SEC basketball 2021-22 outlook and bold predictions: Kentucky and Alabama in Final Four?
The 2020-21 college basketball season has arrived, and the team that covers the SEC for the USA TODAY Network has some bold predictions for how the league will play out.
Here is the outlook for each SEC team as it enters the season:
ALABAMA
Coach: Nate Oats (third year at Alabama)
2020-21 record: 26-7, 16-2 SEC
Top returning player: G Jaden Shackelford (14.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg)
Top newcomer: G JD Davison (freshman)
Bold prediction: Alabama will reach the Final Four. Even with the loss of talent to the NBA, the Crimson Tide will run a guard-heavy lineup that most teams can’t match.
– Nick Kelly
ARKANSAS
Coach: Eric Musselman (third year at Arkansas)
2020-21 record: 25-7, 13-4 SEC
Top returning player: G Davonte Davis (8.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.1 apg)
Top newcomer: F Au’diese Toney (Transfer from Pitt)
Bold prediction: This could be the Razorbacks’ best team in a generation. Davis and Toney will help lead Arkansas to its first Final Four since 1995.
– Mikey DiLullo
More SEC basketball:Alabama basketball's top returners, newcomers to know for 2021-22 season
More SEC basketball:As Auburn basketball closes in on finalized lineup, Bruce Pearl names a starting point guard
AUBURN
Coach: Bruce Pearl (eighth year at Auburn)
2020-21 record: 13-14, 7-11 SEC
Top returning player: G Allen Flanigan (14.3 ppg, 5.5 rpg)
Top newcomer: F Jabari Smith (freshman)
Bold prediction: Even with Flanigan out until at least mid-December, Auburn will be back as an SEC contender. No more Pearl-style small ball. Smith and Walker Kessler will stretch the floor and be one of the best frontcourts in the country.
– Bennett Durando
FLORIDA
Coach: Mike White (seventh year at Florida)
2020-21 record: 15-10, 9-7 SEC
Top returning player: Colin Castleton (12.4 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.3 bpg)
Top newcomer: G Myreon Jones (transfer from Penn State)
Bold prediction: Thanks to an influx of experienced transfers, the Gators will be better than expected despite the continued absence of the 2020-21 SEC preseason player of the year, Keyontae Johnson.
– Graham Hall
GEORGIA
Coach: Tom Crean (fourth year at Georgia)
2020-21 record: 14-12, 7-11 SEC
Top returning player: F Jaxon Etter (2.4 ppg, 1.1 rpg)
Top newcomer: F Jabri Abdur-Rahim (transfer from Virginia)
Bold prediction: It’s hard to see more than just a few SEC wins given a virtually entirely new roster took a major hit when top returner P.J. Horne was lost for the season in October with a knee injury. Gonzaga transfer Aaron Cook has big shoes to fill after Sahvir Wheeler jumped to Kentucky.
– Marc Weiszer
More SEC basktball:Kentucky basketball's history after bad seasons offers hope for unforgettable 2021-22
KENTUCKY
Coach: John Calipari (13th year at Kentucky)
2020-21 record: 9-16, 8-9 SEC
Top returning player: F Keion Brooks Jr. (10.3 ppg, 6.8 rpg)
Top newcomer: F Oscar Tshiebwe (transfer from West Virginia)
Bold prediction: Kentucky bounces back from the program's worst season since the Great Depression to reach its first Final Four since 2015. This team lacks the clear star that Calipari's best Kentucky squads had, but it is one of his deepest rosters.
– Jon Hale
LSU
Coach: Will Wade (fifth year at LSU)
2020-21 record: 19-10, 11-6 SEC
Top returning player: F Darius Days (11.6 ppg, 7.8 rpg)
Top newcomer: G Xavier Pinson (transfer from Missouri)
Bold prediction: LSU makes a surprise run to the Sweet 16. Pinson and Days become a dangerous one-two punch late in the season. The loss of Adam Miller to a preseason ACL tear will hinder the backcourt.
