Ranked: Top 11 Players of the Kevin Ollie Era

Lol, c’mon. Napier was the best player (and possibly the coach?) on UConn’s 2014 championship team. He’s the only first round draft pick of the Ollie era. He averaged the most points (17.6), assists (4.8) and steals (1.9) of any player since 2012-13. And he was generally just a badass. Easy number one.

Boatright is the leader in win shares (the benefit of an extra season over Napier) and is the clear number two on this list. He was an indispensable part of the championship team and its best defensive player. He made his final 19 (!!) free-throw attempts in the NCAA Tournament and was in the process of leading a severely undermanned 2015 back to the dance before his shoulder exploded in the AAC Championship. Boatright is one of the toughest players in UConn history and one of the most exciting.

Consider this placement preemptive because it assumes Adams has a big senior year. He’s been mired on under .500 teams the past two seasons despite his often gaudy stats. Adams’ performance in the 2016 AAC Tournament — including the most memorable play of the Ollie era — proved what he can accomplish on the big stage, even if he hasn’t had many opportunities to show it since.

Daniels was a member of the All-Tournament team in 2014 following two huge games: 27 and 10 against three-seed Iowa State and 20 and 10 against one-seed Florida in the Final Four. In retrospect, Daniels probably should have returned for his senior season (though at the time I thought it was the right choice), but his contributions were significant and amplified by the Huskies’ inability to fill his role since he left.

Hamilton only played in one NCAA Tournament at UConn — turning pro after his sophomore season — but left an impact because of his unique skill set and talent level. He was a constant triple-double threat and ended up the de facto point guard for much of the 2016 season. He starred in the Huskies’ unlikely AAC Tournament run that year and truly proved his importance by leaving the program in ruins when he left.

Brimah was a shot-blocking extraordinaire, leading the nation in 2015 and currently holding the AAC career record. His offensive game never quite developed to match his defense, but his penchant for finishing alley-oops and his sky-high field goal percentage (63.7 percent) made him a quasi-dangerous two-way player. Like most of the preceding players on this list, his contributions to the 2014 title (namely his offensive rebound and three-point play against St. Joseph’s) will be his enduring legacy.

Giffey lands high on this list because his 2014 season was simply one of the best shooting seasons in UConn history. He shot 48.3 percent from three, the highest single-season mark of any Husky with a minimum of 50 attempts. In addition to being a deep threat, Giffey played good defense, talked shit in German and had an awful beard. All of those things are good.

Purvis’s success at UConn was dampened by the expectations set for him — specifically Ollie’s now infamous “Ferrari in the garage” comments. While never quite emerging as the phenom many predicted, Purvis led the 2016 team in scoring and had several stretches of carrying the Huskies, most notably as Boatright battled injury down the stretch in 2015. Purvis was a good guy and a good ambassador for the program during his time in Storrs.

Miller is severely under-appreciated and would likely be near the top of this list had he played more than a single season at UConn. His 2016 season is behind only Napier’s 2014 and Boatright’s 2015 in terms of individual win shares. His low-key demeanor and a roster full of big personalities allowed Miller to float by in the background but his talent spoke volumes.

Vital has a lot to prove in his final two (hopefully) seasons at UConn. His high-energy, fearless style of play has endeared him to Husky fans, but his inconsistent shooting and questionable decision-making have sabotaged some of his potential. Playing on two absolutely horrific teams hasn’t helped. Hopefully the installation of Dan Hurley’s new system will lead to the breakout season many expect, and I’ll look very stupid for putting Vital so low on this list (Editor’s Note: For that and many, many other things).

Like Miller, Gibbs’ legacy at UConn is restrained by its brevity. Also like Miller, however, Gibbs’ contributions in 2016 look better given the years that followed. He was stuck between positions a little bit — often excelling as a spot-up shooter but forced to take on much of the ball-handling — but he scored over 12 points per game and shot over 38 percent from three.