Lauren Cox | Power Forward | Baylor | 6-foot-4

Senior Season Stats: 22 games, 30.2 MPG, 12.5 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 3.6 APG, 1.32 SPG, 2.68 BPG, 46.3 FG%, 33.3 3P% (2-6), 61.4 FT%

Baylor Career Stats: 95 games, 25.2 MPG, 12.0 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 2.8 APG, 0.85 SPG, 2.30 BPG, 49.2 FG%, 32.2 3P% (38-118), 72.5 FT%

1. Versatility

While some players excel in a particular aspect of the game, others are able to contribute in multiple facets, and Lauren Cox falls into the latter category. There are players that have higher averages than Cox in points (12.5 PPG), rebounds (8.4 RPG), assists (3.6 APG), steals (1.32 SPG) and blocks (2.68 BPG), but it’ the combination that Cox puts together that sets her apart from the competition.

Few players can protect the rim, score from inside the paint and beyond the 3-point line, and facilitate an offense and set her teammates up for easy baskets. Here is the list of players that averaged at least 2.0 blocks and 3.5 assists this season: Lauren Cox.

2. Synergy Stats Spotlight: Defensive Standout

Cox is considered one of the top (and perhaps the top) defensive player in this year’s draft – and the numbers back that up. According to Synergy, Cox ranked in the 87th percentile or better in five different defensive play types this season.

• Post-ups (87th percentile): 0.576 PPP, 29.2 EFG%
• Spot-ups (95th percentile): 0.500 PPP, 19.2 EFG%
• Pick-and-Roll, Roll Man (88th percentile): 0.368 PPP, 25.0 EFG%
• Isolation (99th percentile): 0.154 PPP, 0.0 EFG%
• Off Screen (88th percentile): 0.455 PPP, 15.0 EFG%

PPP: points per possession
EFG%: effective field goal percentage

3. Injuries

With the 2020 NCAA Tournament canceled, the Baylor Lady Bears are the reigning national champions in women’s college basketball. Cox played a huge role in helping Baylor win its third national championship, but sustained a knee injury late in the third quarter that forced her to watch the remainder of the game from the sidelines.

The injury did not require surgery and following an offseason of rehab, Cox returned to the court after missing just two games of her senior season. However, just two games into her return, she suffered a stress reaction in her right foot that forced her to miss six more games. Once Cox returned to the court, she was able to put together another strong season and had the Lady Bears in a strong position to defend their title before the season was cut short.

4. Strong On and Off the Court

Each year, the U.S. Basketball Writers Association gives the Pat Summitt Most Courageous Award to athletes that “demonstrated extraordinary courage reflecting honor on the sport of amateur basketball.” The award debuted in 1978, but was renamed in honor of legendary Coach Summitt in 2012.

This year’s women’s award was shared by Lauren Cox and her younger sister, Whitney, who is a freshman forward at Lubbock Christian. The Cox sisters are both Type-1 Diabetic, with Lauren being diagnosed at the age of 7 and Whitney just being diagnosed at 17. The sisters faced each other on Oct. 30 in Baylor’s annual Type-1 Diabetes Awareness Game, which helped raise funds for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Cox, who wears a blood sugar monitor while she plays, has appeared at numerous events and speaking engagements to share her story and offer encouragement to other young diabetics.

5. Texas Forever?

Cox was born and raised in the state of Texas. She grew up in Flower Mound, which is approximately 20 miles northwest of Dallas and 25 miles northeast of Fort Worth, then headed to Waco to play her college ball at Baylor.

She is expected to be a lock as a first round pick, and the Dallas Wings just so happened to hold four of the 12 picks in the first round. Is Cox destined to remain in Texas to begin the next phase of her basketball career? We’ll find out on April 17.

Images Courtesy of Baylor Athletics*