Mar 1, 2025; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Lamont Butler (1) looks on during the second half against the Auburn Tigers at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

There is no excuse for why Lamont Butler wasn't on the SEC All-Defensive Team

Originally posted on Kentucky Wildcats on SI
By Andrew Stefaniak | Last updated Mar 11, 2025 6:00 AM ET

The All-SEC Teams came out on Monday, and the only Kentucky Wildcat listed was Otega Oweh. The Wildcat's leading scorer made the All-SEC Second Team.

Amari Williams was snubbed from being on the All-SEC Third Team, but the biggest snub of all was Kentucky point guard Lamont Butler not being on the SEC All-Defensive Team.

Butler did miss some time in SEC play, but still, in the 12 games he did play in conference play, he was the best on-ball defender in the league. Butler won Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year twice during his time at San Diego State, and there is no reason he shouldn't have been on the list as a top five defender in the SEC.

More than likely, the reason Butler wasn't on the SEC All-Defensive Team was because Kentucky as a team struggles defensively. While this is true when Butler is on the floor the Wildcats are much better on this end of the floor.

Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

Over the last few weeks, Kentucky has put up some of their best performances on defense, and this is because Butler is getting back to 100% coming off the shoulder injury.

Butler is not the type of person to be upset about a personal accolade, but he has every reason to be, as he is one of the best defenders in college basketball.

The SEC All-Defensive Team included Auburn's Denver Jones, Tennessee's Jahmai Mashack, Mississippi State's Cameron Matthews, Missouri's Anthony Robinson II, and lastly, Tennessee's Zakai Zeigler, who also won Defensive Player of the Year.

Butler can show those who vote for this award that they made a mistake not putting him on the SEC All-Defensive Team with some elite play in the postseason. Butler averaged 1.7 steals and 2.9 rebounds per game this season for the Wildcats.

This article first appeared on Kentucky Wildcats on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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