He is a point guard that rarely dunks. He doesn’t do spectacular dribbling exhibitions. He didn’t even lead the Big 10 in scoring last year, but, with a 18.8 points per game average, Trey Burke is remarkably consistent and scored in double figures in every regular season game this season going and then set a Big 10 record by scoring over 15 points in each conference finals game.
During all of this Burke remained focused on victory and was outwardly unemotional, in other words, the ideal leader… and he is only a sophomore.
This week in Atlanta, the Los Angeles Athletic Club awarded the coveted John R. Wooden Award, which is annually awarded to the nation’s preeminent men’s collegiate basketball player of the year, to Trey Burke. The award was presented on ESPN by Coach John Wooden’s grandson, Greg. There will be a gala awards ceremony in Los Angeles in April to celebrate the award of the trophy whose unique design was inspired by Coach Wooden’s idea of the “total basketball player” that Trey has exemplified this year. Check Video with Burke’s reaction to winning the Award
Burke has also won the Associated Press, the Bob Cousy and the Oscar Robertson awards for his play and leadership both on and off the court this past year which has led the Wolverines to the brink of the national championship.
All year long Burke has been neck and neck with Indiana’s Victor Oladipo and the Wooden was no exception. Burke received 2,080votes to Oladipo’s 2,718… it was that close. Also in the running were Doug McDermott of Creighton, Otto Porter, Jr. of Georgetown and Gonzaga’s Kelly Olynyk. Rounding out the Wooden All American Team this year were Shane Larkin from Miami, Cody Zeller of Indiana, Mason Plumlee of Duke and Ohio State’s DeShaun Thomas.
Last year’s winner of the Wooden was Kentucky’s Anthony Davis who is now playing for the New Orleans Pelicans (Hornets, for now) and previous winners include Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Danny Manning and Kevin Durant.
Ever the modest one, when asked about all these accolades, Trey Burke commented to the press, “Great accomplishments. But, my teammates and coaching staff, you know, they put me in this position. I wouldn’t be able to receive those awards without them. I wouldn’t even be in that talk.”
