Carlos Boozer
Like with Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer is going to have to hope that his entire body of work from his time at Duke all through his run with the Guangdong Southern Tigers is able to help him into the Hall of Fame because his run in the NBA wasn’t impressive enough on its own, but it’s still one heck of a career.
Starting at Duke, Boozer helped the 2001 Duke Blue Devils win the NBA Championship behind a foursome of some of the best players in the program’s history; Boozer, Jay Williams, Shane Battier, and Mike Dunleavy. Boozer played three seasons with Duke, being named Third-Team All-American by the AP and NABC, while also winning the ACC Tournament MVP in 2002, as well as a spot on the All-ACC first-team in 2022.
Considering he left high school as a two-time Parade All-American (first and third team), as well as a McDonald’s All-American in 1999, it’s fair to say he lived up to his hype at Duke.
He would be a second-round pick by the Cleveland Cavaliers, and after some not-so-great-looking negotiations, left Cleveland to join Utah where he would go on to be a two-time All-Star, as well as making the All-NBA Third Team in 2008.
His All-Rookie Second Team selection rounds out his accolades, but it’s fair to say he played better than his lack of post-season awards.