UT's All-time Greatest Basketball Player

#52
#52
The Dude said:
He was pretty good on defense this year, but that's only 1/3. And he can drive the basket and hit those difficult layups, so I wouldn't call him one dimensional.
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He is not a defensive player in the half court. His driving ability isn't good enough to scare D's - they would prefer he drive so they belly up ferociously. He strikes fear in teams because he can hammer the 3 from deep, deep and under pressure.
 
#53
#53
Bernard King was the best and probably always will be....but Lofton is def in the top 5. Its hard to say he isnt. Its all goin to be opinions so it doesnt really matter. Lets wait til he graduates to make a claim for him. 30 years down the road people will remember him as one of the best if he has a good senior year
 
#54
#54
Just hopped on this thread late. A few quick thoughts:

1) It's pretty cool that UT fans are talking about UT's basketball history...in July. It's a new day for UT hoops fans.

2) Lofton isn't one of the top 5 best players, although his performance in the clutch shouldn't go unappreciated (so many games won by him at the end). If he has another season like his sophomore one, I think he deserves to go on that list.

3) But let's be honest, no matter what Lofton does, the best basketball player in UT history is still Travis Henry (the moustached PG, not the NFL RB).
 
#55
#55
I'm sad nobody metioned Kevin Nash.

1. King
2. Houston
3. Ellis
Lofton will be in the top 5 after this season IMO.
 
#56
#56
vols2345 said:
You have got to be kidding me if you don't even think lofton is top 3 or even top 5 in ut history. He has already taken the vols in the tourny further then houston did and right there with benard king. He is the leader of probably the greatest ut team to ever be assembled for the upcoming year. And not to mention he has a good shot at holding the ncaa record for career 3 pointers made. That's got to mean something.
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I know they won't tell the whole story, but I thought a few numbers for comparison might be helpful:

Bernie
So 26.4 PPG 12.3 RPG
Jr 25.2 PPG 13 RPG
Sr 25.8 PPG 14.3 RPG
1st Rnd pick (7th) by NJ

Ernie
So 23.8 PPG
Jr 25.3 PPG
Sr 23.8 PPG
1st Rnd Pick (11th) by Milwaukee


Ellis
So 17.7 PPG 6.4 RPG
Jr 21.2 PPG 6.3 RPG
Sr 22.6 PPG 6.5 RPG
1st Rnd Pick (9th) by Dallas

Houston
Fr 20.3 PPG 4.2 APG
So 23.7 PPG 3.1 APG
Jr 21.1 PPG 5.3 APG
Sr 22.3 PPG 4.8 APG
1st rnd Pick (11th) by Detroit

Lofton
Fr 13.2 PPG
So 17.2 PPG
Jr 20.8 PPG
No other stats are really eye-popping, other than a very good shooting percentage

Chris is one of the UT greats, and I think you can make some good arguments about whether he belongs on the "top 5" list in front of Tony White, Reggie Johnson, even Dyron Nix, and some others. This is especially impressive when you consider that he is an undersized 2 guard without a tremendous advantage in footspeed. I don't think, however, that he is going to supplant any of the top 4.
 
#58
#58
Always good to see the stats Cotton. It will take a very special player to crack that top 4. It will be hard for anyone to supplant bernie from the top spot. Maybe if we ever win a NC the best player on that team. Other than that it's doubtful.
 
#59
#59
JZVOL said:
Always good to see the stats Cotton. It will take a very special player to crack that top 4. It will be hard for anyone to supplant bernie from the top spot. Maybe if we ever win a NC the best player on that team. Other than that it's doubtful.
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Especially while CBP is around. I don't think his system is ideal for one individual to put up huge numbers -- so it will be more difficult for one player to stand out so much. It's more about exploiting weakness in the up-tempo game.
 
#60
#60
Bernie was the 7th pick? I bet that was a steal for NJ.

Also, think about what Bernie, Ernie and Dale Ellis would've averaged with the 3-pt. line in place.
 
