All time defensive team

[AZHuskiePop]

Could not disagree more. But for Moore's defense we don't win the 99 natty. (We also don't win it without his first half offense, which carried us, but that's not relevant to this discussion.) Moore was locking down the opponent's best player week in and week out all through the '98-99 season. He's a definite on this list.

The Dream Season doesn't happen without Lyman DePriest. At 6'5" he could guard anyone. He locked down Danas Barros in the NIT semi's holding him to two shots. Yeah, you read that right two shots. The only argument against him is that wasn't a starter. But even in his reduced minutes he ended up with 37 steals. (In a lot of ways the Dream Team is a good model for this years squad. Relentless tough defense generating a turnover fueled offense.)

In the end maybe the best judge is Jim Calhoun. His take on UConn's greatest defenders:

"Lyman might be the best," Calhoun said. "Though Ricky Moore is certainly right up there.

Lyman was a factor but not a huge factor in the dream season .
He averaged 2-3 PPG and 1 steal
That team was the best defensive UConn team ever.
It had to be it really lacked a True big. Defense covers many sins.
That team averaged 13 steals a game
Henefeld lead the team with 3.6 the best singe season ever
Tate& Smitty both averaged 2 people forget how good they were defensively
Burrell 1.6 as a freshman but Scott is the all time Steal leader
Depriest was used situationally off the bench .
Even Murray William and John Gwynn average around a steal a game.
That week where that jumped all over a top ten Cuse team with Derrick Coleman and ,Billy Owens
Than Saturday that did the same thing tothrird ranked Georgetown
With their twin towers of Motumbo & Morning
They held both teams scoreless out of the gate for minutes as they UConn pressure prevented them from running their offense .
The HCC was rocking .

 

[CL82]

Lyman was a factor but not a huge factor in the dream season .
He averaged 2-3 PPG and 1 steal
That team was the best defensive UConn team ever.
It had to be it really lacked a True big. Defense covers many sins.
That team averaged 13 steals a game
Henefeld lead the team with 3.6 the best singe season ever
Tate& Smitty both averaged 2 people forget how good they were defensively
Burrell 1.6 as a freshman but Scott is the all time Steal leader
Depriest was used situationally off the bench .
Even Murray William and John Gwynn average around a steal a game.
That week where that jumped all over a top ten Cuse team with Derrick Coleman and ,Billy Owens
Than Saturday that did the same thing tothrird ranked Georgetown
With their twin towers of Motumbo & Morning
They held both teams scoreless out of the gate for minutes as they UConn pressure prevented them from running their offense .
The HCC was rocking .

I think I'll side with Calhoun who considers him "probably the best defender" at UConn, though that quote was before the Bazz years. DePriest definitely limited minutes, I'd say like 12-15 but he definitely had an impact.