The University of Massachusetts Amherst men's basketball program has successfully developed several notable players who advanced to stellar professional careers in the National Basketball Association and international leagues. The most famous and decorated basketball alumnus in school history is center Marcus Camby, a consensus National Player of the Year who led the Minutemen to the 1996 NCAA Final Four before embarking on a highly productive 17-year career in the NBA, earning Defensive Player of the Year honors. Other notable professional alumni include elite scorer Julius Erving (who played collegiately at UMass when it was a College Division powerhouse before his ABA and NBA stardom), Lou Roe, Monty Mack, and various other standout contributors who carried the Minutemen's proud basketball pedigree onto professional hardwood courts across the country.