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Voting for the AllBuffs All-Time Men's Basketball Team: Backcourt

Who are the five players on this list you'd like to see advance?

  • Chauncey Billups

    Votes: 41 97.6%
  • Donnie Boyce

    Votes: 29 69.0%
  • Alec Burks

    Votes: 38 90.5%
  • Cory Higgins

    Votes: 20 47.6%
  • Jay Humphries

    Votes: 29 69.0%
  • Leason McCloud

    Votes: 3 7.1%
  • Kenny Price

    Votes: 2 4.8%
  • Richard Roby

    Votes: 14 33.3%
  • Scott Wedman

    Votes: 5 11.9%
  • Jaquay Walls

    Votes: 2 4.8%
  • Jim Willcoxon

    Votes: 5 11.9%
  • Stevie Wise

    Votes: 2 4.8%

  • Total voters
    42
  • Poll closed .

Goose

Hoops Moderator
Club Member
Junta Member
Welcome to the first round of determining the AllBuffs All-Time Men's Basketball Team for the University of Colorado. Over the next week we're going to be voting to see who the readers on this site consider to be the greatest Buffs of all time. We're going to start with twelve backcourt players, and you're allowed to vote for the best five. Voting for the backcourt will be open until Wednesday morning. The five that get the most votes will move on to the finals that start on Friday morning and run through the weekend.

So, with that said, let's look at today's candidates.

  • Chauncey Billups (1995-97): Billups was an All-American for the Buffs and led the team to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in his sophomore season at Colorado before going pro and becoming the third pick in the NBA Draft.
  • Donnie Boyce (1991-95): A two time member of the All-Big 8 First Team and a member of the All-Big 8 Freshman Team. Boyce was also the school's all-time leading scorer until Richard Roby passed him (and Higgins tied Roby a few years later).
  • Alec Burks (2009-11): The prolific scoring shooting guard was named Honorable Mention All-American his sophomore year at CU and is fifteenth on the Buffs all-time scoring list, despite only playing two seasons. He declared for the Draft and was the 12th pick of the Utah Jazz.
  • Cory Higgins (2007-11): The four year player is tied with Richard Roby as CU's All-time leading scorer. He was also a repeat member of the All-Big 12 third team and was voted the University of Colorado Best Defender by his teammates in his senior year.
  • Jay Humphries (1980-84): A two-time Honorable Mention All-American, Humphries is also in the record books as CU's all-time assist and steal leader. CU's fourteenth all-time leading scorer, Humphries was the 13th pick in the NBA Draft by the Phoenix Suns.
  • Leason McCloud (1939-42): McCloud was an All-American who led the Buffs in scoring his junior & senior seasons at CU and led the team to the NIT Championship. Recently, he was named to the CU Athletics Hall Of Fame.
  • Kenny Price (1997-99): The 1997-98 All Big 12 Newcomer of the Year was also a member of the All-Big 12 third team while at Colorado. Price averaged 14.6 ppg in his two years with Colorado and owns the top single-game & single season totals for 3 pointers made.
  • Richard Roby (2004-08): Along with Higgins, Roby is tied as CU's all-time leading scorer. He was named to the All-Big 12 Freshman team as well as being named All-Big 12 First Team once in his career.
  • Scott Wedman (1971-74): A two time member of the Big 8 All-Conference First Team, Wedman was also named to the 1970's Big 8 All-Decade Second Team. He currently is the 18th all-time leading scorer in school history, despite only playing 75 games in his career.
  • Jaquay Walls (1998-00): As a senior, Walls was voted to the All-Big 12 First Team. He also was voted to the All-Newcomer and All-Underrated Big 8 Teams in his short time at Colorado.
  • Jim Willcoxon (1937-39): While at Colorado, Willcoxon was voted to the All-American and All-Big 7 Teams for his work with the Buffs. He was known as a tenacrious defender who helped lead the team NIT Championship game.
  • Stevie Wise (1987-91): A long distance shooter, Wise is tied for second with the most three-pointers made in CU history behind only Blair Wilson. He was also named to the Big 8 Second Team and the Big 8 All-Tournament Team while at CU.

Remember, you can vote for five players that you'd like to see move on to the finals.
 
Top of the list Chauncey, his resume would stand up at almost any school.
Humphries, great all around player who had a solid pro career
Boyce, gets overlooked because a knee injury cost him his pro career. Clutch player on both ends of the floor
Burks, rare player who could play within a team system and still be a star, again played all aspects of the game
Wedmann, only kind of remember him playing. Was actually more of a small forward where he played in the NBA but guy could fill it up.
 
I was pretty much in agreement with you Mtn, but I had to include Roby. He was just too good to leave off.
 
I wanted to go with Wedman, but gave the nod to Pete McCloud instead. I wanted to include at least one player from the Frosty Cox era, in honor of their Final Four and NIT runs from the era. I don't think Doll or Harvey will make my cut when we talk frontcourt.

