On last year's All Big Ten Teams, selected by the media, twelve of the fifteen players were non-seniors. When you include the players that were selected as Honorable Mention players, the Big Ten was bringing back 19 of the top 25 players in the conference, which included six seniors, fourteen juniors, four sophomores, and one freshman. Evan Turner and Manny Harris both left to play in the NBA, and Robbie Hummel tore his ACL again. But the Big Ten was still going to be stacked with senior-heavy talent this year. To be fair, this current senior class deserves a lot of the credit for turning the Big Ten around over the past few years. The league had been down for quite some time. Getting seven teams into the NCAA Tournament just two seasons ago, when they were just sophomores, was a huge turnaround for the conference. The league has been very competitive from top to bottom, which becomes obvious when you look at the conference standings and see a jam-packed middle of the conference.
With all of this talent coming back it seemed like picking an All-Conference team would be simple. Out of the five-player list that I have compiled to be the First Team All Big Ten, only two were on the Second Team All-Big Ten, one was an Honorable Mention player, one had no major accolades, and one was still in high school a year ago. The list that I compiled was nonetheless tough to figure out. With so much depth and talent in this league, the Second Team All-Big Ten team could surely give the First Team a run for their money. Although some may think that the Big Ten will be in a rebuilding mode next year because of the losses of so many veteran players, there is certainly a plethora of talent within the underclassmen in this league. Unfortunately for college basketball lovers, my current Big Ten Player of the Year will most likely not be back at school next year even though he is only a freshman this year. At this point, Jared Sullinger is the most outstanding player in the conference. Nonetheless, these other four players still have an outside shot at the award, although not likely.
Jared Sullinger, Forward, Ohio State
Sullinger is not only the frontrunner for the Big Ten Player of the Year award, but also a candidate for the National Player of the Year award. Connecticut's Kemba Walker and Brigham Young's Jimmer Fredette are the other top candidates. Sullinger is averaging a double-double on the season: 18.0 points and 10.3 rebounds. The 6-foot-9, 280 pound Sullinger is listed as the #1 pick in an NBA mock draft on NBADraft.net. Sullinger's case to best the Big Ten Player of the Year is also helped by the fact that Ohio State has a two-game lead in first place in the conference standings. On Saturday, the Buckeyes lost their first game of the season at Wisconsin. Sullinger shoots 56.9% from the field on the season and 69.6% from the foul line, which is not bad for a guy of his size. He has twelve double-doubles on the season, including a current streak of three in a row. Sullinger brings both size and skill to the floor. He is agile and moves well for a big man, and is averaging 36.0 minutes during Big Ten play. His playing time is impressive for any player, let alone a post player. He has been able to stay on the floor so much because he has a strong defensive presence but is able to stay out of foul trouble. Sullinger has only fouled out of one game the entire season. He is also a bruiser down low though and is not afraid to use his size to his advantage. Sullinger is great at backing defenders down, while some post players in the Big Ten lack this skill. When Evan Turner decided to leave school early after last season, some may have thought that Ohio State would not be as good this season. But adding Sullinger has made them a much better all-around team. They already had solid perimeter play, but by adding Sullinger they now have another dimension on offensive with his post play. Ohio State may be the best team in the nation, and Sullinger's play can be attributed to some of that. Because of everything stated above, I am endorsing Jared Sullinger as my Big Ten Player of the Year for the 2010-2011 season.
JaJuan Johnson, Forward/Center, Purdue
Although Sullinger may seem like the obvious pick for top player in the conference, it was more obvious to me that Johnson is the second best player in the conference. Johnson averages 20.7 points and 7.7 rebounds. While Johnson does not provide as dominant of a post presence as Sullinger, he is a much better outside shooter. Johnson is still shooting 50.1% from the field and a much improved 80.9% from the foul line. The two-time All Defensive Big Ten player blocks 2.2 shots per game as well. Johnson's improvement in his four years as a Boilermaker has been astounding. His scoring averages have increased from 5.4, to 13.4, to 15.5, to his current 20.7 points. On the same mock draft as Sullinger, Johnson is projected as the number 30 pick in the upcoming June draft. Johnson has really expanded his game this season, becoming a great outside shooter, especially due to the fact that he stands 6-foot-10. After not connecting on a single three-point shot in his first three years at Purdue, Johnson has made 11 this year. This includes a 3-for-4 effort from downtown in a loss to Ohio State last month. Johnson has been compared to Kevin Durant multiple times this season. They both have tall, wiry frames. Durant stands 6-foot-9 and weighs 230 pounds, while Johnson is 6-foot-10 and packs 221 pounds. Another reason that Johnson has elevated his game this season is because of the loss of Robbie Hummel before the start of the season. With Hummel, Purdue may have been a top five team this year. Johnson, Hummel, and E'Twaun Moore have provided the best three-headed monster in the Big Ten for the past few seasons. Purdue has not used Hummel's injury as an excuse though, and neither has Johnson. Although he is my runner up for Big Ten Player of the Year, I believe that Johnson will also be selected as a First Team All American.
