Zion Williamson and the 20 best one-and-done players in college basketball history

3. Derrick Rose, Memphis, 2007-2008

He may not be a Wildcat, but Derrick Rose is another one-and-done on this list courtesy of John Calipari. Calipari’s last great Memphis team was anchored by Rose, who was the most dynamic player on a team that should have won the national championship in 2008.

Rose was the Tigers’ best player, scoring 14.9 points per game while contributing both assists (4.7 a night) and rebounds (4.5 per game). The Tigers cruised to the championship game with Rose at the helm, but poor free throw shooting let Kansas hang around until Mario Chalmers’ last-second three forced overtime in a game the Jayhawks would go on to win.

Following that season, Rose declared for the NBA Draft, where he was selected first overall by the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls had been desperately searching for a star since Michael Jordan retired in 1998, and Rose immediately became that guy.

Rose took the NBA by storm, winning the Rookie of the Year award in 2009 and making three consecutive All-Star teams from 2010-2012. 2011 was an especially ridiculous year for Rose, who averaged 25 points per game and 7.7 assists a game while leading the Bulls to 62 wins, which helped Rose become the youngest player ever to win an MVP at 22 years old.

Rose’s career appeared to be on track for superstardom until a nasty ACL injury a year later wrecked his knee. That injury has taken a severe toll on Rose, who has never been able to recapture the kind of explosiveness he possessed prior to getting hurt.

We will always wonder what could have been with Rose, but it is worth mentioning that his arrival in the NBA helped set the stage for the league’s current guard-centric era.