Obi Toppin's raid of this season's college basketball awards continued Tuesday when the Dayton forward won the John R. Wooden Award, which goes to the nation's best player. He was also among elite company as the Basketball Hall of Fame handed out its top honors to players at each position.
Oregon's Payton Pritchard won the The Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year after leading the Ducks to a 24-7 record and Pac-12 title while averaging 20.5 points and 5.5 assists. Seton Hall's Myles Powell won the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year for after averaging 21 points as the Pirates won a share of the Big East title.
Villanova's Saddiq Bey won the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year for emerging as a star for the Wildcats during his sophomore season. Iowa's Luka Garza won the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year after averaging 23.9 points and 9.8 rebounds and breaking Iowa's single-season scoring record without the benefit of postseason play.
Toppin rounded out the list of positional award winners by taking home the Karl Malone Power Forward of The Year honor. For the Dayton sophomore, Tuesday's awards add to an impressive collection of hardware, which already included the Naismith Player of The Year, Associated Press Player of The Year and CBS Sports Player of The Year awards after leading the Flyers to a 29-2 record and perfect 18-0 mark in Atlantic 10 play.
Toppin is considered a potential lottery pick in the 2020 NBA Draft after announcing March 25 that he will forego his final two seasons of collegiate eligibility to turn pro. The once-unheralded prospect averaged 20 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game as he took a significant sophomore leap after a stellar freshman campaign in which he was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of The Year. Toppin led the country in dunks with 107 this season and was the only player in the country to average 20 points, 7 rebounds and shoot over 60% from the field.
The Los Angeles Athletic Club gives out the Wooden Award, which last went to a player outside of the sport's major seven conferences in 2011 when BYU's Jimmer Fredette won it. Among Toppin's other accolades are national player of the year honors from the U.S. Basketball Writers Association, National Association of Basketball Coaches, The Athletic, USA Today, NBC Sports, Fox Sports and Rivals.