– Adam Hunsucker
MISSISSIPPI STATE
Coach: Ben Howland (seventh year at Mississippi State)
2020-21 record: 18-15, 8-10 SEC
Top returning player: G Iverson Molinar (16.7 ppg, 2.3 apg)
Top newcomer: G Rocket Watts (transfer from Michigan State)
Bold prediction: With Watts and Molinar, Mississippi State’s backcourt is one of the best in the conference. But they aren’t alone. Behind that core, the Bulldogs will make their second NCAA Tournament appearance since 2009.
– Andy Kostka
More SEC basketball:Mississippi State men's basketball: Key returners, newcomers and departures
More SEC basketball:Five questions Cuonzo Martin and Mizzou basketball will answer this season
MISSOURI
Coach: Cuonzo Martin (fifth year at Missouri)
2020-21 record: 16-10, 8-8 SEC
Top returning player: F Kobe Brown (8.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg)
Top newcomer: G Boogie Coleman (Ball State transfer)
Bold prediction: Missouri will be better than people expect despite only returning three players from last year's team. The Tigers could be in contention for an NIT spot by the end of the year, but may not have enough talent to make back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances.
– Eric Blum
OLE MISS
Coach: Kermit Davis (fourth year at Ole Miss)
2020-21 record: 16-12, 10-8 SEC
Top returning player: G Jarkel Joiner (12 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 1.7 apg)
Top newcomer: F Jaemyn Brakefield (transfer from Duke)
Bold prediction: It might take a little while for this team to get in sync. Transfers Brakefield, Nysier Brooks and Tye Fagan will all play a role, as will five-star freshman point guard Daeshun Ruffin. But it will be up to returning players to get this team going early and prevent another slow start that's hard to dig out of.
– Nick Suss
More SEC basketball:Kermit Davis, Ole Miss men's basketball want more spread, more possessions on offense
SOUTH CAROLINA
Coach: Frank Martin (10th season at South Carolina)
2020-21 record: 6-14, 4-11 SEC
Top returning player: F Keyshawn Bryant (14.4 ppg, 5.4 rpg)
Top newcomer: James Reese V (transfer from North Texas)
Bold prediction: South Carolina will finish above .500 in SEC play. Martin and his staff filled their biggest need with more size and length in the frontcourt with the addition of 7-foot LSU transfer Josh Gray.
– Cory Diaz
TENNESSEE
Coach: Rick Barnes (seventh year at Tennessee)
2020-21 record: 18-9, 10-7 SEC
Top returning player: F Josiah-Jordan James (8.0 ppg, 6.5 rpg)
Top newcomer: G Kennedy Chandler (freshman)
What to watch: Tennessee has eight newcomers, including five-star guard Chandler, who will dictate much of UT’s success. The Vols also return four players who played at least 24 minutes per game, including guard James. UT will need better post play to to compete for an SEC title and make it deeper in the NCAA Tournament after a disappointing 2020-21 season.
– Mike Wilson
More SEC basketball:Kennedy Chandler on Tennessee basketball debut vs. Lenoir-Rhyne
TEXAS A&M
Coach: Buzz Williams (third year at Texas A&M)
2020-21 record: 8-10 2-8 SEC
Top returning player: G Quenton Jackson (10.4 ppg, 2.4 rpg)
Top newcomer: G Manny Obaseki (freshman)
Bold Prediction: Texas A&M will get back to 15 wins this season. The team will finish among the top eight teams in the league. Come March, the Aggies will find themselves on the NCAA Tournament bubble.
– Max Donaldson
More SEC basketball:Scotty Pippen Jr. on returning to Vanderbilt basketball: 'I didn't come back to lose'
VANDERBILT
Coach: Jerry Stackhouse (third season at Vanderbilt)
2020-21 record: 9-16 (3-13 SEC)
Top returning player: G Scotty Pippen Jr. (20.8 ppg, 2.9 rpg)
Top newcomer: C Liam Robbins (transfer from Minnesota)
Bold prediction: Vanderbilt will be better than you think this year, with Pippen back and a more balanced group of talent around him. This might not be a tournament team yet, but the Commodores will finish with a winning record.
– Aria Gerson