Jordan Taylor, Guard, Wisconsin
Anyone who watched Wisconsin beat Ohio State on Saturday knows that Taylor is the real deal. The 6-foot-1 point guard averages a solid fantasy line of 18.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 4.8 assists. Although he did not receive any accolades after last season, it should be no surprise that Taylor is becoming a great player. Taylor became a starter midway though his sophomore when Jon Leuer was injured and unable to play for an extended period of time. Taylor was able to learn the swing offense by playing with Trevon Hughes during his first two seasons as a Badger, but this year needed to take more of a leadership role. His leadership abilities became evident when Taylor took over Saturday's game by scoring a game-high 27 points, 21 of which were in the second half, and brought Wisconsin back from a 15-point deficit to win the game. Although he was snubbed from being a Bob Cousy Award finalist, Taylor is not letting that affect his game. Taylor has averaged 22.0 points in Wisconsin's current four-game winning streak, boosting them to be the tenth-ranked team in the nation. Taylor and Leuer are also arguably a part of the Big Ten's top duo, as well as the entire nation's. What really stands out about Taylor is his continued improvement. He went from shooting 32.7% from behind the arc last year, to 42.4% this year. His free throw percentage also increased from 71.8% last year, to 84.7% this year. Taylor's strong build causes mismatches for smaller guards. Expect Taylor to have a strong finish to this season, as well as being an early candidate for next season's Big Ten Player of the Year award.
Talor Battle, Guard, Penn State
The Big Ten's active leading scorer surpassed the 2,000-point mark for his career on Sunday against Northwestern, and was only the second Nittany Lion player to ever do so. Besides scoring 20.4 points, Battle also grabs 4.6 rebounds and dishes out 3.2 assists. The 6-foot, 170 pound guard has always been a great rebounder for a guard and averaged 5.3 rebounds the past two seasons. Battle is a volume shooter, taking an average of 15.5 shots. But, he is also able to find his open teammates and is a great passer. He made the switch from point guard to shooting guard this season, when Tim Frazier stepped into the point guard role, and it has done nothing but help Battle. Battle can be streaky as a shooter, but he does have unlimited range from behind the three point line. Battle was actually in the running for Big Ten Player of the Year during his sophomore season, when he averaged 16.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 5.0 assists, and Penn State won the NIT. Nonetheless, the award went to current senior guard and Michigan State player, Kalin Lucas. Penn State went 3-15 in the Big Ten last season, but currently stands at 6-7 this year. Battle is obviously a huge reason for this improvement. He has been able to get fellow seniors Jeff Brooks, David Jackson, and Andrew Jones III, to step up their games as well since this will be their last chance to make an NCAA Tournament appearance. Currently, the Lions are on the outside of the bubble since they are only 13-11. But with a strong finish to the season and deep run in the Big Ten Tournament, Battle could possibly make it to his lone NCAA Tournament. Battle is on pace to become Penn State's all-time leading scorer by the end of his career.
Jon Leuer, Forward, Wisconsin
The 6-foot-10 senior from Orono, Minnesota has played incredibly this season, leading the Badgers in both scoring and rebounding. He averages 19.1 points along with 7.3 rebounds. He is also very consistent, and has scored in double figures in every single game this season. Leuer's shooting numbers are also staggering for a guy his size. He shoots 47.7% from the floor, 43.5% from three point range, and 84.9% from the free throw line. Wisconsin also happens to lead the entire nation in free throw shooting as a team. After breaking his hand last year during Big Ten play, Leuer was poised to have a great senior season. Although many analysts picked Wisconsin to finish in the middle of the Big Ten, Wisconsin currently sits in a tie with Purdue for second place. The Badgers have never finished lower than fourth place in the Big Ten during Bo Ryan's tenure, a rather remarkable feat. Leuer can beat you inside and out, and has hit a three pointer in all but one game this season. Leuer was an Honorable Mention player in the Big Ten last season, but this year he should find himself on either the first or second team All-Big Ten. Leuer and Taylor complement each other perfectly, while Wisconsin's role players do the dirty work and provide great defense. NBADraft.net projects Leuer as the 38th pick for the upcoming NBA Draft. Expect a strong finish to the season for both Leuer and Taylor, in hopes of bringing Wisconsin to their first Final Four since 2000 when they lost to the eventual champions, Michigan State.