Kentucky has 3 of the 'best statistical output' players in Division I this season

Need more proof Lamont Butler is Kentucky’s most important player this season? Evan Miyakawa has the data.

Miyakawa, who has a doctorate in statistics and runs EvanMiya.com, released a list of some interesting numbers Tuesday — ones that indicate Kentucky has a handful of the best players in all college basketball. Miyakawa used his analytics to rank the Top 25 players in the country with the “best statistical output this year, adjusted for opponent strength faced.” That last part about opponent strength is important to note.

A trio of Wildcats cracked the Top 15:

• 5th-year guard Lamont Butler – No. 8
• Junior guard Otega Oweh – No. 12
• 5th-year center Amari Williams – No. 13.

Kentucky is the only school with more than two players ranked among the Top 15. Only Auburn has more on the Top 25 with five making the list.

Here are the players with the best statistical output this year, adjusted for opponent strength faced, according to Box BPR at https://t.co/cegyfz96ax.

The top three by a good margin: Johni Broome, Braden Smith, and Cooper Flagg 👇 pic.twitter.com/58yEwlaCNp

— Evan Miyakawa (@EvanMiya) February 18, 2025

As most of us know by now, Butler is currently sidelined with a shoulder injury that has been bothering him for several weeks. Mark Pope‘s starting point guard has missed six of the Wildcats’ 25 games so far this season. Four of those have come against SEC foes, in which UK has gone 1-3 against Tennessee, Ole Miss, Arkansas, and Texas. If we didn’t already know just how important Butler is to this team’s success, Miyakawa’s numbers help prove it.

I’ll credit KSR’s Brandon Ramsey for mentioning this (important) tidbit on social media: imagine what Alabama would look like without Mark Sears, or Marquette without Kam Jones, Gonzaga without Ryan Nembhard, Louisville without Chucky Hepburn, etc… There’s a very good chance all of those teams experience significant dropoffs if their lead ball handler is out for extended time. All four of those players rank below Butler on Miyakawa’s Top 25 list.

So yes, not having Butler on the floor is a true disadvantage for Pope and the Wildcats. His impact on both ends of the floor is proving invaluable. Pope said Monday that Butler “still hasn’t practiced with live play” and is unsure when exactly the fifth-year point guard will return.

But thankfully, Oweh and Williams have been healthy (let’s all collectively knock on wood real quick — thank you). Those two continue to be consistent and necessary pieces while Butler is on the mend. Oweh has scored in double-figures every single game this season while Williams is nearly averaging a double-double (11 PPG, 9.3 RPG) in SEC action.

Another injured Wildcat, Jaxson Robinson, is also an important piece to Kentucky’s offense, although an injured wrist has him now watching games from the sidelines. Prior to the hiccup, he was averaging 15.1 points per SEC game while shooting 47.4 percent from deep. That being said, Miyakawa’s numbers don’t favor Robinson as much as his aforementioned teammates. Miyakawa tells KSR Robinson is “about 70th” on the same list.