Cory was also a painful near-miss. I think his Swiss-Army approach to the game, and his abundance of contribution over 4 years, should be recognized, but I can't justify putting him in over the others.
 
I had to throw a wasted vote in for Kenny Price. He was there when I was there, and he could light it up.
 
I was pretty much in agreement with you Mtn, but I had to include Roby. He was just too good to leave off.

Roby was talented, cost himself a good shot at the league by coming back an extra year.

Speculating of course but what would Roby have done playing for a coach like Tad.
 
We pretty much have consensus on the Top 4 (Billups, Boyce, Burks and Humphries - in no particular order). It's #5 that's hard to pick.
 
Roby was talented, cost himself a good shot at the league by coming back an extra year.

Speculating of course but what would Roby have done playing for a coach like Tad.


What an intriguing thot -- RR being coached by Tadsanity. The outside shot and occasional highlight dunk be-damned; play defense or watch ten guys and a couple of zebra stripes run up and down the court.

Sometimes it stuns me when I think of the gold mine we have in Tad Boyle.
 
We pretty much have consensus on the Top 4 (Billups, Boyce, Burks and Humphries - in no particular order). It's #5 that's hard to pick.

Seems to be coming down to Higgins v Roby. Fitting, in a way, that the two tied at the top of the all-time scoring book are so close in the polls. I'd personally side with Cory, but I completely understand a vote for Richie Rich.

Kenpom top-line stats (by season): Roby - ORtg - 103.4, 110.3, 93.2, 100.9.
Higgins - Ortg - 96.4, 106.7, 112.5, 110.3
 
Seems to be coming down to Higgins v Roby. Fitting, in a way, that the two tied at the top of the all-time scoring book are so close in the polls. I'd personally side with Cory, but I completely understand a vote for Richie Rich.

Kenpom top-line stats (by season): Roby - ORtg - 103.4, 110.3, 93.2, 100.9.
Higgins - Ortg - 96.4, 106.7, 112.5, 110.3

Pretty compelling case for Higgins when you consider that his defense was better.
 
But Roby was also named All-Big 12 First Team once, whereas Cory never got higher than 3rd.

You can't go wrong picking either of them, honestly.
 
Seems to be coming down to Higgins v Roby. Fitting, in a way, that the two tied at the top of the all-time scoring book are so close in the polls. I'd personally side with Cory, but I completely understand a vote for Richie Rich.

Kenpom top-line stats (by season): Roby - ORtg - 103.4, 110.3, 93.2, 100.9.
Higgins - Ortg - 96.4, 106.7, 112.5, 110.3

Very hard to make a fair comparison between the two because of completely different situations.

Higgins was a much better defensive player and much more versitile. On the other hand Higgins played on a much better team where he was not the focus of the defense and didn't have the weight of the team on his shoulders.

Roby on the other hand was the guy that other teams put their effort into stopping. In most cases if Roby didn't score the Buffs didn't win. Roby didn't have guys around him who could make opponents pay for putting pressure on him. His defense suffered in part because he had to focus so much on offense. Roby also didn't have the benefit of a coach who could adjust and adapt well to what opponents were doing.

Hard to pick between them.
 
Very hard to make a fair comparison between the two because of completely different situations.

Higgins was a much better defensive player and much more versitile. On the other hand Higgins played on a much better team where he was not the focus of the defense and didn't have the weight of the team on his shoulders.

Roby on the other hand was the guy that other teams put their effort into stopping. In most cases if Roby didn't score the Buffs didn't win. Roby didn't have guys around him who could make opponents pay for putting pressure on him. His defense suffered in part because he had to focus so much on offense. Roby also didn't have the benefit of a coach who could adjust and adapt well to what opponents were doing.

Hard to pick between them.

To the bold: only if we completely ignore Cory's first 2 seasons here.
 
To the bold: only if we completely ignore Cory's first 2 seasons here.

True for his second year, that team lacked talent top to bottom. His freshman year Roby was there to carry the load up until he got hurt.
 
Burks wasn't the 2nd best player on this list during his CU stint. He was good but frankly Higgins was probably better during his CU stint. Sure Burks has a high ceiling but this isn't about NBA potential. Couldn't put him on the list.

Nobody could disappear like Roby. Can't put him on the list.

Chauncey tops it.
Then Boyce and Humphs.
Then it's interesting, but I went with Higgins and Wedman.
 
And the poll is officially closed. Thanks to all who voted, and congratulations to Chauncey Billups, Donnie Boyce, Alec Burks, Cory Higgins and Jay Humphries who will all be moving on to the finals on Friday.

I find it interesting that not one person was unanimous though. Chauncey was the closest with 40 out of 41 votes. Voting error or someone who knew he would make it anyway and wanted to spread the vote around?
 
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