Jakob Poeltl’s transformation from promising freshman to the Runnin’ Utes offense centerpiece has been a double-edged sword for many Ute fans. While they love to watch the Austrian seven-footer throw down dunks and pick apart teams in the post, Poeltl’s long list of memorable performances this season has caused his draft stock to rise steadily, and it seems inevitable that the projected seventh overall pick in the NBA Draft will have played his final season for Utah.
Nevertheless, this year has been a tremendous run for Poeltl, and if the sophomore decides to cash in his ticket to the big league, he is well on his way to leaving Utah with potentially a share of the Pac-12 regular season title and a conference Player of the Year nod under his belt.
He is a finalist for the Wooden Award, the Naismith Trophy and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award — given to the nation’s best center. It makes perfect sense that if Poeltl can continue to produce double-doubles and highlight material at the same frequency he has been doing this season, he is a shoe-in for Pac-12 Player of the Year.
Just this Monday, Poeltl was recognized as the conference Player of the Week, following a career weekend in Los Angeles, where he led the Utes to their first victory at UCLA in over half a century and snapped the Trojans’ 16-game home winning streak. With his fourth Player of the Week nomination, Poeltl is now tied for second place in number of Pac-12 POW awards received in a single season.
If that isn’t a compelling enough reason that the dominant forward, who has been recognized week after week for his accomplishments, should win Player of the Year, all you have to do is take a look at this season’s statistics to see that Poeltl has stood out as the best in the conference, and in the country.
This season, Poeltl has racked up 12 double-doubles and scored 20 or more points in eleven games, including seven times against Pac-12 opponents. Over the course of the entire season, Poeltl is averaging 18.1 points, and ranks as the conference’s second-highest scorer, just 1.9 points per game behind Washington guard Andrew Andrews. His 66.8 percent field goal shooting is the best in the Pac-12 and fourth in the nation, and Poeltl lands in the top ten in the conference for a number of other metrics, such as offensive and defensive rebounds and blocked shots.
These statistical feats are even more impressive when you consider that Poeltl averages 29.5 minutes per game, the least among other candidates being considered for Pac-12 Player of the Year, such as Andrews (33.5 min), Dillon Brooks (33 min) and Gabe York (32.8 min).
If you subscribe to the argument that the conference Player of the Year should be the best player on the best team, then Oregon’s Brooks or Chris Boucher may stand the best chance of taking home the Pac-12 POY award, as they have been phenomenal this season, especially in both wins against Utah.
But if the Utes can keep up their current four-game winning streak, they’ll most likely receive a share of the Pac-12 regular season title and can be just as confident in claiming to be the best team in the Pac-12. Looking at the remaining games on the schedule, Poeltl has the best chance to make a statement in his case for being Player of the Year, as the Utes have tough games against Arizona State and Colorado, with a nationally-televised showdown against Arizona right in the middle.
By finishing with solid performances in these final two weeks, especially against Arizona, which has the size to match him and gave him trouble last season, Poeltl can prove himself worthy of the Pac-12 Player of the Year award.
t.crum@dailyutahchronicle.com
@tylerfcrum
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