Ranking the all-time starting fives for the 2022 NCAA tournament Sweet 16 team

Cougar Basketball
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UH coming in at #5, only behind UCLA, UNC, Kansas, and Duke. Here’s the lineup they used:

5. Houston Cougars

Imagine if both Hayes and Olajuwon had been in the same frontcourt?

G Otis Birdsong: AP All-America second team (1977); averaged 24.4 PPG in four years at Houston; Southwest Conference player of the year (1977)

G Gary Phillips: Led team to the Sweet Sixteen (1961); averaged 18.4 PPG, 6.9 RPG in three years at Houston

G/F Clyde Drexler: AP All-America second team (1983); Southwest Conference Player of the Year (1983); averaged 14.4 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 3.2 APG in three years at Houston

F/C Elvin Hayes: AP All-America first team (1967, 1968); averaged 31.0 PPG, 17.2 RPG in two years at Houston; led team to Final Four in 1967 and 1968

C Hakeem Olajuwon: AP All-America first team (1983-84); 1983 NCAA tournament Most Outstanding Player; led Houston to national title game in 1983 and 1984; averaged 13.3 PPG, 10.7 RPG, 4.5 BPG in three years at Houston

Coach: Guy Lewis (coached team in 1983, 1984 national title games)

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i love gary phillips but thats an odd choice with rob williams & michael young available

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Rob, Mike Young, Don Chaney, Dwight Davis, a lot of options I probably would have gone with at that spot.

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Really? You do know he held the Big O to the lowest point total in his collegiate career?

I could see making an argument for Rob. He was as talented ss any UH basketball player I’ve seen since 1965, but the end of his career at. UH was on such a sour note. From that point forward his life was a tragedy

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not saying he isnt a great. he is an all-time great… but we had other guards that lead us to final 4s, phillips teams were barely .500

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And neither one of those lead those teams to the FF

Gary was the leader on a Sweet 16 team. Otis never played in the Tourney. Maybe he shouldn’t be included, huh

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Otis was one of four All-Americans in our program’s history, the SWC Player of the Year, and the greatest guard in UH history, he has to be on the list.

Dwight Davis to me is the most overlooked player in our history. Led the team to 3 straight tournament berths, back to back Sweet 16s, and averaged 20+ PPG and 11+ RPG over his career, and nobody ever talks about him.

Not saying Gary Phillips isn’t a great player, but his numbers and team success in his career don’t really compare to Dwight Davis.

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Agree on both. You’re preaching to the choir leader on Dwight. He was the best #42 in our history, and his name and number should be on the wall at Fertitta

Otis was SWC Player of the Decade for the 70s despite playing only 2 seasons in the conference

Edit: Dwight was also the best player on teams that went to The NCAAs long before there were 64 teams

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I think we come in at #3 personally but that’s just me……I mean Hayes and Dream down low? Forget about it!!!

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rob Williams was the best player on the 82 final 4 team… in the multiple phi slama docs the players of that team literally said it was robs team and he could do whatever he wanted (some people didnt like that). they said the reason they lost in the final 4 was becuase rob had an off night.

and otis is undeniably on the team…

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So Gary Phillips was surrounded by Hakeem-likes, Clyde-likes or Michael-likes?

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My father said the Big E was “relentless.”

He said there was sweat pouring off him from the five minute mark forward. Said he was as “machine-like” as any big man he’d ever seen.

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Serious question. Fabian White over Clyde?

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I LOVE Fabian White as much or more than anyone. He has been my 7 year old daughters favorite player for pretty much her entire life. He epitomizes what our program has become under CKS. If they gave us 2-3 bench spots in this, I’d probably put him on it.

But you can’t put him over Clyde, at least not right now. We win 4 more games this year? Damn right.

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I saw Clyde as a Rocket (I’m 37) but not as a Coog. Will be really interesting to see how CKS’s deep run tournament teams effect this list as the years go on.

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hakeem wasnt a major player as a freshmen, young wasnt a major player that year… you are ducking him for future great players that werent great yet… if i have time later, ill see if i can clip the scene from the doc where the players openly admit it was unquestioned robs team, and they lived and died by how well he was playing, that they needed him that year

rob literally lead us to the tournament the year before that, as he did 26 a game and no one else did more than 12 (this includes clyde and young)… on a team of mostly freshmen (think about this in the context of the 80s when young teams didnt win)…

and ive been trying to avoid saying this as to not disparage an all-time great… becuase thats what he is, an All-time great
but how can you use the “teammate knock” on williams when there’s a strong case Philips wasn’t even the best player on the sweet 16 team, Ted Luckenbill who was averaging a double double, i believe something like 20 and 10 for the season, Philips wasn’t the teams leading scorer

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I wonder when Q will start being included on some of these lists.

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its too fresh … recent players you remember their strengths and flaws, but only remember the strengths after a certain amount of time, my guess is 7-10 years… sooner if he becomes an NBA star

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Your description also makes me think of Moses Malone….talk about relentless……and one of the best sweaters around.

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off night because of substance abuse of some sort, plus lack of sleep . . . . . Only a few individuals wear sun shades into a final four arena . . . . .