SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts – October 23, 2023
Kentucky guard D.J. Wagner was named to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s preseason watch list for the 2024 Bob Cousy Award on Monday.
Wagner was ranked as high as No. 4 in the 2023 class rankings and earned MVP honors at the McDonald’s All American Game in the spring. He was the New Jersey Gatorade Player of the Year for three straight seasons. The Camden, New Jersey, native was also the co-MVP of the Iverson Classic while also winning that event’s 3-point contest. During UK’s gold-medal winning run at the GLOBL JAM in July, Wagner averaged 14.0 points, 4.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Wagner shot 42% from the field and 33.3% from long range and played more than 30 minutes per game.
Named after All-American and NCAA Champion guard Bob Cousy from Holy Cross, the award is in its 21st year.
Wagner was selected as one of 20 candidates as the best point guard in college basketball. Kentucky has had one player in program history earn the distinguished honor when Tyler Ulis won the award in 2016. Other SEC candidates on the 2023-24 preseason list include Texas A&M’s Wade Taylor IV and Tennessee’s Zakai Zeigler.
Fans are encouraged to participate in voting in each of the three rounds for the Naismith awards. In late January, all of the lists will be narrowed down to 10 players and five in February. Winners will be announced at a to be determined date.
The Cats will play exhibition contests against Georgetown College on Oct. 27 and Kentucky State on Nov. 2 at Rupp Arena. Kentucky’s regular season begins at home against New Mexico State on Nov. 6 with an 8 p.m. ET tip.