Malik Monk has been the human highlight reel of the year for the Kentucky Basketball team. De’Aaron fox is a skilled point guard that can get to the rim at will. Fox and Monk were included in the cut-down list of the top 30 candidates for the award in early February.
Unfortunately, both of these players have been left off of the semi-finalist list for the Naismith Award. The Atlanta Tip-Off Club released the list of 10 players on the morning of March 1, 2017. The list includes the following:
- Lonzo Ball, UCLA
- Ethan Happ, Wisconsin
- Josh Hart, Villanova
- Justin Jackson, North Carolina
- Josh Jackson, Kansas
- Luke Kennard, Duke
- Frank Mason III, Kansas
- Jonathan Motley, Baylor
- Caleb Swanigan, Purdue
- Nigel Williams-Gross, Gonzaga
The Curious Case of De’Aaron Fox
As you can see, there is an absence of Kentucky players on this list.