Georgia Basketball: Is Kario Oquendo the SEC’s most underrated player?

If you were to take a look at SEC Basketball as a whole up to this point in the 2021-22 season, what are some takeaways you may have?

Are Auburn and Kentucky legit national title contenders? Yes. Can teams such as Alabama, Tennessee, and Arkansas go on a run to the Final Four? It’s possible. Are players such as Oscar Tshiebwe, Walker Kessler, and Jabari Smith locks for SEC individual awards in the coming weeks? Probably.

Now ask yourself, what do each of the teams/players listed above have in common? You could probably tell that each are among the top-half of the conference, as well as locks to see the NCAA Tournament this season.

While those teams and players may have gotten a majority of the attention, and rightfully so, up to this point in the season, there is one player in particular that people around the SEC should be talking more about. As you can likely tell by the title as well, that player is Georgia Basketball guard Kario Oquendo, and he might just be the most underrated player in the SEC.

Is Georgia Basketball guard Kario Oquendo the SEC’s most underrated player?

For a Georgia team that has a roster full of new faces in 2021-22, there are no new faces that have arguably had a bigger impact than Oquendo.

A transfer from Florida Southwestern State, Oquendo came to Athens last offseason as a talented scorer (averaged 13.5 PPG as a freshman a year ago), something that has carried over to this season against some of the top teams and players that college basketball has to offer. While some may not have noticed this due to the Bulldogs struggles at times this season, what Oquendo is doing this season should not go unnoticed.

Georgia’s leading scorer, the sophomore is currently averaging 14.4 PPG for the year (ranks 9th in SEC) across 26 games, eight of which have been 20+ point performances. In addition to this, Oquendo is also averaging an impressive 17.3 PPG in SEC play on 46.3% shooting, as well as 45.8% for the year overall with 4.3 RPG and 1.2 SPG.

Not only has the 6-foot-4 guard continued to improve as the season has gone-on, but Oquendo has also continued to add his fair share of highlight-reel dunks, impressive offense performances, and more. Yes, even despite Georgia Basketball’s struggles, Oquendo is already cemented as one of the conferences top offensive players, and is quickly and quietly becoming a star within the conference.

So, is Oquendo the SEC’s most underrated player? While there are obviously a few other options in that argument, it’s hard to look past what the sophomore guard is doing during his first year in the SEC.