Chambana Sun

Illinois freshman Kasparas Jakucionis has been named a Top 10 candidate for the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award, as announced by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on Tuesday.

Jakucionis is having an impressive season with the Fighting Illini, averaging 15.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game. He has achieved a shooting percentage of 47% from the field, 35% from beyond the arc, and 83.5% from the free-throw line. Notably, he has tied the University of Illinois freshman season record with eight games scoring over 20 points and has been honored twice as Big Ten Freshman of the Week.

The Jerry West Award is in its eleventh year and recognizes outstanding shooting guards in Division I men's college basketball. The award is named after Class of 1980 Hall of Famer Jerry West, who was also the Most Valuable Player at the NCAA Final Four in 1959.

The current list of Top 10 candidates includes Caleb Love (Arizona), VJ Edgecombe (Baylor), Alijah Martin (Florida), Kasparas Jakucionis (Illinois), Curtis Jones (Iowa State), PJ Haggerty (Memphis), RJ Davis (North Carolina), Chaz Lanier (Tennessee), Tre Johnson (Texas), and Hunter Sallis (Wake Forest). It should be noted that players can be added or removed from this list throughout the ongoing season.

Fans are invited to participate in Fan Voting starting February 7 at hoophallawards.com. This vote will contribute one committee vote during the selection process for finalists.

In March, this list will be reduced to five candidates before being presented to West's family and selection committees for final consideration later that month. The Selection Committee comprises media members, head coaches, sports information directors, and Hall of Famers.

Previous recipients of this award include RJ Davis from North Carolina in 2024 and Marcus Sasser from Houston in 2023 among others.

For further details on the award and updates, visit hoophallawards.com or follow @hoophallu and #WestAward on social media platforms X and Instagram.