OK. For the next few minutes, you’re Bill Self.

I have three players listed below based on single-season stats. Which player would you take if you had the choice?

Player A: 37 games, 7.9 points, 49.3% field-goal percentage, 26.8% three-point percentage, 69.9% free-throw percentage, 54 assists, 59 turnovers, 34 steals, 19.5 minutes per game.

Player B: 34 games, 5.5 points, 42.9% field-goal percentage, 31.3% three-point percentage, 73.5% free-throw percentage, 123 assists, 87 turnovers, 35 steals, 21.4 minutes per game.

Player C: 35 games, 9.7 points, 50.6% field-goal percentage, 36.4% three-point percentage, 72.4% free-throw percentage, 104 assists, 83 turnovers, 38 steals, 26.5 minutes per game.

Before scrolling down, please vote in the poll here.

Now, here is a random KU photo used so you guys can’t see the answers.

http://worldonline.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/blogs/entry_img/2009/Jul/07/Allen.jpg

OK, I’m not positive, but I’m guessing most of you chose Player C. He has a higher scoring average, field-goal percentage and three-point percentage than the other two.

So who are these players?

Well first off, let me say that these are the freshman statistics for three Jayhawks.

Player A is Keith Langford, who ended as the sixth-leading scorer in KU history.

http://worldonline.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/blogs/entry_img/2009/Jul/07/Keith.jpg

Player B is Kirk Hinrich, who now has his jersey in the rafters at Allen Fieldhouse.

http://worldonline.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/blogs/entry_img/2009/Jul/07/Kirk.jpg

Player C is Tyshawn Taylor.

http://worldonline.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/blogs/entry_img/2009/Jul/07/Tyshawn.jpg

It seems like there has been a lot of talk lately about Taylor’s inconsistency last season.

I think we’re all forgetting two things: 1. Taylor was still pretty darned good as a freshman; and 2. Taylor was just a freshman.

Not many KU players step into Allen Fieldhouse from high school and immediately look like polished NBA stars.

The point here is that perhaps some of the criticism of Taylor might be going a bit overboard. He should improve from his freshman to sophomore year just like hundreds of players have before him.

And though turnovers are a problem, Taylor still had fewer turnovers his freshman year (83) than Jacque Vaughn (98), Mario Chalmers (93) and Kirk Hinrich (87)*, who all turned out to be pretty decent in their Jayhawk careers.

* — I know it’s not particularly fair to compare shooting guards to point guards when it comes to turnovers, but the point is, Taylor’s turnover numbers were not far and away the worst freshman numbers in recent history.

Who would have thought that Langford would develop into the consistent scorer he became? Most KU fans also don’t seem to remember that Hinrich was not very good at all his freshman season.

As seen above, Taylor is already ahead of Hinrich and Langford in several statistical categories.

Let’s be careful to criticize someone for not reaching fan expectations that are oftentimes unreachable, especially for someone who still is only 19.

How Tyshawn stacks up

http://worldonline.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/blogs/entry_img/2009/Jul/07/Ty.jpg

The following shows Tyshawn Taylor’s freshman statistics compared to the freshman statistics of Jacque Vaughn, Paul Pierce, Kirk Hinrich, Keith Langford, Aaron Miles, J.R. Giddens, Russell Robinson, Mario Chalmers and Sherron Collins.

Points per game
Paul Pierce 11.7
Mario Chalmers 11.5
J.R. Giddens 11.3
Tyshawn Taylor 9.7
Sherron Collins 9.3
Keith Langford 7.9
Jacque Vaughn 7.8
Aaron Miles 7.1
Kirk Hinrich 5.5
Russell Robinson 3.5

Field-goal percentage
Tyshawn Taylor 50.6
Keith Langford 49.3
Sherron Collins 47.8
J.R. Giddens 47.5
Jacque Vaughn 46.7
Mario Chalmers 44.5
Kirk Hinrich 42.9
Paul Pierce 41.9
Russell Robinson 41.2
Aaron Miles 40.4

Three-point percentage
J.R. Giddens 40.7
Sherron Collins 40.5
Jacque Vaughn 40.0
Mario Chalmers 37.5
Tyshawn Taylor 36.4
Kirk Hinrich 31.3
Paul Pierce 30.4
Aaron Miles 28.9
Russell Robinson 28.6
Keith Langford 26.8

Free-throw percentage
Aaron Miles 79.3
Mario Chalmers 78.8
Sherron Collins 76.6
Kirk Hinrich 73.5
Tyshawn Taylor 72.4
Russell Robinson 70.0
Keith Langford 69.9
Jacque Vaughn 67.0
J.R. Giddens 66.7
Paul Pierce 60.6

Steals
Mario Chalmers 89
Aaron Miles 60
Paul Pierce 44
Tyshawn Taylor 38
Jacque Vaughn 38
Kirk Hinrich 35
Keith Langford 34
Sherron Collins 28
J.R. Giddens 24
Russell Robinson 19

Highest single-game scoring total (freshman season)
Paul Pierce 30
Tyshawn Taylor 26 (vs. Oklahoma)
J.R. Giddens 24
Sherron Collins 23
Mario Chalmers 23
Jacque Vaughn 21
Keith Langford 20
Aaron Miles 16
Russell Robinson 13
Kirk Hinrich 12