Ten finalists were named for the 2015 Wayman Tisdale Award, presented annually by the United States Writers Basketball Association to the top freshman in college basketball.
Among the 10 are three players from Duke — Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones and Justise Winslow — and two from Kentucky — Devin Booker and Karl-Anthony Towns.
The late Wayman Tisdale was a three-time USBWA All-American at the University of Oklahoma. Following a stint on the 1984 U.S. Olympic basketball team, he played 12 seasons in the NBA before retiring in 1997 to focus on a blossoming jazz music career. In March 2007, he was diagnosed with cancer and following a courageous and difficult battle that included the amputation of his right leg in 2008, he passed away in May 2009.
Wayman Tisdale Award Finalists
James Blackmon Jr., Indiana
Devin Booker, Kentucky
Stanley Johnson, Arizona
Tyus Jones, Duke
Jahlil Okafor, Duke
Kelly Oubre Jr., Kansas
D’Angelo Russell, Ohio State
Karl-Anthony Towns, Kentucky
Melo Trimble, Maryland
Justise Winslow, Duke
