Preseason Honors

Oscar da Silva

A two-time All-Pac-12 honoree and team captain, Oscar da Silva has emerged as one of the top forwards in the conference. Last season, he became the 48th member of the program's 1,000-point club, and is poised to ascend through the record book as a senior.

As a junior, da Silva burst onto the scene with career-best averages of 15.7 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, both of which led the team. A highly efficient player, he tallied the third-best field goal percentage in the conference (57.0%), while anchoring the seventh-best defense in the country. He capped the campaign with selections to the NABC Honors Court and All-District team, and was one of a select few to earn the Spirit of Stanford Award.

Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award
Named after Class of 2010 Hall of Famer and two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Karl Malone, the annual honor in its seventh year recognizes the top power forwards in Division I men's college basketball. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates. Oscar da Silva is the only player recognized on the watch list from the Pac-12. The winner of the 2021 Karl Malone Award will be presented on Friday, April 9, 2021, along with the other four members of the Men's Starting Five. 

James Naismith Award
The Naismith College Player of the Year is an annual basketball award given by the Atlanta Tipoff Club to the top men's and women's collegiate basketball players. It is named in honor of Dr. James Naismith, the inventor of basketball. da Silva and Williams are two of the 50 student-athletes named to the Watch List, with Stanford one of nine programs with multiple nominees. The Cardinal is the only school in the Pac-12 to have more than one player recognized on the list.

John Wooden Award
Since its inception, the John R. Wooden Award Trophy presented to "The Outstanding College Basketball Player in the United States," is given to the player who receives the most points in the annual balloting. A candidate's performance in the regular season, conference tournaments and postseason are taken into account by voters, as is the player's character. The John R. Wooden Award Preseason Committee begins the selection process in October of the year preceding the Wooden Award announcement. The committee evaluates players to determine the Women's Preseason Top 30 and the Men's Preseason Top 50.

Ziaire Williams

A freshman, Williams is the top rated prospect to choose Stanford since the recruiting databases at 24/7, Rivals and ESPN began, and is the first consensus five star addition since Brook and Robin Lopez in 2006.

Williams was the top small forward prospect in the class of 2020, and was a consensus top-five recruit nationally. He was selected as an McDonald's All-American and chosen to participate in the Jordan Brand Classic, Nike Hoop Summit and Iverson Classic in 2020. The Los Angeles Times and Los Angeles Daily News Player of the Year, Williams averaged 15.0 points, 7.9 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game as a senior for Sierra Canyon, leading the team to the CIF-SS Open Division title. Additionally, he won a gold medal at the 2019 FIBA World Cup with the United States in Greece.

Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award
Named after Class of 1993 Hall of Famer and 16-year professional basketball player Julius Erving, the annual honor in its seventh year recognizes the top small forwards in Division I men's college basketball. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates. Williams is one of three players from the Pac-12 recognized, joining UCLA's Chris Smith and Utah's Timmy Allen, and is one of three freshmen, joining Duke's Jalen Johnson and, his high school teammate at Sierra Canyon, Kentucky's Brandon Boston Jr.

James Naismith Award
The Naismith College Player of the Year is an annual basketball award given by the Atlanta Tipoff Club to the top men's and women's collegiate basketball players. It is named in honor of Dr. James Naismith, the inventor of basketball. da Silva and Williams are two of the 50 student-athletes named to the Watch List, with Stanford one of nine programs with multiple nominees. The Cardinal is the only school in the Pac-12 to have more than one player recognized on the list.

John Wooden Award
Since its inception, the John R. Wooden Award Trophy presented to "The Outstanding College Basketball Player in the United States," is given to the player who receives the most points in the annual balloting. A candidate's performance in the regular season, conference tournaments and postseason are taken into account by voters, as is the player's character. The John R. Wooden Award Preseason Committee begins the selection process in October of the year preceding the Wooden Award announcement. The committee evaluates players to determine the Women's Preseason Top 30 and the Men's Preseason Top 50.