Oscar Tshiebwe named to 2023 Naismith Midseason Team

Kentucky center Oscar Tshiebwe has been named to the 2023 Jersey Mike’s Naismith Men’s Midseason Team, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced Thursday.

Tshiebwe is one of 30 standouts to make the team, all remaining in contention for the Naismith College Player of the Year Award, presented annually to the most outstanding men’s basketball player who achieves tremendous on-court success. He was originally part of the Naismith Trophy Preseason Watch List to open the regular season, one of 50 players named. The competition will be narrowed down to 10 national semifinalists in early March, followed by four finalists being named on March 21. The winner for the 2023 Naismith Trophy for Men’s Player of the Year will be announced on April 2.

Tshiebwe was previously named to the Naismith Men’s Defensive Player of the Year 2023 Watch List in January.

The star center is currently averaging 15.5 points, 13.3 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 33.0 minutes per contest. He has racked up six games of 20-plus points and nine games of 15-plus rebound performances, headlined by his record-breaking 37-point, 24-rebound outing — both season-highs — vs. Georgia on Jan. 17.

Check out the 30 Naismith Midseason Team members below, with Tshiebwe being one of just two SEC members in the running — Alabama’s Brandon Miller being the other:

Name	Class	Position	School
Max Abmas	Senior	G	Oral Roberts
Armando Bacot	Senior	F/C	North Carolina
Souley Boum	Grad Student	G	Xavier
Marcus Carr	Grad Student	G	Texas
Kendric Davis	Fifth Year	G	Memphis
Antoine Davis	Grad Student	G	Detroit Mercy
Hunter Dickinson	Junior	C	Michigan
Zach Edey	Junior	C	Purdue
Kyle Filipowski	Freshman	C	Duke
Adam Flagler	Redshirt Senior	G	Baylor
Keyonte George	Freshman	G	Baylor
Bryce Hopkins	Sophomore	F/G	Providence
Trayce Jackson-Davis	Senior	F/C	Indiana
Jaime Jaquez Jr.	Senior	G/F	UCLA
Keyontae Johnson	Senior	F	Kansas State
Ryan Kalkbrenner	Junior	C	Creighton
Tyler Kolek	Junior	G	Marquette
Mike Miles Jr.	Junior	G	TCU
Brandon Miller	Freshman	F	Alabama
Kris Murray	Junior	F	Iowa
Markquis Nowell	Senior	G	Kansas State
Jalen Pickett	Senior	G	Penn State
Adama Sanogo	Junior	F	UConn
Marcus Sasser	Senior	G	Houston
Terquavion Smith	Sophomore	G	NC State
Drew Timme	Senior	F	Gonzaga
Oscar Tshiebwe	Senior	F	Kentucky
Azuolas Tubelis	Junior	F	Arizona
Jalen Wilson	Redshirt Junior	F	Kansas
Isaiah Wong	Fourth-Year Junior	G	Miami

It’s been a tough stretch for Tshiebwe as of late, but the Kentucky center’s worst is better than most players’ best. And that’s why he remains in the running for NPOY, looking to be the first repeat recipient in 40 years.