Busting Brackets
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SEC Basketball: Top returning players on each team for 2019-20 season

By Charlie DiSturco

KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - FEBRUARY 09: Lamonte Turner #1 of the Tennessee Volunteers celebrates against the Florida Gators at Thompson-Boling Arena on February 09, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - FEBRUARY 09: Lamonte Turner #1 of the Tennessee Volunteers celebrates against the Florida Gators at Thompson-Boling Arena on February 09, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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Photo Credit: Christian Petersen – Getty Images
Photo Credit: Christian Petersen – Getty Images /

Texas A&M – Savion Flagg

Buzz Williams’ first year as head coach of Texas A&M will be met with the return of the Aggies’ three leading scorers from a season ago. Chief among them is 6-foot-7 junior Savion Flagg.

Flagg strung together a dominant year for a struggling Texas A&M team, leading the way with 13.9 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. All of this was done efficiently, too, as Flagg shot 46.7 percent from the field as a wing in the Aggies offense.

With a more experienced and reputable coach, Flagg should take another step forward this year and become a star in the SEC.

Alabama – Kira Lewis Jr.

Another SEC team bringing in a new head coach, Alabama has a chance to make some noise this upcoming season in Nate Oats’ run-and-gun offense. The Crimson Tide return two of its three leading scorers and added graduate transfer James Bolden from West Virginia.

But the biggest star is sophomore guard Kira Lewis Jr., who, after entering the NCAA transfer portal, opted to return to Alabama. The leading scorer from a season ago, Lewis Jr. finished with 13.5 points per game on 43.3 percent shooting and 35.8 percent from 3. This happened while Lewis Jr. was the youngest player in the entire NCAA, too.

Lewis Jr. seems like a perfect fit in Oats’ fast-paced offense that, at Buffalo, made the NCAA Tournament in each of his four seasons at the helm and even upset then-No. 4 Arizona in the 2018 NCAA Tournament. The young guard should take another step forward this season, and an All-SEC selection could be on the horizon.

Arkansas – Isaiah Joe

The trend of middle-of-the-pack SEC teams bringing in head coaches continues with Arkansas. The Razorbacks added Eric Musselman in the offseason, who’ll take control of a team that returns six of its seven leading scorers — it lost leader Daniel Gafford to the NBA.

Even without Gafford, though, Arkansas is in good shape. That’s because sophomore guard Isaiah Joe is back after an already strong freshman campaign. The 6-foot-5 guard finished last year averaging 13.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game, all while being the Razorbacks’ most efficient shooter (41.4 percent from 3).

Joe is still raw and has room for improvement, especially weight-wise, but there is a lot to like about the young guard. He stole the ball 1.5 times per game last season and still hasn’t reached his full defensive capabilities yet.

In Musselman’s first year, Joe will be the difference-maker in Arkansas’ goal of returning to the NCAA Championship after an NIT berth in 2018-19.

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