Milan Momcilovic didn’t just join Kentucky through the transfer portal this offseason - he landed as the kind of addition that can tilt the whole college basketball conversation.
Mark Pope brought in several transfers, but Momcilovic is the one who has drawn the loudest attention. Coming off a season at Iowa State in which he led the Cyclones with 16.9 points per game, the 6-foot-8 forward arrives with a reputation built on one thing above all else: shooting.
That part of his game is what makes the fit so obvious. In the Big 12 last season, Momcilovic hit 48.7% of his 3-point attempts while taking 7.5 per game. For a Pope offense built around launching from deep, that kind of production is exactly what Kentucky was chasing.
The buzz around him showed up recently in a Busting Brackets piece by Rodney Knuppel, who ranked Momcilovic No. 1 on a list of “20 transfers who could change the 2026-27 college basketball national championship race.” Knuppel’s view was blunt: "Few transfers fit their new system as obviously as Momcilovic.
The 6-foot-8 forward made 136 3-pointers last season, the most in college basketball. Now put that shooting into Mark Pope's offense.
Momcilovic can stretch defenses well beyond the arc and doesn't require stationary catch-and-shoot opportunities to punish opponents. Kentucky needed elite shooting.
It landed perhaps the best shooter available."
Kentucky paid superstar-level money to bring him in, which raises the bar even higher. The Wildcats have plenty of young talent and real upside, but Momcilovic and Zoom Diallo are the proven high-end pieces in the mix. If Kentucky is going to climb into a big season and make noise in the postseason, Momcilovic has to be at the center of it.
He should set the Kentucky single-season made-3s record, but that may only be the starting point. In Pope’s system, Momcilovic has the chance to do something even bigger.
In Other News...
Zoom Diallo Is Bringing A Mindset Kentucky Fans Will Love
Kentuckys offseason addition at point guard is already talking like someone who understands what Rupp Arena is supposed to feel like. Zoom Diallo came through the transfer portal with an eye toward more than just filling a roster spot, stressing the importance of homecourt advantage and the kind of crowd energy that can turn a normal night into something bigger. For a program that lives on atmosphere as much as talent, that is a pretty good place to start.
Diallo also brings a reputation that should resonate with Wildcats fans beyond the buzzwords. His former high school coach pointed to his winning mentality and competitiveness as defining traits, the sort of edge Kentucky hopes will show up when games tighten up and the arena starts to sway. The bigger question now is how quickly that mindset translates once the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Just Proved Something Big As Morgan Gaerte Wait Continues
Kentucky volleyball keeps finding ways to win even while waiting for one of its most important players to get healthy. The Wildcats are 10-2 on the season and just swept No. 7 Texas, a result that stood out even more because Morgan Gaerte was unavailable after getting hit in the eye in practice. Craig Skinner said Gaerte is being monitored and praised the group for handling the setback and still delivering one of its best results of the year.
For Kentucky, the bigger picture is just as encouraging as the immediate one. The Wildcats now move deeper into SEC play with Auburn and Florida coming up, and the ability to keep their level high while Gaerte is day-to-day gives this team a little more resilience than it might have shown a week ago. The question now is how long that edge can hold if they have to keep going without her. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Is Making A Serious Push For A Class-Changing Guard
Kentuckys pursuit of Reese Alston has taken on a more serious edge after the top 10 point guard wrapped up an official visit to Lexington, a sign that the Wildcats are firmly in the mix for one of the classs most coveted backcourt talents. Alstons summer play helped sharpen that attention, and the idea of him as a program-changing guard has made his recruitment one of the more closely watched in the country.
The list of contenders is still crowded, with Louisville drawing particular notice as the in-state battle starts to take shape around him. Kentucky has already done enough to stay relevant deep into the process, but the next steps in Alstons recruitment will say plenty about just how real the Wildcats push is as this race moves toward a decision. [Read more 🡒]