Brandon Garrison said Tuesday he thought Otega Oweh would be a "great leader" for UK next season. (Vicky Graff Photo)
Brandon Garrison wants to learn all he can from Kentucky teammate Otega Oweh about what going through the NBA Draft process was like for him before he pulled his name out of the draft and returned to UK for the 2025-26 season.
Garrison, a junior center, also eventually wants to be a NBA player and knows anything he can pick up from Oweh’s experience might help him a year from now.
“First thing (Oweh) said was the (draft) workouts were one of the hardest things you have to do. Just being in shape was the biggest part, because the workouts, he told me they put him through all the testing they had to do.
“And just being mentally prepared, because it’s one of the top jobs out there, so it’s gonna be hard to get into it.”
Otega averaged a team-high 16.2 points per game for Kentucky last season to earn all-SEC second team honors. Garrison hopes to make a major leap in his play this season and he knows having Oweh back should make him and the team better.
Garrison thought Oweh would be back at Kentucky but was not certain until the end of the process.
“We’ve been talking all summer. He been keeping it just to him and his family. But I was just hoping he came back obviously, but if he didn’t, then I was gonna be proud of him either way,” Garrison said Tuesday at a UK media opportunity.
“When he told me he was coming back, I was super excited. We were texting about it. Just excited to be able to play another year with him.”
Oweh had older teammates to handle the major leadership roles on the team last season. This year the only seniors on coach Mark Pope’s roster will be Oweh and Florida transfer Denzel Aberdeen. The Cats will have four juniors, four sophomores and four freshmen to go with that duo.
Garrison hopes to take a larger leadership role, something Pope has encouraged, but he also knows Oweh will likely be the voice for this year’s team.
“He is kinda quiet, but when we get on the court, he gets to talking a lot,” Garrison said. “I feel like he’ll be a great leader for this team this year.”
2 Responses
Just because Oweh is a senior doesn’t mean he has to be the leader. Some players are natural leaders and other lead by example. I see Oweh as a more lead by example type of player. He doesn’t like telling the other guys what to do he likes showing them. I do believe Garrison will be much better this year but to think he improves enough to get drafted depends solely on his game and how much he improves. If he improves his rebounding, defense, shot blocking, 3 point percentage, and offensive rebounding and put backs he could slide to a late second round pick. I do think he ends up being a 4 year college player like Oweh. I see him improving every part of his game a little next year then taking a huge leap as a senior. Playing against more versatile bigs in practice especially JQ Potter and Moreno will take his game to another level. I still think he needs 2 years of polishing to get his game were it needs to be to play in the NBA. I do think he sticks with Kentucky through the process. If you can’t succeed at Kentucky you won’t succeed in the NBA.
Garrison just needs to focus on his game at both ends of the floor and make sure he is in the best shape of his life when the season begins. He needs to be a determined defender and rebounder, a more selective passer (not the impossible passes), a more confident 3 point shooter, and better finisher from within 5 ft. If he does that, he will get 25 minutes a game…if he can avoid picking up nickel and dime fouls. This comes with practice and putting in extra time in the gym. This will allow Quaintance time to get back in shape and find his groove again. Jelavic is going to be the X factor in the frontcourt. Potter and Moreno will impress in the time given as well.