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UCLA Basketball: The 10 best men’s basketball players since 2000

By Mike Regalado

LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 29: Norman Powell #4 of the UCLA Bruins celebrates after the game against the Utah Utes at Pauley Pavilion on January 29, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. UCLA won 69-59. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 29: Norman Powell #4 of the UCLA Bruins celebrates after the game against the Utah Utes at Pauley Pavilion on January 29, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. UCLA won 69-59. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images) /
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WESTWOOD, CA – MARCH 06: Russell Westbrook #0 of the UCLA Bruins handles the ball under pressure from Landry Fields #2 of the Stanford Cardinal during the college basketball game at Pauley Pavilion on March 6, 2008 in Westwood, California. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
WESTWOOD, CA – MARCH 06: Russell Westbrook #0 of the UCLA Bruins handles the ball under pressure from Landry Fields #2 of the Stanford Cardinal during the college basketball game at Pauley Pavilion on March 6, 2008 in Westwood, California. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

6. Russell Westbrook (2006-08)

Career Stats: 8.3 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.0 spg, FG% .464

This was a hard player to rank, simply because I did not want to include his good fortunes in the NBA to mix with what he did at UCLA. There is no doubt that he is one of the best players in the association right now, but at UCLA, he needed time to blossom and grow.

Surprisingly, he blossomed and grew during the jump from his freshman year to his sophomore. In 2006-07, he only had 3.4 ppg coming off the bench, but things shifted in his sophomore as he was forced into the starting lineup with Darren Collison getting injured that year.

Not only was it his coming out party, but he helped the Bruins make it to a third straight Final Four.  That year his points jumped up to 12.7 per game (2nd on the team) and had 4.3 assists, more than Collison.

But it wasn’t just his contributions that made him stand out, but the way he played with a bang.

Currently, he is the highlight of the Oklahoma City Thunder, a team that drafted him 4th overall in 2008 (though they were still the Seattle Supersonics at that point). He has been a 7-time All-Star, a 2-time All-Star MVOPP and even took home the title of league MVOPP back in 2017. Yes, he certainly has blossomed alright.