10 greatest NBA players to play junior college basketball
(BVM) – During the NBA Finals Game 3 media availability Tuesday, Miami Heat guard Jimmy Butler shouted out his former junior college program, Tyler Junior College.
“I’m grateful for Tyler Junior College,” Butler said. “It taught me a lot about the game of basketball. I had so much belief in myself, not to say that I’d be up here talking to you all in the Finals, but I just knew I could be a really good basketball player and maybe make a little bit of money doing basketball overseas. They taught me a lot at Tyler Junior College about the game of basketball then to go to Marquette for three years.
“I think JUCO just so happened to be the best thing for me. I couldn’t tell you that at the time, it was frustrating I wasn’t playing D-I basketball, but my goodness I have so much love for Tyler Junior College.
While Butler may be the best modern example of an NBA player finding success in the league after a stint at the JUCO level, he is far from alone in that category. Former All-Stars like Sam Cassell, Larry Johnson and Latrell Spreewell each once called JUCOs their homes and there are even more than them. Here are the 10 greatest NBA players who played at the junior college level.
