SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts — The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced today the Top 10 candidates for the 2021 Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award with LSU sophomore Trendon Watford getting a nod as one of the nominees.
Named after Class of 2010 Hall of Famer and two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Karl Malone, the annual honor in its seventh year recognizes the top power forwards in Division I men’s college basketball. A national committee of college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates in November, which has now been narrowed to 10.
Karl Malone attended Louisiana Tech University due to its close proximity to his hometown of Summerfield, Louisiana. He led the Bulldogs to a Sweet 16 appearance and earned All-Southland honors in his three seasons while averaging 18.7 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. Malone achieved great success during his 19 seasons in the NBA as a 14-time NBA All-Star (1988-98, 2000-02), 11-time All-NBA First Team player (1989-99) and a member of the NBA’s 50th Anniversary All-Time Team. He also won two Olympic gold medals (1992, 1996).
Watford enters Saturday game with Texas Tech (1 p.m. CT, Maravich Center) in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge with an average of 18.3 points per game, 7.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists a contest. He has had 5 games of 20 points or more in Southeastern Conference play with two double doubles. He is third in the SEC in scoring, seventh in rebounding and fourth in field goal percentage at 50.6 percent. He is ranked eighth in assists average.
In late February, five finalists will be presented to Mr. Malone and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee. The winner of the 2021 Karl Malone Award will be presented April 9, 2021, along with the other four members of the Men’s Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Bob Cousy Point Guard Award, the Jerry West Shooting Guard Award, the Julius Erving Small Forward Award and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center Award, in addition to the Women’s Starting Five. College basketball fans can support their favorite players by participating in Fan Voting presented by Dell.
Previous winners of the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award include Obi Toppin, Dayton (2020), Zion Williamson, Duke (2019), Deandre Ayton, Arizona (2018), Johnathan Motley, Baylor (2017), Georges Niang, Iowa State (2016) and Montrezl Harrell, Louisville (2015).
For more information on the 2021 Karl Malone Award and the latest updates, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #MaloneAward on Twitter and Instagram. Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies will go live on Friday, January 29 on HoophallAwards.com.
2021 Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award Candidates*
Aamir Simms/Clemson
Matthew Hurt/Duke
Drew Timme/Gonzaga
Trayce Jackson-Davis/Indiana
Trendon Watford/LSU
Tre Mitchell/Massachusetts
Sandro Mamukelashvili/Seton Hall
Oscar da Silva/Stanford
Greg Brown/Texas
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl/Villanova
*Players can play their way onto and off of the list at any point in the 2020-21 season*
(Press Release Provided by LSU Athletics)
