Buddy Hield is still at the top, but Monte has closed the gap. A surprising addition to the first team is Taurean Prince, who closed the season out very strong, scoring in double figures in his last 15 conference games. I had Mason and Anderson tied, but I'd give the nod to Mason. Two KU players on the first team is appropriate this year.
Jameel McKay made a huge leap in the rankings, benefiting from the increased minutes that come along with starting. He's now 17th in scoring, 3rd in rebounding and still 2nd in blocks. I feel very good about the other players on the second team, including Georges.
No big surprises on the 3rd team and honorable mention.
For the first time, I'll try to predict the other honors as well.
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Buddy Hield
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jameel McKay
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
Jameel McKay
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Miles Turner
SIXTH MAN AWARD
Taurean Prince
COACH OF THE YEAR
Bill Self
| Big 12 All-Defensive Team |
| Jameel McKay |
| Ryan Spangler |
| TaShawn Thomas |
| Miles Turner |
| Rico Gathers |
| Buddy Hield |
| Big 12 All-Newcomer Team |
| Jameel McKay |
| TaShawn Thomas |
| Miles Turner |
| Kelly Oubre |
| Anthony Hickey |
Most of the awards were straight forward, except for coach of the year, which is hard to quantify and all-defensive POY and team. Looking at last year's team, the picks were pretty subjective. For this first try, I used rebounds (probably should have just looked at defensive rebounds), steals, blocks and team rank.
