Picking My UTEP Basketball Dream Team

In honor of the US Olympics and What’s Up Magazine’s Best of the Best issue, I decided to write my latest column that is sure to attract controversy and debate from El Paso sports fans. So much has been made recently of this year’s US Olympic basketball team compared the 1992 Dream Team, I wanted to create my UTEP men’s basketball “dream team”. It is not easy, since there are plenty of ex-Miners who have played in the NBA and even were enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame. So, here is a position-by-position look at my mythical Miners’ all-time starting five and bench. 

Point Guard – #10 Tim “Bug” Hardaway (1985-89)

Shooting Guard – #12 Stefon “DJ” Jackson (2005-2009)

Small Forward – #33 Omar “OT” Thomas (2003-2005)

Power Forward – #42 Jim “Bad News” Barnes (1962-1964)

Center – #33 Dave “The Cheese” Feitl (1982-1986)

Bench

If I had to pick seven players to complete UTEP’s Dream Team bench, I would have Nate Archibald, Randy Culpepper, Antoine Gillespie, Fred Reynolds, David Lattin, Brandon Wolfram, and Gary Brewster.

Head Coach – Don Haskins

I would have Tim Floyd, Russ Bradburd, and Billy Gillespie as Haskins’ three assistants. Gillespie never coached under Haskins, but it would be fun to see those two together, along with Floyd and Bradburd running practices.

To read more, check out the full column in this week’s Best of the Best issue of What’s Up magazine or online at www.whatsuppub.com. The issue will be available this Wednesday.