On Thursday, we broke down the SEC West version of this list, so let’s take a look at the best basketball player from every school in the East, which is the historically stronger half of the conference. Although the divisions are only in football, this is a football site, so it’s only fitting.

Just like last time, it’s a 70-30 split between college and pro accolades, and factors like career leaderboards, winning and impact on the game will be taken into account.

So let’s get started.

Florida: PF Al Horford (2004-07)

Al Horford’s college career was about as well-rounded as his NBA game, as is profile is an equal mix of stats, wins, and awards. Horford was part of “The ’04s” a recruiting class that came to Gainesville in 2004 and led the Gators to back-to-back national championships. Corey Brewer, Taurean Green, Al Horford, Lee Humphrey, and Joakim Noah led the Gators to the most dominant stretch in program history, during which they became the only program to ever beat Kentucky seven-straight times.

Horford and Noah were the players of the bunch who were probably the most complete, and also the two whose talents best translated into the NBA game. Though they both played similar positions, the two stars chose to share the floor and sacrifice their individual stats for the greater team goal.

Horford finished his Florida career tied at No. 6 in rebounds 869, No. 2 in blocked shots (189) and No. 5 in field goal percentage, with trophies to commemorate him as the SEC Tournament MVP, All-Tournament Team, and a Third-Team All-American in 2007.

Georgia: SF Dominque Wilkins (1979-82)

Dominque Wilkins is another perfect melding of college excellence and NBA greatness. He averaged 21.6 points (third-best in Bulldogs history) and 7.5 rebounds during his time in Athens, and he captivated audiences with his smooth shooting and freakish athleticism. ‘Nique was one of the first players to be called “The Human Highlight Film,” and he did it with his signatures smooth-as-silk style, where he looked to be moving in slow motion, while also being the fastest one in the building at the same time.

‘Nique’s teams never reached the tournament, though they did make their first-ever postseason appearance, an NIT berth in 1981, with him as their leader. That lack of tournament success was through no fault of his own, however, as Wilkins is one of Georgia’s only 2 SEC Player of the Year recipients and one of 3 two-time All-Americans. Despite playing only 3 years, Wilkins is still No. 4 in Georgia history with 1,688 points.

Kentucky: C Dan Issel (1967-70)

Kentucky is easily the best basketball program in the SEC, as they sit at No. 2 all-time with eight NCAA championships. It’s fitting, then, that Dan Issell exemplifies that excellence with a career of consistent production that lasted until he retired from the NBA at 36 to eventually be selected as a Hall of Famer, mostly for his college and NBA career.

Issel came at a time when legendary coach Adolph Rupp’s career was winding down. He retired 2 years after Issel’s senior season. Kentucky’s history is filled with great teams and their great players seem to follow a trend of not winning titles – other than Anthony Davis, of course. Issel didn’t cut down the nets, but he did set the ‘Cats single-season record with 33.9 points per game, and he sits at No. 1 on the all-time career points leaderboard at 2,138 despite only playing 2 seasons. Issel is also first in rebounds with 1,078, and he’s a 2-time All-American.

Mizzou: F Derrick Chievous (1984-88)

Derrick Chievous represented the thick of Mizzou basketball under coach Norm Stewart, who led the Tigers to 16 NCAA tournaments over his long and storied career. Chievous is by far the best scorer in Tigers’ history with 2,580 career points and second all-time with 19.9 points per game. As if that wasn’t enough, he also tops the list of free throws made by over 240 (764) and is No. 4 in rebounds with 979.

Chievous’ Mizzou teams made the tournament in 3 of his 4 seasons but were bounced in the first round each time. A trend that plagued Stewart’s was that they would have strong regular seasons and fall flat in the postseason, so it’s fitting that his best player ever should lead his team as high as a No. 4 seed, but never make a deep tournament run.

South Carolina: G Sindarius Thornwell (2013-17)

Sindarius Thornwell brought South Carolina to previously unthinkable heights, as the Gamecocks knocked off Duke on their way to their first-ever Final Four last season. Thornwell edges out a fellow Gamecock great Alex English because English’s teams got worse as he got better, but the reverse was true for Thornwell, whose teams went from 14-20 in his freshman season, to 17-16 as a sophomore, then an NCAA snub at 25-9 his junior year, and finally, the history-making 26-11 senior season that saw the Gamecocks make the NCAA tournament for just the second time this century.

Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Thornwell only elevated his play in the tournament, averaging 23.6 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.8 steals. By no means did the Gamecocks back into their tournament success, as they beat powers Marquette, Duke, Baylor and Florida during their run.

On top of all that, Thornwell is No. 3 all-time in points at USC with 1,941, he was No. 1 in minutes played with 4,207 and he capped off his senior season by being named the SEC Player of the year. Pretty good for an underdog.

Tennessee: F Bernard King (1974-77)

Like the Most Interesting Man in college basketball, Bernard King didn’t play very long at Tennessee, but when he did, he was the greatest of all-time. In just 76 games, King amassed 1,962 points behind a program-best 25.8 career scoring average, and he also grabbed the most rebounds in Volunteer history with 1,004. His scoring breakdowns are truly incredible, as he notched 42 points in his debut, and hold the UT record for most 30-point games (26) and 40-point games (5).

While in college, King racked up pretty much every accomplishment imaginable, being named an All-American and SEC Player of the Year in each of his 3 years. That means he was one of only 2 Volunteers (Chris Lofton) to make the team 3 times and one of 2 players ever to win three SEC Player of the Year awards (Pete Maravich). King was a beast in college and deserves some consideration as the best player in SEC history. He, along with teammate Ernie Grunfeld, led the Vols to the tournament in each of his last 2 seasons, and his impact on Tennessee basketball is still being felt.

Despiye all of this, King is best known for his pro career, which has become synonymous with the New York Knicks. In the NBA, he was a 4-time All-Star, a scoring champion, an NBA champion, and a Hall of Famer.

Vanderbilt: SG Shan Foster (2005-2008)

Normally, the GOAT discussion slants toward older players who have given us time to reflect on their legacies, but Shan Foster has all the bona fides to show that he was the greatest Commodore of all time. For starters, he’s their leading scorer at 2,011 points, leader in threes made at 367 (42 percent), an SEC player of the year and All-American in 2008, and a 2-time first-team All-SEC selection in 2006 and 2008.

Combine all of that with his two tournament appearances and two wins and you get a well-rounded player that began a winning tradition at Vanderbilt. He was instrumental in coach Kevin Stallings’ rise to prominence, as VU made the tournament in each of his last two seasons, and then 3 of the next 4 after he graduated. Foster represented the modern do-it-all guard who could create offense and shoot from deep with deadly accuracy, and his leadership and scoring prowess put his name in VU lore forever.