Kansas basketball: All-time Roy Williams Jayhawks team
Bench No. 2: Drew Gooden (1999-2002)
This was one of the tougher decisions in putting this team together because Roy Williams had a lot of dominant forwards during his time coaching the Jayhawks. While Drew Gooden is coming off of the bench, he’s definitely one of the best players of the Williams era at Kansas.
Here are some of Gooden’s stats and accomplishments:
- 2002 Final Four
- 1-time Conference champion
- 2002 NABC co-player of the year
- 2002 Consensus first-team All-American
- 2002 Big 12 Player of the Year
- No. 20 in all-time scoring at Kansas
- Jersey retired
Gooden had a ridiculously good season in 2002 where he was dropping 19.8 points and grabbing 11.4 rebounds per game. Both of those figures led the Jayhawks that year. As a result, he raked in the awards, including Big 12 Player of the Year and a National Player of the Year nod from the NABC.
The 2002 team led by Gooden went undefeated in conference play and eventually made it all the way to the Final Four where they were defeated by the soon-to-be champion Maryland Terrapins.
Gooden decided to forego his senior year of eligibility and enter the NBA Draft where he was taken with the fourth overall pick by the Memphis Grizzlies. His pro career was successful, spanning for a duration of 14 seasons.