In the history of college basketball, there are few programs as accomplished as Kentucky. One of the biggest reasons for that is Kentucky’s long lineage of outstanding point guards. That lineage has grown in leaps and bounds under John Calipari, who brings in another elite point guard almost every year. While it’s hard to pick out the best of the best, we have come up with a list of the five best point guards in Kentucky history.
Brandon Knight
Knight is so often overlooked as one of Kentucky’s great point guards, as he came early in the Calipari era. If we’re being honest, he didn’t have as much around him as some other Kentucky points guards. That’s why Knight averaged 36 minutes per game.
He dished out 4.2 assists per game while also leading his team with 17.3 points per game. Knight led a Kentucky team without a ton of depth or star power to the Final Four, which is something lesser points guards never would have pulled off.
Tyler Ulis
The undersized Ulis was a part-time player on the stacked Kentucky team that nearly survived the 2014-15 season undefeated. But he undoubtedly left his mark on the Wildcats after a sensational sophomore season. He and Jamal Murray were a scary backcourt, although Murray owes Ulis a lot for helping make things a little easier for him.
After averaging 17.3 points and seven assists per game, Ulis won SEC Players of the Year and SEC Defensive Player of the Year. He was also a consensus All-American and won the coveted Bob Cousy Award. He did everything a great point guard should do, and years from now, he’ll still be remembered as one of the best Kentucky point guards of all time.
Kyle Macy
Unlike most of Kentucky’s recent point guards, Macy played three seasons for the Wildcats, which gives him a leg up on the competition. Of course, it helps that he was a three-time all-SEC player and three-time All-American.
As a senior, he became the first Kentucky player to be the consensus SEC Player of the Year. However, Macy had already written his name in the Kentucky history books as the starting point guard on the team that won the 1978 national championship to cap off a 30-2 campaign.
John Wall
Wall was the first point guard of the Calipari era and he remains arguably the best. In fairness, he had a good team around, specifically DeMarcus Cousins and Patrick Patterson. But Wall was still the straw that stirred the drink, and then some. He led the team with 16.6 points per game while also averaging 6.5 assists per game.
Wall did it all for the Wildcats, earning SEC Player of the Year and All-American honors before leading Kentucky to the Elite Eight in his only season in Lexington. He was the catalyst for the Wildcats going 35-3 and a big reason why so many other talented point guards wanted to play at Kentucky.
Ralph Beard
Only Kentucky purists will know about Beard’s incredible legacy. But for everyone else, all you need to know is that Adolph Rupp once called him “the best player I’ve ever coached” while Bobby Knight referred to him as “the Michael Jordan of his time.”
He was the point guard and floor general for Kentucky’s “Fabulous Five” that won back-to-back national championships in 1948 and 1949, going 68-5 over those two seasons. He had incredible quickness and was helping the Wildcats run the fast break long before it was popular. Beard was just 5’10’’, but he was a fierce competitor who wanted to win, and Kentucky’s record during his career reflects that.