 Jared Dudley's stellar year of leadership on the hardwood made him an easy choice for Male Athlete of the Year.
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If you took all of the top NBA draft prospects and asked them the question that Jared Dudley was asked on Saturday, you could pretty much predict all of their responses … except for Dudley's.
During his entire basketball career, Dudley has relied on his unpredictability.
Coming out of high school, scouts said he was unathletic, too overweight to play at a major Division I-level school.
Dudley proved them wrong, soaring up depth charts with his performances late in the recruiting game, and earning a scholarship to Boston College.
The unpredictable essence of how the 6-7, 225-pound small forward plays - lulling taller, more athletic players into leaning just the wrong way before plowing up, under, over, or around for a layup - how Dudley became one of the best players in the history of BC men's basketball and why he is The Heights' Male Athlete of the Year.
When Dudley dropped by the WZBC press box to do some color commentary, in the middle of the second quarter of the Annual Jay McGillis Spring football game, he was asked by one of the student broadcasters, "Where would you like to play next season?"
The stock response for this question is, "Well, I'll play for any team that wants to have me, a team that I can contribute to right away,"
Yet Dudley answered candidly, "A team that can win right away, like the San Antonio Spurs or the Los Angeles Lakers."
When asked the same question again, the Californian listed more teams, most of them closer to his home in San Diego than Boston.
"Any team that needs a small forward in a winning organization - Utah, Houston, Detroit, any team that needs me," said Dudley.
Being "needed" was not a problem for Dudley at BC this season.
While the senior knew he would be the main scoring option, there was no way of predicting how much Dudley would have to carry the Eagles in order for them to be an NCAA-caliber team again.
With the dismissal of Sean Williams, just as the junior center was rounding into a complete player, and Akida McLain, Dudley had to assume more scoring and leadership responsibilities to keep the team together, all while being hampered by a stress fracture in his foot.
Spring Break