#61
#61
wbarron said:
Bernie was the 7th pick? I bet that was a steal for NJ.

Also, think about what Bernie, Ernie and Dale Ellis would've averaged with the 3-pt. line in place.
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Michael Brooks would also be higher up the UT scoring list. He is currently 11th with 1600 career points.
 
#62
#62
Bernard King

Ellis and Houston for 2nd/3rd

Was it Tony White that played for Devoe?
Is he the best UT point guard?

And, Wasn't there an NBA center (maybe Chicago) that played for UT named Bullwinkle?
 
#63
#63
BigPapaVol said:
He is not a defensive player in the half court. His driving ability isn't good enough to scare D's - they would prefer he drive so they belly up ferociously. He strikes fear in teams because he can hammer the 3 from deep, deep and under pressure.
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But he does have the ability to drive the basket. He doesn't have the quickness of Ramar Smith, but he consistantly hits the tough shot off the backboard or the lob shot off the drive. I'll give you the half court defensive thing, but he's not even close to a defensive liability or anything, and his quickness has been much improved since Buzz Ball.
 
#67
#67
cotton said:
Michael Brooks would also be higher up the UT scoring list. He is currently 11th with 1600 career points.
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Loved watching him shoot. I remember him hitting baseline jumpers all day long.

DeVoe had some pretty damn good players in the early 80s. UT basketball wasn't all bad back then. Tyrone Beaman, Willie Burton, Dan Federman, Dale Ellis, Michael Brooks...

Anyone on here remember Gary Carter and Steve Ray? That was before my time as a Vol fan. Would love to know more about those guys, how good they were...sounds like a poor man's Ernie and Bernie?
 
#69
#69
When condisdering that 5th spot on the UT great list, consider that Dyron Nix once dunked a basketball so hard in a game that the plug shot out of it, deflating the ball. That alone merits some consideration.
 
#70
#70
Vol67 said:
Bernard King

no one else is close

I really don't know if Lofton would make the top 5

Anyone who uses the excuse I wasn't born or I was too young....guess what it is lame.....If you profess to love UT then learn the history of UT Basketball. Same goes for UT football or any UT sports.

Bernard King
Dale Ellis
Allan Houston
Reggie Johnson
Ernie Grunfeld
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I wouldn't quite but Johnson up here to be honest... but I'd give him maybe the 6 or 7 spot - but that's just my opinion :dunno:

And if Lofton has a year like last year or even better this year you can't deny him a spot near Houston just because you feel like basking in his former glory. Also - remember when looking at stats - It was all on Houston then and Lofton had a lot of help his first year with Watson and last year with the frosh talent. He wasn't asked to do as much... he WAS on pace to break the 3-point record by Reddick after his sophomore year but when Pearl started making him drive to the basket more and getting to the FT line + his ankle injury - he had no shot to break it.

Same goes for all the people that believe Peyton isn't and won't be a top 5 greatest QB in the NFL - they live in the past too much and don't want to believe a current player is up there in status.. don't thrive on stats too much as athletes are getting more athletic every day
 
#71
#71
TennesseeFan07 said:
Since I wasn't born when Bernard played and was real young when Allan Houston played I'll say Ron Slay, Vincent Yarbrough, Marcus Haislip, and Chris Lofton since they've all played in the past 10 years.
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you have no frame of refenerence Donnie.
thagodfather said:
1. king

2. ellis

3. houston

in my opinion those three really standout ahead of the rest.
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:thumbsup:
 
#72
#72
hatvol96 said:
Tony Harris led UT to the Sweet 16. I guess that means he's better than Allan Houston.
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careful hat, that's dangerously close to saying that a player can be GREAT, despite not having won anything........:) :whistling:
 
#73
#73
and for anyone in doubt, ask anyone that knows anything about basketball and moreover, TN basketball, and the names that "pop" in to your head about players of any relevance assocaited with TN are the three that have been mentioned.

Lofton COULD be that way, but it is yet to be seen if that will in fact happen.
 
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