THE LUTE OLSON AWARD

2016 Lute Olson Award

Murray State's Cameron Payne accepts the 2015 Lute Olson award at the CollegeInsider.com Award's Banquet on April 3 in Indianapolis.

April 4, 2016

2016 LUTE OLSON AWARD

HOUSTON, TX -- Michigan State’s Denzel Valentine is the recipient of the 2016 Lute Olson National Player of the Year award, which is presented annually to the nation’s top player.

The 6-foot-5 senior averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.8 assists in becoming the only player in NCAA history to average 19 points, seven rebounds and seven assists since the assist became an official statistic in 1983-84. 

Valentine is the first player to lead the Big Ten in overall scoring and assists since 1997. He ranks fourth in the nation in assists (7.8 apg), eighth in 3-point field goals per game (3.35) and 11th in 3-point field-goal percentage (.444). He led the Big Ten with 12 double-doubles. 

In games which he started, Valentine made or assisted on 50.9 percent of Michigan State's field goals. His 241 assists rank as the third-best single-season total at MSU and the most by a Spartan senior, while his 104 made 3-pointers are the fourth-best single-season total. His 19.2 ppg scoring average is the best at Michigan State since the 2005-06 season.

Lute Olson won 780 games in 34 seasons, 24 of which were spent at the University of Arizona. During that stretch he led the Wildcats to 11 Pac-10 Conference titles, 23 consecutive NCAA Tournaments, four Final Four appearances and a National Championship in 1997.

The Lute Olson Award is presented annually to the nation's top Division I player who has played at least two seasons. Freshmen can be named to the Lute Olson All-America team, but are not eligible for award.


2016 LUTE OLSON ALL-AMERICA TEAM

Grayson Allen 6-5 So. Duke
DeAndre' Bembry 6-6 Jr. Saint Joseph's
Malcolm Brogdon 6-5 Sr. Virginia
Dillon Brooks 6-7 So. Oregon
Kris Dunn 6-4 Jr. Providence
Perry Ellis 6-8 Sr. Kansas
Kahlil Felder 5-9 Jr. Oakland
Yogi Ferrell 6-0 Sr. Indiana
Trey Freeman 6-2 Sr. Old Dominion
Alex Hamilton 6-4 Sr. Louisiana Tech
Buddy Hield 6-4 Sr. Oklahoma
Brandon Ingram 6-9 Fr. Duke
Brice Johnson 6-10 Sr. North Carolina
Jamal Murray 6-4 Fr. Kentucky
Nic Moore 5-9 Sr. SMU
Georges Niang 6-8 Sr. Iowa State
Jakob Poeltl 7-0 So. Utah
Justin Robinson 5-8 Jr. Monmouth
Domantas Sabonis 6-11 So. Gonzaga
Ben Simmons 6-10 Fr. LSU
Tyler Ullis 5-9 So. Kentucky
Jarrod Uthoff 6-9 Sr. Iowa
Denzel Valentine 6-5 Sr. Michigan State
Fred VanVleet 6-0 Sr. Wichita State 
Isaiah Whitehead 6-4 So. Seton Hall

 

The Lute Olson Award is presented annually to the nation's top Division I player.
 
The award is named in honor of Hall of Fame coach Lute Olson, who won 776 games in 34 seasons, 24 of which were spent at the University of Arizona. During that stretch he led the Wildcats to 11 Pac-10 Conference titles, 23 consecutive NCAA Tournaments, four Final Four appearances and a National Championship in 1997.
 
Olson is one of just 25 head coaches in NCAA history to win 700 or more games (all divisions) and ranks ninth on the Division I career victories list. He finished with a winning percentage of .731 and is the all-time winningest coach in Arizona history with 587-190 record (.755). He was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year seven times. Olson also guided Arizona to 20 consecutive 20-win seasons, and is one of only three coaches in NCAA history to record 29 or more 20-win seasons.
 
In 2002, Olson was enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
 
The recipient of the 2023-24 award will be announced in April, in Phoenix, AZ site of the men's NCAA Basketball Championship.

The Lute Olson award is presented annually to the top division I player as voted on by the award committee. 
 
The 10-member voting committee consists of current and former head coaches, as well as two senior staff members of collegeinsider.com.
 
The award is presented annually at the site of the men's Division I NCAA basketball championship. 

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