SEC Basketball questions: POY picks, biggest surprise/disappointments

3. Who is your prediction for Conference Player of the Year? Possible runner-up?

Campbell

As of now, I like Brandon Miller as the conference player of the year. The Alabama freshman is definitely the most fun to watch in this league with his length, athleticism, and lethal three-point shooting ability. The numbers back it up too. He’s averaging over 18 points per game after three conference games and making over 40% of his three-point attempts for an offense that is very reliant on three-point production. He’s the Tide’s best player and can lead this team to not only a conference title but a national title.

His highlight-reel athleticism and silky smooth scoring ability make him the sexy pick for the award but Missouri’s Kobe Brown has emerged as a great dark horse. Brown is the leading scorer for the conference’s biggest surprise. He had an insane scoring stretch where he dropped 31 on Illinois and then 30 on Kentucky in back-to-back games on a national stage to put him in a larger spotlight. He’s an efficient scoring machine who is making over 62% of his two-point attempts and 43% of his three’s. If Missouri continues this rise, you can see more and more noise being made for Brown to be player of the year.

Freeman

Brandon Miller isn’t just the best freshman in the country but likely the best in the entire SEC. He’s averaging nearly 20 ppg on a top-10 team in Alabama and has been unstoppable on the court. Between his stats and team’s position in the SEC, Miller is the clear pick in my eyes.

Loose

In a league that got Oscar Tshiebwe back for another year, it’s wild to consider that we’re looking in another direction. The early play of Alabama freshman Brandon Miller has been hard to match, while the impact of Ricky Council IV at Arkansas cannot be understated. We’ll lean in Miller’s direction, at least through two months, with an honorable mention to the play of fellow transfer D’Moi Hodge at Missouri.