Mo' better

UGA's Wright is SEC's top guard, not Bama's Williams

Georgia's Rashad Wright made 43.7 percent of his field goal attempts last season. James Hipple

By Mark Schlabach, Special to CNNSI.com

Alabama sophomore Mo Williams was named SEC Freshman of the Year last season, and was a popular choice for preseason All-SEC teams this year.

But Williams isn't the best guard in the SEC right now. He might be the best a year from now, but Georgia's Rashad Wright proved last season that he's the epitome of what a point guard should be. Consider:

While Jarvis Hayes and Ezra Williams are considered the Bulldogs' stars, Wright is coach Jim Harrick's favorite player. Wright is so effective at running Georgia's low-post offense that Harrick is afraid to take him off the floor.

"I have a great tendency to leave him in too long," Harrick said. "There's a comfort level he gives me."

The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Wright is simply the Bulldogs' security blanket. He has started 54 of 63 games since arriving at Georgia two years ago and played a whopping 32.7 minutes per game last season.

"He plays like a fifth-year senior," Williams said. "He's the best point guard in the league, no doubt."

CNNSI.com's Top Guards: • ACC: Julius Hodge, N.C. State • Big 12: Kirk Hinrich, Kansas • Big East: Brandin Knight, Pitt • Big Ten: Kirk Penney, Wisconsin • C-USA: Dwyane Wade, Marquette • Pac-10: Jason Gardner, Arizona More from CNNSI.com: • Mandel: A feel-good season • Button: Guard play key to title

Wright says he's out to prove people wrong. He received no postseason honors last season, and wasn't one of five guards named to the preseason All-SEC team this year.

"No one has ever heard of my name," Wright said. "Our team is really good, and everybody is worrying about defending Ezra and Jarvis. They don't worry about me. I'm letting people know that they've got to respect me, too."

LSU and South Carolina learned who Wright is late last season. In a 55-54 win at LSU, Wright made the game-winning jumper with 22 seconds left. Against South Carolina four days later, his 3-pointer with 5.4 seconds remaining tied the game at 70 and sent it into overtime. The Bulldogs won 82-75, a victory that helped them share the SEC East title with Florida and Kentucky.

"Wright has quietly developed into maybe the best point guard in this conference," Harrick said. "No one ever talks about him or defends him, but the player we could do without least is Rashad Wright. If you were picking an All-SEC team and wanted a true point guard, he'd get my vote."

Harrick learned how invaluble Wright is during the NCAA tournament last season. His boxscore line against Murray State in Round 1 -- 16 points on 10 shots, 10 assists against two turnovers -- was a thing of beauty. Eight of those assists went to Hayes, who scored 31.

"Jarvis Hayes is a great player," Murray State coach Tevester Anderson said afterward, "but Rashad Wright makes that team go."

Against Southern Illinois in the second round, the Bulldogs jumped out to a 17-point lead in the first half. Harrick got a little too comfortable and sent Wright to the bench for a breather. By the time he returned, the Bulldogs still had a 13-point lead, but momentum had turned. The Salukis won 77-75.

"I had a choice, and I took Wright out," Harrick said. "With the kind of lead we had, I thought I could afford to do it."

Instead, the Bulldogs learned they can't ever afford to be without Wright.

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