy was their draft selection from the year before. In good health, that duo could have been something else.
Tyler Hansbrough
Tyler Hansbrough celebrated after the Tar Heels won the National Championship.(Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)Best tournament (2009): 6 games, 17.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 2.3 steals, 0.0 blocks, .471 FG%
Psycho T was built for college hoops, earning four All-ACC and four Consensus All-American honors in his four-year stay. He was also named the the NCAA All-Tournament team when the Tar Heels won it all in 2009, though teammate Wayne Ellington took home the Most Outstanding Player honors.
NBA career: 13th overall pick in 2009 NBA Draft, 6.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 0.4 assists, 428 games played
Again, Psycho T was built for college hoops. And while Hansbrough ended up in the league for seven years and carved out a solid bench role for the Pacers and Raptors in that time, he never really developed into the player that his NCAA play teased he could become.
Wesley Johnson
Wes Johnson had some hops as a member of the Syracuse Orange.(Michael Heiman/Getty Images)Best tournament (2010): 3 games, 22.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.0 steals, 1.3 blocks, .605/.615/.706
Though it was Johnson's third season playing college hoops, 2010 marked the first chance he had to make his mark on March Madness, transferring over to Syracuse after two years with the Cyclones of Iowa State. That switch ultimately led to Johnson earning the Big East Player of the Year Award and tearing it up for the Orange.
NBA career: 4th overall pick in 2010 NBA Draft, 7.0 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 609 games played
This is Wesley Johnson's top career highlight. Enough said.
Jimmer Fredette
Jimmer Fredette could launch from anywhere on the basketball court.(Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)Best tournament (2011): 3 games, 32.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 0.7 steals, 0.0 blocks, .416/.333/.917
There are few highlight compilations that are more fun to watch than those belonging to Jimmer Fredette, the former BYU sharpshooter whose hands represented basketball launch pads. If you were a basketball and there was a hoop within 50 feet, odds are you were going to get hoisted up with reckless abandon when Fredette was controlling your destiny.
NBA career: 10th overall in 2011 NBA Draft, 6.0 points, 1.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 241 games played
Jimmer couldn't quite do it in a consistent basis in the pros, spending much of his time in leagues overseas.
Thomas Robinson
Thomas Robinson dominated for the Kansas Jayhawks.(Jamie Squire/Getty Images)Best tournament (2012): 6 games, 16.7 points, 12.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.0 steals, 0.2 blocks, .387 FG%
For a .525 career shooter in his college days, Robinson's efficiency wasn't the best in 2012 March Madness. However, he did everything else for the No. 2 Jayhawks, helping them to overcome No. 1 UNC (18 points, 9 rebounds) and giving it his all in the National Championship, despite a loss, against Kentucky (18 points, 17 rebounds).
NBA career: 5th overall pick in 2012 NBA Draft, 4.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, 0.6 assists, 313 games played
The Kings selected Robinson fifth overall, trading him as the deadlined neared for a package that didn't contain much. The Rockets traded him the next season to the Blazers for a package that didn't contain much. The Blazers traded him a couple of years later to the Nuggets, where he was waived right away. And the bouncing around continued, without Robinson ever finding a prominent spot on a team.
Nik Stauskas
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caption="Before "Sauce Castillo" ever existed, Stauskas was dominating for the Wolverines." photo_credit="(Leon Halip/Getty Images)" title=""] Before "Sauce Castillo" ever existed, Stauskas was dominating for the Wolverines.(Leon Halip/Getty Images)Best tournament (2014): 4 games, 17.5 points, 1.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 0.3 steals, 0.3 blocks, .426/.400/.857
Though it wasn't Michigan's best tournament while Stauskas was on the roster — they were in the National Championship against Louisville in his first year on the roster — Stauskas emerged as a primary weapon in year two, keeping his 17.5 scoring average from the regular season going into the tournament.
NBA career: 8th overall in 2014 NBA Draft, 6.8 points, 2.1 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 335 games played
The best thing that's happened to Stauskas in his NBA career was the acquisition of a hilarious new nickname that has a hilarious origin story.
Jahlil Okafor
Jahlil Okafor's NBA career hasn't gone as smoothly as his lone year at Duke.(Grant Halverson/Getty Images)Best tournament (2015): 6 games, 15.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, 0.7 assists, 0.8 steals, 1.7 blocks, .635 FG%
One chance in March Madness. One NCAA Championship. Not a bad run for Okafor, who started out his career at Duke hot (19 points on 9-10 shooting in debut) and never looked back.
NBA career: 3rd overall pick in 2015 NBA Draft, 10.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 232 games played
Okafor's stat line in his rookie season with the Process-era 76ers was nice on paper: 17.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. But it's all been downhill since then, seeing as Okafor is now on his fourth team (the Pistons) and barely has a role there. Kristaps Porzingis was selected with the next pick in the 2015 draft.
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