Preseason All-SEC Teams, Player of the Year revealed

On Monday, the SEC released its preseason all-conference teams, along with its preseason Player of the Year. Expectations are sky-high for the storied conference after it had a record 14 teams reach the NCAA Tournament last season.

Kentucky guard Otega Oweh was named the SEC Player of the Year. Oweh transferred to Kentucky from Oklahoma ahead of last season. He averaged a team-high 16.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. He scored double figures in Kentucky’s first 26 games of the season, the longest streak of any player in the conference.

While Oweh headlined the SEC’s preseason honors, he’s far from the only recognizable name on the list. Reigning national champion Florida had a conference-high three players named preseason all-conference. Look below to see the complete list of honors.

First Team
Alex Condon – Florida
Josh Hubbard – Mississippi State
Otega Oweh – Kentucky
Tahaad Pettiford – Auburn
Labaron Philon Jr. – Alabama

Second Team
Nate Ament – Tennessee
Boogie Fland – Florida
Ja’Kobi Gillespie – Tennessee
Thomas Haugh – Florida
Mark Mitchell – Missouri

Third Team
Malik Dia – Ole Miss
Aden Holloway – Alabama
Karter Knox – Arkansas
Jaland Lowe – Kentucky
D.J. Wagner – Arkansas

SEC Player of the Year
Otega Oweh – Kentucky

Notably, the All-SEC First-Team only includes returning players from last season. In fact, there are only two transfers from outside the conference who made an all-conference teams: Tennessee’s Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Kentucky’s Jaland Lowe.

Gillespie was instrumental in Maryland‘s run to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA Tournament last season. He averaged 14.7 points per game for the Terrapins and logged 17 points in Maryland’s season-ending loss to Florida.

Like Dalton Knecht and Chaz Lanier who came before him, Gillespie will look to immediately take a leading role for the Volunteers. Jaland Lowe will also aim to make a massive impact for his team this season.

Lowe spent the first two seasons of his career at Pittsburgh. While the Panthers didn’t find much success, Lowe regularly put on excellent individual performances. With more quality pieces around him at Kentucky, Lowe will have a chance to become nationally recognized this season.

Tennessee’s Nate Ament is the only freshman who received preseason honors. Ament was the No. 4 overall player and the No. 2 small forward in the 2025 recruiting cycle, per the Rivals Industry Rankings. Most experts project him to be a lottery pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.

It won’t be long before the listed players have a chance to show off their skills. On Nov. 3, teams across the SEC will kick off their respective regular seasons.