Mark Pope isn’t shy about what he thinks Alex Wilkins can become in his first season at Kentucky.
The Furman transfer has already shown the kind of shot-making that turns heads, and Pope believes that talent comes with a wide range. At SEC Basketball Media Day, he said Wilkins could look like the best player in college basketball at times this season - and at others, leave people scratching their heads.
“It’s a process with him that’s going to be really exciting,” Pope said from the main stage at SEC Basketball Media Day. “I know exactly who he is going to be this season. He’s going to have some games where this is the best player in college basketball, some moments that are head-scratchers.
“As long as he’s trending into the place that his discipline releases his creativity, we’re working in the right space. All growth takes time, but his ceiling is high.”
Wilkins, who last scored 21 points against UConn in the NCAA Tournament before getting a phone call and a roster invite from Pope, was a priority for Kentucky last spring. Pope even drew attention around Big Blue Nation when he compared Wilkins to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, a comparison that landed with a player who already had plenty of admiration for SGA.
“That’s someone who I watch a ton,” Wilkins told KSR over the summer, calling Gilgeous-Alexander the best player in the world.
Wilkins has already flashed the scoring touch Kentucky is hoping to tap into, including in summer-ball clips that made the rounds on social media. One of those highlights was a stepback three, the kind of play that hints at how dangerous he can be when he’s rolling.
Pope sees the upside clearly, but he also sees the adjustment that comes with it. He described Wilkins as “uber talented,” “incredibly creative and talented and wild,” while stressing that the staff has to give him structure without sanding off the parts of his game that make him different.
“We have to be cautious coaching him because he needs some constraints, some 100% constraints so he can build against, but they cannot take away his brilliant creativity where he can do things other players don’t do well.”
Pope said that same dynamic applies to the broader roster, which he called a joy to coach. He added that the 2026-27 Wildcats are learning quickly, enough to make him confident in how they’ll handle whatever comes next.
“These guys are picking this up so fast,” he said at SEC Media Days. “They are fast learners.
It gives you immense confidence as a coach that whatever we face, our guys are going to learn. We’re desperate now to start playing some other teams so we know where we are.
“Alex fits exactly in that category,” Pope added.
In Other News...
Kentucky Is Suddenly In The Hunt For 3 Program-Changing Recruits
Kentucky footballs new era under Will Stein is already showing up on the recruiting trail, where the Wildcats are being mentioned with three of the most coveted names in the 2028 class. Wide receiver Jordan Anderson, defensive lineman Kellan Hall and cornerback Grayden Reid have all drawn strong attention nationally, and multiple recruiting analysts have noted that Kentucky has been actively pushing for each of them. For a program trying to build momentum early with a younger class, that kind of visibility matters.
Joe Price, Jay Bateman and Allen Brown have all been involved in those efforts, giving Kentucky a staff presence around three prospects who could alter the trajectory of the class if the Wildcats can stay in the mix. The long lead time only adds to the intrigue, since these are the kinds of recruitments that can swing on relationships, development plans and continued persistence over time. Right now, Kentucky appears to be positioned in the conversation in a way that would have felt much harder to imagine not long ago. [Read more 🡒]
Kentuckys 1950 Title Claim Still Comes Down To One Debate
Kentuckys long-running football argument with Oklahoma has a clean backdrop this week, because the schools have barely crossed paths at all. The Wildcats and Sooners have met only three times before their upcoming SEC matchup, and the history between them goes right back to one of college footballs most debated seasons, when Kentucky added a retroactive national title claim from 1950.
That season still turns on which standard you trust more. Kentucky points to its Sugar Bowl win over Oklahoma as the seasons defining result, while Oklahoma finished the regular season atop both major polls. Add in the fact that Tennessee and Princeton also claim national titles from that year under different systems, and the old question remains as unresolved as ever: who really owned 1950? [Read more 🡒]
Mark Popes First Kentucky Team Just Got An Early SEC Reality Check
Kentuckys basketball reset under Mark Pope has already entered the part of the calendar where preseason optimism meets leaguewide skepticism. At SEC Media Days in Birmingham, the conferences preseason projections placed the Wildcats seventh on the mens side, even as two Kentucky players landed on the preseason All-SEC teams. It was a reminder that the first year of a new era does not come with much benefit of the doubt, even for a program with this much expectation baked in.
The womens team drew a stronger early nod, coming in at fifth in the league and getting Clara Strack on the preseason All-SEC First Team. Both teams are now turning their attention to actual basketball, with the men set to begin exhibition play against Little Rock as the season starts to take shape. For Kentucky, the rankings are only preseason noise, but they do offer an early snapshot of where the league thinks the Wildcats stand before the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]