Photo by Kevin C. Cox
We didn't get a March Madness this year, but everyone's favorite summer hoops tournament TBT (The Basketball Tournament) is thankfully gracing our airwaves.
Founded in 2014, TBT features often eclectic groups of players in a single elimination tournament. One of the bigger draws has been college alumni teams. This year's final will feature a squad mostly made up of Marquette alumni. So obviously, we got to thinking, what would a Stanford team look like?
Our criteria are relatively straightforward:
- They have to be alive (sorry, Hank Luisetti)
- They have to have played somewhere recently (no Mad Dog, either)
- They can't be firmly in the NBA
- They can't be a current student
- They can't be John Arrillaga (at least not until our check clears)
So with those criteria in mind, here's the way we envision a ten-man squad of Stanford alumni.
Starters
G Chasson Randle
Chasson has been in and out of the league, and is a walking bucket. Stanford's all-time leading scorer still could earn his way into a contract for next year, but for now we'll pencil him in. He'd have no problems scoring on teams like Sideline Cancer and Brotherly Love
G Anthony Brown
Chasson's old running mate was criminally underrated as an upperclassman. He didn't stick in the League, but he's having a solid go of it abroad. He's the perfect modern wing for this team
F Rosco Allen
Rosco is another versatile weapon, and can do a bit of everything. He's been (legally) terrorizing Japan recently, and his skills as a creator would make this squad very difficult to guard
F Josh Huestis
He was a defensive specialist at Stanford, and parlayed that into a few years stateside. He's exactly the kind of switchable stopper that's needed in this ragtag format
C Josh Sharma
I was impressed with his summer league performance this year, and his highlight slams have been all over Belgian hoops social media. He'd round out this lineup nicely
Reserves
G Marcus Allen
Marcus brings a level of grit and a will to win. He's been in the Lakers' camp, and his scrappiness is infectious
G Dorian Pickens
Pickens was back stateside this year, playing alongside Tacko Fall in the G League. His shooting off the bench would provide spacing
F Josh Owens
He's been a journeyman, but he's found success at every stop. Owens brings a nice veteran presence to the front court
F Reid Travis
Reid is a starting caliber player, but we can't start a guy that transferred to #BBN. Getting him aboard would be huge, though. No one in TBT is stopping him consistently
F Michael Humphrey
Big Mike can stretch the floor and get up, and would be a great rotational big for this squad
This team would be competitive. I don't know if they'd win the whole thing, but it would be a lot of fun to see them come together. I'll even offer to coach them, because I have nothing better to do.
Is there anyone that I missed? Let me know in the comments, unless it's Christian Sanders.