Jimmer Fredette, college basketball legend and former NBA player and Olympian, announced his retirement from the game on Wednesday. Fredette, who became a superstar at BYU, provided basketball fans with memories that will last a lifetime.
Fredette, 36, played four seasons with the Cougars, and along the way he rewrote the record books and piled up accolades. In 2011 alone, Fredette was named Naismith Player of the Year, won the scoring title by averaging 28.9 points per game and earned consensus All-American honors. That year, he also took BYU to the Sweet 16 for the first time in three decades.
In his career at BYU, Fredette established himself as one of the best college players of all-time. Our own Matt Norlander recently ranked Fredette as the No. 9 player of the last 25 years.
After his time at BYU, Fredette was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks with the No. 10 overall pick in the 2011 draft. He was immediately traded to the Sacramento Kings, and that’s where he spent the first few years of his NBA career. Fredette played six seasons in the NBA before going overseas to play in China and Greece.
This past summer, Fredette added another impressive bullet point on his resume when he became an Olympian by playing for Team USA’s 3-on-3 team. Unfortunately, Fredette got hurt in the second game and wasn’t able to return.
With Fredette announcing his retirement, here are the top five moments of his illustrious career.
5. Fredette drops 24 points on Knicks at MSG
The highlight of Fredette’s NBA career has to be on Feb. 12, 2014 when he led the Sacramento Kings into Madison Square Garden and dropped a career-high 24 points on the New York Knicks. Fredette made the Knicks pay every time they left him open from range as he buried six 3-pointers en route to a 106-101 overtime win.
4. Fredette shreds Arizona with 49 points
This legendary Fredette performance from Dec. 28, 2009 isn’t higher simply because Arizona wasn’t quite firing on all cylinders. Still, this is an iconic moment in Fredette’s career because he set the record for most points scored in the McKale Center, which stands to this day. Fredette couldn’t miss from beyond the arc, drilling nine of his 13 3-point attempts. Fredette’s 49-point showing was so impressive that even Arizona fans applauded when he checked out of the game.
3. BYU record 52 points in Mountain West Tournament
In 2010-11, New Mexico handed BYU two of its three regular season losses, but Fredette was determined not to let the Lobos make it a clean sweep in the conference tournament. Right from the jump, Fredette made it clear that there was nothing New Mexico could do to slow him down. In the first half, Fredette scored 33 points without even going to the charity stripe. By the end of the game, Fredette had rewritten the BYU record books with 52 points, the most in a single game.
2. Dominates SDSU, Kawhi Leonard in top-10 matchup
At the time of this game, BYU was 19-1 and San Diego State was 20-0. It was a massive Mountain West showdown in Provo, and Fredette thrived in the spotlight. Against an Aztecs team led by Kawhi Leonard, Fredette scored 43 points while hitting five 3-point shots and adding four rebounds. It was an offensive explosion for Fredette against what was, at the time, the No. 4 team in the country. Whether Fredette was attacking the hoop, shooting from distance or hitting mid-range jumpers, he couldn’t be stopped.
1. Fredette sends BYU to Sweet 16 with 34 points vs. Gonzaga
This wasn’t Fredette’s biggest performance in terms of statistical output, but legacies are cemented in the NCAA Tournament. In this 89-67 win over Gonzaga, which sent BYU to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1981, Fredette dropped 34 points while knocking down seven of his 12 3-point attempts.
BYU’s run would end in the next round with a loss to Florida, but Fredette had already established himself as a college basketball legend.
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