Many of college basketball’s prized recruits make their home in the Big XII. How many have played for the Indiana Pacers?
The Indiana Pacers have had many players from Big XII schools over the years.
There are a handful of basketball hotbeds that coaches believe are the key to a winning team. If you can recruit areas like Chicago, California, New York City, the Carolinas, or Texas, you are bound to have success.
Nearly half of the Big XII schools are located across the Lone Star State with many of the others not far away.
The state of Texas drives men’s basketball in the Big XII and has a rich tradition of success with programs such as Kansas, Texas, Baylor, and now West Virginia. You can find these schools and a few others from the Big XII all over the college basketball record books and plenty of individual players make the same impact in the NBA.
How do players from one of the country’s biggest recruiting hotbeds fare in the country’s most basketball-crazed state? Here are the best Indiana Pacers players from each Big XII program.
Note: The Pacers have not had a player from TCU or Kansas St.
Best Indiana Pacers Player from Baylor: Micheal Williams
Micheal Williams played a season with Detroit and split his sophomore campaign between Phoenix and Charlotte before joining Indiana in 1990-91.
He made major strides in the Circle City, upping his scoring average per game from 5.6 points the season before to 11.1 during his first season as a Pacer.
The all-around athlete also added 4.8 assists, 2.4 rebounds, and 2.1 steals before again making major improvements the following season. He was third on the team in scoring with 15.0 points per contest while dishing out 8.2 assists. Williams also added career-highs with 2.6 rebounds and 2.9 steals per outing.
Traded to Minnesota after the season, Williams had one more solid season before starting a decline. He finished his career with per-game averages of 11.0 points, 5.8 assists, and 1.7 steals while also holding the NBA record for consecutive free throws made at 97.