2020 Season Tips Off with 50 Players to Watch Competing for the Top Men's Honor in College Basketball
ATLANTA – Butler senior guard
Kamar Baldwin has been named to the 2020 Citizen Naismith Trophy Men's Player of the Year Watch List by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. The watch list, which includes 50 players, was announced Monday, Nov. 4.
A list of the midseason 30 team will be released in early February, followed by the 10 national semifinalists and four finalists on March 5, 2020, and March 17, 2020, respectively. The 2020 Citizen Naismith Trophy will be awarded in the hometown of the Atlanta Tipoff Club during the Final Four at the Naismith Awards Brunch on April 5, 2020.
Players who do not make the watch list are still eligible to be selected for the midseason 30 team.
Baldwin earned All-BIG EAST Second Team honors in 2018-19. The native of Winder, Ga., placed seventh in the BIG EAST in scoring with a 17.0 average and was third in free throw shooting, making 85.0 percent. Having scored 1,453 points in three seasons with the Bulldogs, he has the fourth-best three-year scoring total in school history.
Baldwin is also one of 20 members on the watch list for the 2020 Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award. The conference's head coaches also selected Baldwin to the 2019-20 Preseason All-BIG EAST First Team.
2020 Citizen Naismith Trophy Men's Preseason Watch List
| NAME |
CLASS |
POSITION |
SCHOOL |
CONFERENCE |
| Bryce Aiken |
Sr. |
G |
Harvard |
IVY |
| Cole Anthony |
Fr. |
G |
North Carolina |
ACC |
| Udoka Azubuike |
Sr. |
C |
Kansas |
Big 12 |
| Kamar Baldwin |
Sr. |
G |
Butler |
BIG EAST |
| Charles Bassey |
So. |
C |
Western Kentucky |
C-USA |
| Kerry Blackshear Jr. |
Sr. |
F |
Florida |
SEC |
| Vernon Carey Jr. |
Fr. |
C |
Duke |
ACC |
| Yoeli Childs |
Sr. |
F |
BYU |
WCC |
| Tristan Clark |
Jr. |
F |
Baylor |
Big 12 |
| Anthony Cowan Jr. |
Sr. |
G |
Maryland |
Big Ten |
| Jarron Cumberland |
Sr. |
G |
Cincinnati |
AAC |
| Mamadi Diakite |
Sr. |
F |
Virginia |
ACC |
| Alpha Diallo |
Sr. |
G |
Providence |
BIG EAST |
| Ayo Dosunmu |
So. |
G |
Illinois |
Big Ten |
| Devon Dotson |
So. |
G |
Kansas |
Big 12 |
| Anthony Edwards |
Fr. |
G |
Georgia |
SEC |
| Jordan Ford |
Sr. |
G |
St. Mary's |
WCC |
| Kellan Grady |
Jr. |
G |
Davidson |
A-10 |
| Jon Axel Gudmundsson |
Sr. |
G |
Davidson |
A-10 |
| Ashton Hagans |
So. |
G |
Kentucky |
SEC |
| Tyrese Haliburton |
So. |
G |
Iowa State |
Big 12 |
| Markus Howard |
Sr. |
G |
Marquette |
BIG EAST |
| Markell Johnson |
Sr. |
G |
NC State |
ACC |
| Tre Jones |
So. |
G |
Duke |
ACC |
| Anthony Lamb |
Sr. |
F |
Vermont |
America East |
| Kira Lewis Jr. |
So. |
G |
Alabama |
SEC |
| Nico Mannion |
Fr. |
G |
Arizona |
Pac-12 |
| Naji Marshall |
Jr. |
F |
Xavier |
BIG EAST |
| Tyrese Maxey |
Fr. |
G |
Kentucky |
SEC |
| Skylar Mays |
Sr. |
G |
LSU |
SEC |
| Sam Merrill |
Sr. |
G |
Utah State |
Mountain West |
| John Mooney |
Sr. |
F |
Notre Dame |
ACC |
| Andrew Nembhard |
So. |
G |
Florida |
SEC |
| Jordan Nwora |
Jr. |
F |
Louisville |
ACC |
| Reggie Perry |
So. |
F |
Mississippi State |
SEC |
| Myles Powell |
Sr. |
G |
Seton Hall |
BIG EAST |
| Payton Pritchard |
Sr. |
G |
Oregon |
Pac-12 |
| Zavier Simpson |
Sr. |
G |
Michigan |
Big Ten |
| Jalen Smith |
So. |
F |
Maryland |
Big Ten |
| Lamar Stevens |
Sr. |
F |
Penn State |
Big Ten |
| Isaiah Stewart |
Fr. |
F |
Washington |
Pac-12 |
| Killian Tillie |
Sr. |
F |
Gonzaga |
WCC |
| Xavier Tillman |
Jr. |
F |
Michigan State |
Big Ten |
| Tres Tinkle |
Sr. |
F |
Oregon State |
Pac-12 |
| Obi Toppin |
So. |
F |
Dayton |
A-10 |
| Breein Tyree |
Sr. |
G |
Ole Miss |
SEC |
| Kaleb Wesson |
Jr. |
F |
Ohio State |
Big Ten |
| Cassius Winston |
Sr. |
G |
Michigan State |
Big Ten |
| James Wiseman |
Fr. |
C |
Memphis |
AAC |
| McKinley Wright IV |
Jr. |
G |
Colorado |
Pac-12 |
ABOUT THE ATLANTA TIPOFF CLUB
Founded during the 1956-57 season, the Atlanta Tipoff Club is committed to promoting the game of basketball and recognizing the outstanding accomplishments of those who make the game so exciting. The Atlanta Tipoff Club administers the Naismith Awards, the most prestigious national honors in all of college and high school basketball. Named in honor of Dr. James Naismith, inventor of the game of basketball, the family of Naismith Awards annually recognizes the most outstanding men's and women's college and high school basketball players and coaches. Other Naismith Awards are presented to the men's and women's college basketball defensive players of the year, as well as lifetime achievement awards to basketball officials and outstanding contributors to the game. UCLA's Lew Alcindor received the first Citizen Naismith Trophy in 1969, while the late Anne Donovan (Old Dominion) was the inaugural women's recipient in 1983. Corporate partners of the Naismith Awards include Citizen Watch Company, Jersey Mike's and Werner Ladder.
