Gonzaga Bulldogs senior forward Anton Watson was named one of 10 candidates for the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year award.
Watson is averaging a career-high 14.5 points on 58.9% shooting from the floor, including 40.6% on 3-point attempts. The 6-foot-8 Spokane native is ripping down 7.6 rebounds per game, fourth most in the West Coast Conference, and nabbing a league-best 1.7 steals per game. He's scored in double-figures in all but four games this season, highlighted by two 32-point performances against UCLA and Santa Clara.
"He's obviously the most valuable guy we have out there," said coach Mark Few after Gonzaga's 77-72 win over San Francisco on Jan. 25. "You can switch him onto anybody out there on the floor, he can guard anybody. He's become a better scorer now and a more diversified offensive player. He gets our offense going, he takes the ball out against presses, he does everything for us."
Watson remained on the prestigious watch list that was cut down from 20 to 10 players after he was named to the preseason watch list in October. Five finalists will be determined in March and presented to Erving and the Hall of Fame's selection committee composed of top college basketball personnel including media, coaches, sports information directors and Hall of Famers.
The winner of the Julius Erving Award will be announced on a to-be-determined date, along with the Bob Cousy Award (Point Guard), Jerry West Award (Shooting Guard), Karl Malone Award (Power Forward) and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award (Center). Watson was the only Gonzaga player to make the cut for a positional award. Ryan Nembhard was on the preseason list for the top point guard award, while Graham Ike was on the preseason list for the power forward award.
Two former Bulldogs have taken home the country's top small forward award during their time at Gonzaga: Corey Kispert (2021) and Rui Hachimura (2019).
Here is the complete list of candidates for the 2024 Julius Erving Award:
Jaylon Tyson (Cal)
Harrison Ingram (North Carolina)
Baylor Scheierman (Creighton)
Jamison Battle (Ohio State)
Tucker DeVries (Drake)
Dalton Knecht (Tennessee)
Anton Watson (Gonzaga)
Keion Brooks Jr. (Washington)
David Jones (Memphis)
Dillon Jones (Weber State)
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