Kansas Jayhawks In The NBA: Mario Chalmers
Mario Chalmers played for the Kansas Jayhawks for three seasons from 2006-2008. He started at point guard for all three seasons under coach Bill Self. Chalmers was a member of the Jayhawks’ 2008 National Championship team that beat coach John Calipari, Derrick Rose, and the Memphis Tigers.
During his three years at Kansas, Chalmers played with Jayhawk greats such as Brandon Rush, Darrell Arthur, and Sherron Collins. His sophomore season, Chalmers and the Jayhawks were given a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and mad the Elite Eight where they then lost to the UCLA Bruins 68-55.
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His junior season, his final year at Kansas, Chalmers averaged 12.8 PPG, 4.3 APG, and 2.5 SPG (Steals per game) (Courtesy of www.sports-reference.com). He was the Jayhawks second leading scorer that year and was the team’s leader in assists. The Jayhawks only lost three games in that 2007-08 season with the help of Chalmers.
In the 2008 NCAA Tournament, the Jayhawks were given another #1 seed. They went on to beat the likes of Portland State, UNLV, Villanova, Davidson (who had a guy named Steph Curry on the roster), and North Carolina before reaching the Memphis Tigers in the National Championship game.
In the Championship game, Mario put up 18 points and 3 assists in 40 minutes, which included the overtime period. The game went back and forth until, with 4 seconds left, Chalmers hit a fade-away three tying up the game and ultimately sending the game to overtime.
This shot has become one of the biggest and most memorable shots in NCAA history as it sent a National Championship game to overtime for the first time in 11 years.
In the 2008 NBA Draft, Mario was taken with the 34th overall pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves, later to be traded to the Miami Heat. Since then, Chalmers has been the starting point guard for Miami.
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Chalmers, along with a little help from Chris Bosh, LeBron James, and Dwayne Wade has brought home two NBA Championships. Chalmers was the starting point guard for both teams and played a pivotal role for both Championship teams.
In the NBA, Chalmers has averaged 8.6 PPG and 3.8 RPG for Miami. Today, he is currently a free agent and may be looking for a new team as the Heat just drafted Shabazz Napier and still have Norris Cole on the roster (both are point guards).
Mario Chalmers may have hit the biggest shot in Kansas Jayhawk history and no true Jayhawks fan should never, ever forget about what he did for Kansas.