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What a basketball career it has been so far for Walter Clayton Jr. Even going back to his sophomore year at Lake Wales, Clayton nearly took the Highlanders to the state tournament as they lost in the regional finals. Then it was on to Bartow and back-to-back state titles, college at Iona where he won individual honors, then to Florida where individual honors were only surpassed by leading the Gators to a national title.
Clayton’s individual honors have been well-documented and include being a consensus first-team All-American, an SEC tournament MVP and a finalist for major individual awards.
So the question remains: Is Clayton the best college basketball player to come out of Polk County?
Being Honored: Gators' Clayton continues to reach milestones in NCAA tournament to go with multiple awards
Junior Year: New father, Bartow grad Clayton thriving in first season with Gators after transfer
Looking Back: 'It definitely was worth it' - Hard work led to Bartow's Clayton becoming complete player
Two of the three top NBA players from Polk County are Tracy McGrady and A’mare Stoudemire, and they aren’t candidates because they went straight to the NBA and didn’t play in college. Stoudemire, of course, didn't even play high school varsity basketball in Polk.
So who are the top candidates to challenge Clayton?
Let’s start with Otis Birdsong, who for years was the top high school, college and NBA player from Polk County. After the high-scoring Birdsong led the Winter Haven Blue Devils to the state title in 1973, he went on to a stellar career at Houston. He was the first sophomore in school history to reach 1,000 career points. He averaged 26.1 points as a junior, leading the Southwest Conference in scoring and finishing eighth in the nation. As a senior, he set an SWC record by averaging 30.3 points per game, which ranked fourth nationally.
Who is the best college basketball player from Polk County?
Birdsong was named SWC Player of the Decade. He was a consensus first-team, All-American, which in the late ’70s was made up of AP, UPI, National Association of Basketball Coaches and United States Basketball Writers Association.
Then there’s Livingston Chatman, a Kathleen grad, who, like Clayton, went to Florida. His best year was his sophomore year when he averaged 16.0 points and was a top player on the Gators’ first SEC championship team. He was named SEC tournament MVP, scoring 70 points in three games. He was named to the 2019 SEC Basketball Legends class.
Chatman also earned AP and UPI All-SEC honors as a sophomore and was an AP Freshman all-American.
After playing just 10 games as a junior battling injuries and having conflicts with interim coach Don DeVoe, he left the team but returned to play 26 games as senior averaging 10.7 points as the team’s third-leading scorer.
Kathleen grad Rashad Anderson is the only Polk County basketball player other than Clayton to win a state title in high school and a national title in college. After averaging 22.8 points at Kathleen as the second-leading scorer in school history, being part of the Red Devils’ state championship team as junior in 2001 and being named All-American as a senior, Anderson went on to play at Connecticut.
[IMG alt="Former Winter Haven High School basketball star Otis Birdsong was honored as his jersey was retired during a halftime presentation Tuesday January 28, 2025 in Winter Haven Fl. Birdsong played 12 seasons in the NBA , the majority for the New Jersey Nets.
Ernst Peters/The Ledger"]https://media.zenfs.com/en/the-ledger/10c08459a56d9ab78232b880aecc25ab[/IMG]
At UConn, Anderson set a school record with 276 career 3-pointers. He started 27 of 63 games as a sophomore and junior as he usually was the top player off the bench. He averaged in double figures in his final three years, including a career-high 12.8 points as the team’s second-leading scorer.
Anderson averaged 11.2 points as UConn’s third-leading scorer as a sophomore when the Huskies won the national title.
Kevin Capers should be in the discussion even though he played Division II basketball. After leading Lake Wales to a state runner-up finish his senior year, Capers went on to a stellar four-year career at Florida Southern.
Capers was a multiple NCAA Division II First Team All-American and Sunshine State Conference player of the year, and was named BennettRank.com’s Division II Player of the Year. He led the Mocs to a national championship his senior year when he averaged 21.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists.
Dominique Jones, another Lake Wales grad, averaged 18.9 points in three years at USF. As a junior, his final season, he averaged 21.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists and was named first team, All-Big East. He was second in the conference in scoring.
Dwayne Bacon played high school at McKeel before transferring after his sophomore season. He went on to play two years at Florida State and was All-ACC second-team as a sophomore when he averaged 17.5 points.
Corey Sanders played part of his high school career at McKeel and Kathleen. He played three years of college ball at Rutgers, averaging 14.6 points for his career.
Kathleen grad George Almones played three years at Southwestern Louisiana and averaged 16.9 points as a junior and 17.7 points as a senior.
Going back in time, there’s Bobby Shiver, who played for Lakeland in the 1950s. He played college basketball at Florida and averaged 17.5 points as a junior and 14.2 points as a senior.
There have been more Polk County grads who have had some level of success in college like Miguel Paul, Alvin Jones II, Tony Bradley, Keon Clergeot and Chris Richard to name a few. But when all is said and one, when the choice of which Polk County basketball player has had at the best college career, the choices come down to Otis Birdsong and Walter Clayton Jr.
