Note: The Card Chronicle Fab 50 is updated each week.
Not we're not quite beyond the point where someone could come out of the pack and take it home, but it's looking more and more like a two-horse race for the Wooden Award.
Alando Tucker is playing the same role Jameer Nelson did three years ago in that he's the best player on one of the top four teams in the country, but the guy he's competing against (Kevin Durant/Emeka Okafor) is having similar success in college, and is a far superior NBA prospect. Of course the main difference here is that Okafor played for a national championship team, while Durant's team keeps losing. Durant's only prayer, in my eyes, is if the Horns go on a tear here at the end of the season, and he absolutely goes crazy during a deep run in the Big 12 tourney.
As for the other contenders: LSU's collapse has effectively ruined Big Baby's chances, Nevada isn't nearly the team St. Joe's was in '04 so Fazekas is screwed, Hansbrough hasn't been overly dominant, and Chris Lofton's injury has eliminated him from consideration.
At this point, the outsider with best chance to take home player of the year honors is Oregon's Aaron Brooks.
The Ducks' loss to USC over the weekend definitely didn't do anything to help his cause, but it was hard to ignore how dreadful the team looked in their loss to Washington when they were forced to play without their leading scorer. If Oregon can win the PAC 10 tourney and earn at least a two seed, then Brooks will have a shot if Durant or Tucker stumble down the stretch.
The player with the second best chance to overtake Durant and Tucker also plays in the best conference in America, UCLA's Arron Afflalo. His numbers aren't as sparkling as Brooks', but he might be the most clutch player in the country, and there's a far greater chance of UCLA running the table from here on out than there is Oregon.
Anyhow, here's the list for this week:
- Alando Tucker, Wisconsin (LW: 1)
- Kevin Durant, Texas (LW: 3)
- Nick Fazekas, Nevada (LW: 6)
- Tyler Hansbrough, North Carolina (LW: 4)
- Arron Afflalo, UCLA (LW: 7)
- Aaron Brooks, Oregon (LW: 8)
- Jared Dudley, Boston College (LW: 9)
- Glen Davis, LSU (LW: 2)
- Joakin Noah, Florida (LW: 15)
- Mario Boggan, Oklahoma State (LW: 5)
- Al Horford, Florida (LW: 11)
- Greg Oden, Ohio State (LW: 12)
- Dominic James, Marquette (LW: 13)
- Darren Collison, UCLA (LW: 14)
- Chris Lofton, Tennessee (LW: 15)
- Acie Law, Texas A&M (LW: 18)
- Morris Almond, Rice (LW: 17)
- Jarrius Jackson, Texas Tech (LW: 16)
- Al Thornton, Florida State (LW: 30)
- Sean Singletary, Virginia (LW: 25)
- Ivan Radenovic, Arizona (LW: 23)
- Aaron Gray, Pittsburgh (LW: 19)
- Bo McCalebb, New Orleans (LW: 21)
- Josh McRoberts, Duke (LW: 24)
- Brandon Rush, Kansas (LW: 34)
- Brandon Heath, San Diego State (LW: 27)
- Corey Brewer, Florida (LW: 28)
- A.J. Graves, Butler (LW: 26)
- Herbert Hill, Providence (LW: 47)
- Taurean Green, Florida (LW: 36)
- Ronald Steele, Alabama (LW: 33)
- Curtis Sumpter, Villanova (LW: 20)
- Drew Neitzel, Michigan State (LW: 46)
- Rodney Stuckey, Eastern Washington (LW: 32)
- JamesOn Curry, Oklahoma State (LW: 35)
- Brandan Wright, North Carolina (LW: NR)
- Adam Haluska, Iowa (LW: 48)
- Mustafa Shakur, Arizona (LW: 22)
- Randolph Morris, Kentucky (LW: 31)
- Jared Jordan, Marist (LW: 40)
- Jacob Burtschi, Air Force (LW: 41)
- Tywon Lawson, North Carolina (LW: NR)
- Derek Raivio, Gonzaga (LW: 37)
- Jeff Green, Georgetown (LW: NR)
- Russell Carter, Notre Dame (LW: 39)
- D.J. Strawberry, Maryland (LW: 42)
- Daequan Cook, Ohio State (LW: 43)
- Marcus Williams, Arizona (LW: 29)
- Loren Stokes, Hofstra (LW: 45)
- Geoff McDermott, Providence (LW: NR)