Top 5 Kentucky Wildcats basketball players of all time ft. Anthony Davis, Cotton Nash, and more
The Kentucky Wildcats are one of the most iconic programs in all of college basketball and are considered a true 'Blue Blood'. The Wildcats have won eight national championships, which ranks second all-time to the UCLA Bruins, who have won 11.
Kentucky has had plenty of great players wear their uniform, both in the past and in recent years.
Here is a closer look at the top five Kentucky Wildcats of all time:
#1. Center Dan Issel
Issel spent three seasons as a member of the Kentucky Wildcats. He averaged a school-record 25.8 points, 12.9 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game while shooting 51.9% from the field and 73.8% from the free-throw line.
Issel played before blocks and steals were officially tracked and before the 3-point line was implemented.
His 33.9 points per game in the 1969-1970 season remain a school record. Issel was named a consensus second-team All-American in 1969 and a consensus first-team All-American in 1970.
He is Kentucky's all-time leader in total points, rebounds and points per game while ranking fourth in rebounds per game and 10th in field-goal percentage.
Issell has been inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
#2: Forward/Center Anthony Davis
Anthony Davis only spent one season as a member of the Kentucky Wildcats, but his dominance earns him the second spot on this list. The Los Angeles Lakers star joined the program as the top-ranked overall prospect in the 2011 recruiting class.
He lived up to the hype by averaging 14.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.4 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 62.3% from the field and 70.9% from the free-throw line.
Davis was named the 2012 National College Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year, SEC Player of the Year, SEC Defensive Player of the Year and SEC Freshman of the Year.
He led the Wildcats to their eighth championship in program history and was named the 2012 NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player. Davis is the Wildcats' single-season leader in win shares, blocks, blocks per game and player efficiency rating. He is also the all-time leader in blocks per game and player efficiency rating.
#3: Center Cotton Nash
Cotton Nash averaged 22.7 points, 12.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 41.7% from the field and 73.6% from the free-throw line in three seasons with the Kentucky Wildcats.
He was named a consensus second-team All-American in 1962 and 1963, and a consensus first-team All-American in 1964. Nash ranks second in school history in points per game, fifth in rebounds per game, ninth in total points and fifth in total rebounds.
#4: Forward Jamal Mashburn
Jamal Mashburn averaged 18.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.6 steals and 0.5 blocks per game in three seasons with the Kentucky Wildcats. He shot 51.6% from the field, 37.6% from 3-point range and 69.7% from the free-throw line.
Mashburn was named a consensus first-team All-American, SEC Player of the Year and SEC Athlete of the Year in 1993.
He ranks sixth in total points, eighth in points per game and ninth in steals per game in program history.
#5: Guard Cliff Hagan
Cliff Hagan also spent three seasons as a member of the Kentucky Wildcats. He averaged 19.2 points, 13.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists while shooting 42.5% from the field and 70.0% from the free-throw line.
Hagan was named a consensus first-team All-American in 1952 and 1954, while winning a national championship in 1951. He ranks seventh in points per game, third in rebounds per game and third in total rebounds.