Top 5 UCLA basketball players ever ft. Bill Walton, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and more

The UCLA Bruins have been the starting point for many NBA stars. In their long and storied history, the Bruins have won 11 NCAA championships, including seven consecutive titles from 1967 to 1973. UCLA's last championship came in 1995.

Through its championship-winning years, the Bruins have seen legends playing at Pauley Pavilion, and here are a few of them.

Top five UCLA basketball players ever

#5, Reggie Miller

From 1983 to 1987, Reggie Miller played for the UCLA Bruins, leading them to an NIT championship in his senior year while winning the NIT MVP award. The guard averaged 25.9 points and 22.3 points in his last two years.

Miller was picked No. 1 by the Indiana Pacers in 1987, was a five-time All-Star and retired as the NBA's 3-point king. His 2,560 triples now rank fifth.

#4, Marques Johnson

Marques Johnson played four seasons for UCLA from 1973 to 1977. He won an NCAA championship in his freshman year.

However, Johnson's best year was his senior season when he averaged 21.4 points and 11.1 rebounds. Johnson was named the National College Player of the Year, consensus first-team All-American and Pac-8 Player of the Year in 1977.

The forward was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.

#3, Gail Goodrich

Gail Goodrich joined UCLA in 1962 and played for three seasons. He was a part of the teams that won the first two NCAA championships in Bruins history (1964 and 1965), marking the start of their record-setting championship run under coach John Wooden.

During his sophomore season, Gail Goodrich averaged 21.5 ppg, guiding the Bruins to a 30–0 record, the first undefeated season in UCLA history. He was one of the first players to be inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006. Goodrich was picked by the LA Lakers in the 1965 draft.

#2, Bill Walton

Bill Walton graduated from playing for UCLA in 1974 and had career averages of 20.3 ppg and 15.7 rpg in three seasons. During the 1972 and 1973 seasons, Walton led the Bruins to NCAA championships with a perfect 30-0 record for each year.

One of the most skilled centers in college basketball, Bill Walton won the Naismith College Player of the Year for all three seasons and the James E. Sullivan Award in 1973. He was picked No. 1 by the Portland Trail Blazers in 1974.

#1, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, then known as Lew Alcindor, played a huge role in UCLA Bruins history. He was a three-time Player of the Year and finished college with the highest-scoring average in the nation (26.4 ppg).

Abdul-Jabbar ranked first in scoring, rebounds and field goals in all three years of his college career in an era when freshmen were ineligible to play on varsity teams. The three-time NCAA champion was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 and was one of the first to be inducted into the UCLA Hall of Fame in 1990.

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