It’s hard to see anyone other than Ohio State’s Evan Turner winning the Naismith Award as college basketball’s best player. And the consensus seems to be Kentucky freshman John Wall is a close second. But at this stage of his career, is Wall, the SEC player of the year, better than Maryland’s Greivis Vasquez, the ACC player of the year?
That debate might be closer than you think. Vasquez has been a more productive offensive player this season with 19.6 points a game (2.8 more than Wall) despite averaging more than a minute less playing time. Of course, Wall has a better supporting cast, so he doesn’t have to shoulder the load as much. Why then — with a lesser roster — does Vasquez average 6.3 assists to Wall’s 6.2? The Venezuelan star also has a turnover rate of 3.3. Wall commits 4.0 a game. Vasquez is a better rebounder (4.6 to 4.0) and free throw shooter (85.4 to 78.2). Assist-to-turnover ratio is also in favor of Vasquez (1.9 to 1.6).
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Where are Wall’s stats ahead? His field goal percentage is 45.8 overall to 43.6 for Vasquez, he has reached the free throw line 44 more times and he has seven more steals. But the Terps’ star is stronger from 3-point range (38.2 to 33.0), too. We know Wall is the better NBA prospect. But — for this year at least — Vasquez is the better college player.
