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Okafor Named Naismith Trophy Finalist
3/19/2015 1:05:00 PM | Men's Basketball
DURHAM, N.C. – Duke freshman Jahlil Okafor is one of four finalists for the 2015 Naismith Trophy presented by AT&T, as announced Thursday by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. Okafor is joined by Wisconsin's Frank Kaminsky, Kentucky's Willie Cauley-Stein and Notre Dame's Jerian Grant as this year's finalists. The winner of the Naismith Trophy, given annully to the national player of the year, will be revealed April 5, in Indianapolis.
Okafor looks to become the eighth Blue Devil to earn the honor after Johnny Dawkins (1986), Danny Ferry (1989), Christian Laettner (1992), Elton Brand (1999), Shane Battier (2001), Jason Williams (2002) and J.J. Redick (2006) garnered the same accolade during their respective playing careers. Duke's seven Naismith Trophy winners is the most by any school.
The Chicago, Ill., native helped guide the Blue Devils (29-4, 15-3) to a No. 1 seed in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament, the team's 13th No. 1 seed in program history. Okafor is on pace to become just the second freshman in Duke history to reach 600 points during his rookie season, averaging 17.7 points per game. Okafor's 17.7 ppg. average ranks second in the conference, while his field goal percentage (.669) ranks first in the ACC and second in the nation. Okafor's 3.91 offensive rebounds per game also sits atop the conference, while also ranking eighth in the country. Okafor looks to become just the 13th freshman in conference history to lead his team in both points and rebounds.
Okafor earned a myriad of awards during his freshman season in Durham. In addition to becoming the first freshman in conference history to earn ACC Player of the Year honors, Okafor was also named the Wayman Tisdale National Freshman of the Year and the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) District III Player of the Year.
For the 11th straight year, fans will have the chance to vote for the player of their choice and help determine the 2015 Naismith Trophy winner. Beginning March 23 and running through April 4, fans can cast their vote through the online and mobile optimized site, www.NaismithVote.com. The fan vote represented 25 percent of the selection process, the largest fan impact of any collegiate basketball award.
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