With college basketball seeing more turnover from year to year than ever before it can be challenging to stay caught up on rosters and who the Gators will be playing against.
To help you get set for the 2025-26 college basketball season, we are taking a look at the best players that Florida will play against. We already went through the best players that Florida will see in non-conference play, and now it’s time to look at the best player from each of their SEC opponents:
Ja’Kobi Gillespie
Tennessee
Florida already saw the former transfer portal target in last year’s NCAA Tournament with Maryland and now he’s in the league ready to lead the Tennessee offense. Gillespie is a slippery guard who shot 41% from three last season and he’s lethal every time he gets a ball screen. For a Tennessee team that has struggled offensively in recent years, look for Gillespie to give them some much needed juice. 

 

Otega Oweh
Kentucky
Oweh returns to Kentucky after scoring 16.2 points per game last season while providing excellent on-ball defense on a team that didn’t have many stoppers. Look for him to increase his shooting volume while getting open looks surrounded by a deep, talented roster.

 

DJ Wagner
Arkansas
Another returner, Wagner comes back to Arkansas after scoring 11.2 points per game last season. A former top recruit, Wagner has never fully realized his pre-college hype but has been a solid guard who could make a huge leap at any point.

 

Labaron Philon
Alabama
Entering the 2025-26 season people will be expecting huge things from Labaron Philon who exploded onto the scene as a freshman last year averaging 10.6 points and 3.8 assists while shouldering the load when Mark Sears was off the ball. Philon is a talented scorer who can seemingly get to the rim any time he wants and is perfect for the Nate Oats system. 

 

Devin McGlockton
Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt’s best player is one of the hardest to peg in the preseason as they boast a number of strong role players but no clear star. While Mike James or Frankie Collins, two guys who have put up points on bad teams, could end up being breakouts–the consistency of versatile forward Devin McGlockton will be big for them to continue their winning ways from head coach Mark Byington’s first season in Nashville.

 

Tahaad Pettiford
Auburn
Like Labaron Philon, Tahaad Pettiford was someone who came to the mighty SEC as a freshman and instantly played like a veteran. Averaging 11.6 points while shooting 37% from three, Pettiford has already had strong production and he could be ready for a leap that puts him in the long line of elite Auburn guards.

 

Mark Mitchell

Missouri
After Mitchell could never fully express himself at Duke he fully showed why he was a top recruit after transferring to Missouri where he was a versatile frontcourt piece that could win with physicality or touch and skill. In an SEC that has a lot of strong post players, look for Mitchell to still be one of the best. 

 

Nijel Pack
Oklahoma
This year’s Sooners have a number of talented scorers that could end up leading the way but the safe bet is likely Nijel Pack, a career 14.3 point per game scorer who has averaged double digits in each of his five seasons of college basketball. This consistency makes him as surefire of a scorer as there is in the sport and his experience will be leaned on heavily in a big year for Oklahoma. 

 

Jeremiah Wilkinson
Georgia
In a year where freshmen were more relevant than they have been in quite some time, perhaps the most underrated first year player was California’s Jeremiah Wilkinson who averaged 15.1 points per game. Sure, the ACC was down–but it’s awfully impressive for a first year player to average that number at the power conference level, and he’ll now have a big opportunity to lead the offense at Georgia. 

 

Tramon Mark

Texas
As physical of a guard defender as you’re going to see, Mark can be a menace to play against, and it isn’t only on his side of the floor. He’s turned into a reliable offensive player who can make an open jumper, and he’ll be the most important perimeter piece for the Longhorns. 

 

Pop Isaacs
Texas A&M 

Remember that you are going to see a very different Texas A&M team this year with Buzz Williams’ grind-it-out style going to Maryland with run-and-gun Bucky McMillan now taking his place. Leading the way for this new, faster, more offensively-minded aggie group will be Pop Isaacs who has been an excellent scorer for Texas Tech and Creighton and will now be one of the more dangerous guards in the SEC. 

 

Josh Hubbard
Mississippi State

 

One of the leaders in the clubhouse for SEC’s leading scorer should be Josh Hubbard who has incredibly averaged 18 points per game in his two seasons with Mississippi State. One of the toughest covers in the country due to his compact frame and quick first step, there won’t be too many people slowing him down in his third year. 

 

AJ Storr
Ole Miss
This is one of the toughest teams to pick a leader for, and AJ Storr is somewhat of a wild card. Is he going to be the solid freshman he was at St. John’s? A top scorer like he was at Wisconsin? Or, the disinterested wing like he was this past year at Kansas? Storr definitely has the tools to score 16.8 points per game like he did with the Badgers in 2023-24, but he had a bit of a rough one last year with Kansas. Storr’s success, or lack there of, will be a huge element in just how far Ole Miss can go. 

 

Dedan Thomas Jr.
LSU
Dedan Thomas was always seen as a high-major guard (as evidenced by Florida recruiting him) but he chose to spend his first two seasons at UNLV where his father starred. Now, he comes to the SEC as a proven double digit scorer with a lot of electricity off the bounce. 

 

Meechie Johnson
South Carolina

 

This might be a familiar name as Meechie Johnson was at South Carolina before transferring to Ohio State where he scored 9.1 points per game, less than the 14.1 he averaged with the Gamecocks, before deciding to come back. Johnson isn’t always efficient, but he’s a veteran college player who will find a way to put points on the board no matter what.Â