Let’s get this out of the way up top: Cameron Boozer is the National Player of the Year right now, and there shouldn’t be much debate about it. He’s the engine of the nation’s top-ranked team, stuffing every column on the stat sheet for a Duke machine that rarely sputters.
But if you’re asking who I trust to grab a flawed team by the throat and drag it somewhere it has no business going in March, that conversation starts – and might end – with Arkansas freshman Darius Acuff Jr.
What Acuff did to Oklahoma in the SEC quarterfinals wasn’t just a big game; it was a declaration of intent. Twenty‑one shots, 37 points, five assists, five rebounds and, most importantly, an 82–79 win that likely shoved the Sooners off the bubble and shoved Arkansas into the conference semifinals.
Acuff has been the star of the show at this week's SEC Tournament. In Arkansas' win over Oklahoma, Acuff finished with 37 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals. In a dramatic win over Ole Miss on Saturday in the semifinals, Acuff recorded 24 points, seven assists and five rebounds.
Oklahoma coach Porter Moser didn’t bother with coachspeak when he was asked about Acuff before the game. He went straight to the big names, the kind of comparisons most coaches avoid because they sound like hype and come back to haunt you.
For a veteran coach to talk that freely about a freshman tells you something: SEC benches aren’t just game‑planning for Arkansas; they’re game‑planning for Acuff.
Now, let’s pump the brakes before the highlight culture runs wild. He’s not Rose; he’s not Iverson; he’s Darius Acuff Jr., a projected top‑10 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft and the unquestioned alpha of a top‑15 Arkansas squad.
Acuff, who captured SEC Player of the Year honors earlier this week and is more than likely to be an All-American when it's all said and done, might be the best guard Calipari has had at the college level.
Acuff is currently averaging 22.2 points and 6.4 assists. In Arkansas' 105-85 win over Texas earlier this month, Acuff finished with 28 points and 13 assists.
Acuff has 18 games this season with at least 20 points and five assists, which is the most among all Division I players. Acuff has scored at least 20 points in 22 games this season.
Acuff's performance was so impressive that the opposing coach spoke for over two minutes unprompted about Acuff and called him a 'generational player.'
In fact, Acuff was apparently in a walking boot days before that game. Still, he managed to play all 50 minutes and had a performance to remember.
The 2026 NBA Draft is considered a 'Big Three' at the top with Duke's Cameron Boozer, Kansas' Darryn Peterson and BYU's AJ Dybantsa vying for the right to go No. 1 overall.
With one more game remaining in the SEC title game and then the NCAA Tournament, there is plenty of time for Acuff to add to his totals and leave his mark.