So who do you think really had the best college career?
Roy Fuoco can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @RoyFuoco.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Who is the best college basketball player from Polk County? Clayton Jr or Birdsong
Continue reading...
Clayton’s individual honors have been well-documented and include being a consensus first-team All-American, an SEC tournament MVP and a finalist for major individual awards.
So the question remains: Is Clayton the best college basketball player to come out of Polk County?
Being Honored: Gators' Clayton continues to reach milestones in NCAA tournament to go with multiple awards
Junior Year: New father, Bartow grad Clayton thriving in first season with Gators after transfer
Looking Back: 'It definitely was worth it' - Hard work led to Bartow's Clayton becoming complete player
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Two of the three top NBA players from Polk County are Tracy McGrady and A’mare Stoudemire, and they aren’t candidates because they went straight to the NBA and didn’t play in college. Stoudemire, of course, didn't even play high school varsity basketball in Polk.
So who are the top candidates to challenge Clayton?
Let’s start with Otis Birdsong, who for years was the top high school, college and NBA player from Polk County. After the high-scoring Birdsong led the Winter Haven Blue Devils to the state title in 1973, he went on to a stellar career at Houston. He was the first sophomore in school history to reach 1,000 career points. He averaged 26.1 points as a junior, leading the Southwest Conference in scoring and finishing eighth in the nation. As a senior, he set an SWC record by averaging 30.3 points per game, which ranked fourth nationally.
Who is the best college basketball player from Polk County?
Birdsong was named SWC Player of the Decade. He was a consensus first-team, All-American, which in the late ’70s was made up of AP, UPI, National Association of Basketball Coaches and United States Basketball Writers Association.
Then there’s Livingston Chatman, a Kathleen grad, who, like Clayton, went to Florida. His best year was his sophomore year when he averaged 16.0 points and was a top player on the Gators’ first SEC championship team. He was named SEC tournament MVP, scoring 70 points in three games. He was named to the 2019 SEC Basketball Legends class.
Chatman also earned AP and UPI All-SEC honors as a sophomore and was an AP Freshman all-American.
After playing just 10 games as a junior battling injuries and having conflicts with interim coach Don DeVoe, he left the team but returned to play 26 games as senior averaging 10.7 points as the team’s third-leading scorer.
Kathleen grad Rashad Anderson is the only Polk County basketball player other than Clayton to win a state title in high school and a national title in college. After averaging 22.8 points at Kathleen as the second-leading scorer in school history, being part of the Red Devils’ state championship team as junior in 2001 and being named All-American as a senior, Anderson went on to play at Connecticut.
[IMG alt="Former Winter Haven High School basketball star Otis Birdsong was honored as his jersey was retired during a halftime presentation Tuesday January 28, 2025 in Winter Haven Fl. Birdsong played 12 seasons in the NBA , the majority for the New Jersey Nets.
Ernst Peters/The Ledger"]https://media.zenfs.com/en/the-ledger/10c08459a56d9ab78232b880aecc25ab[/IMG]
At UConn, Anderson set a school record with 276 career 3-pointers. He started 27 of 63 games as a sophomore and junior as he usually was the top player off the bench. He averaged in double figures in his final three years, including a career-high 12.8 points as the team’s second-leading scorer.
Anderson averaged 11.2 points as UConn’s third-leading scorer as a sophomore when the Huskies won the national title.
Kevin Capers should be in the discussion even though he played Division II basketball. After leading Lake Wales to a state runner-up finish his senior year, Capers went on to a stellar four-year career at Florida Southern.
Capers was a multiple NCAA Division II First Team All-American and Sunshine State Conference player of the year, and was named BennettRank.com’s Division II Player of the Year. He led the Mocs to a national championship his senior year when he averaged 21.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists.
Dominique Jones, another Lake Wales grad, averaged 18.9 points in three years at USF. As a junior, his final season, he averaged 21.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists and was named first team, All-Big East. He was second in the conference in scoring.
Dwayne Bacon played high school at McKeel before transferring after his sophomore season. He went on to play two years at Florida State and was All-ACC second-team as a sophomore when he averaged 17.5 points.
Corey Sanders played part of his high school career at McKeel and Kathleen. He played three years of college ball at Rutgers, averaging 14.6 points for his career.
Kathleen grad George Almones played three years at Southwestern Louisiana and averaged 16.9 points as a junior and 17.7 points as a senior.
Going back in time, there’s Bobby Shiver, who played for Lakeland in the 1950s. He played college basketball at Florida and averaged 17.5 points as a junior and 14.2 points as a senior.
There have been more Polk County grads who have had some level of success in college like Miguel Paul, Alvin Jones II, Tony Bradley, Keon Clergeot and Chris Richard to name a few. But when all is said and one, when the choice of which Polk County basketball player has had at the best college career, the choices come down to Otis Birdsong and Walter Clayton Jr.
So who do you think really had the best college career?
Roy Fuoco can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @RoyFuoco.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Who is the best college basketball player from Polk County? Clayton Jr or Birdsong
Continue reading...
