I have watched several players come through BYU in my 40 years(not long compared to some), but I have never seen any BYU or college player take over the nation like Jimmermania did. Even when he signs a 10 day contract for a horrible Suns team, ESPN and every media outlet cover him like Lebron because of the fan following he had. It wasn't just that he could score, it was how he did it. Had Ainge played in this era of basketball, though, I believe he would have been the closet thing to Jimmer the NCAA has seen.
Bradley was a dominating basketball player and I still remember watching him with the NCAA block record game. He was fun to watch, but never should have gone directly into the NBA, straight from Australia. Cosic is the biggest question mark for me. Listening to Bill Walton rave about playing against him, he says that he was the best player he ever played against in the NCAA and one of the best overall. He claims that had he been able to play in the NBA, he would have been a star.
The nice thing about this post, is that BYU has a rich basketball history that does not get recognized because of the success of the football program. Even when I am watching Jazz games and see Gary Trost come out as part of their security, it makes you realize how many good players are not even talked about that dominated during their era. Their NIT Championship, was considered the National Championship of college basketball at the time, since the NCAA was what the NIT is today. I wish that BYU Basketball would talk more about that history and promote it in the same way that the 1984 Football Championship is talked about.