2008 – Cole Aldrich
Funny enough, Aldrich and Collins both had better statistical seasons in 2008 than they did in 2009. As I mentioned in Collins’ piece, that is almost solely due to the increase in surrounding talent. However, the big man was actually better (in my opinion) than Collins was in 2008. Collins led the team in scoring, but Aldrich was a force down low on both ends of the floor. His four points less per game than Collins was made up for by his 11 rebounds and almost three blocks per contest. Collins wasn’t a bad defender by any means, but Aldrich was a two-time Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year. His impact was much more balanced, whereas Collins was much more of an offensive threat alone.