Mark Pope didn’t hide why Milan Momcilovic mattered so much to Kentucky’s offseason.
The Wildcats needed a legitimate go-to scorer, and they got one in the 6-8 forward. They also landed a player whose shooting profile fits Pope’s offense almost perfectly.
Momcilovic arrives after one of the most efficient perimeter seasons in college basketball, and the numbers back up the hype: last season at Iowa State, he hit 136 threes while shooting 48.7 percent from deep. That mark set program records for the Cyclones.
Pope recently addressed the addition on the Inside College Basketball podcast, and his explanation centered on the way Momcilovic bends a defense. “We value gravity.
It makes our world go around on the offensive end and he's got as much, or more, gravity than any player in college basketball. Everybody knows how well he shot it last year and how effective he is.
He's also got a real creator vibe, he can do some things off the bounce. He's a great barkley guy, in terms of getting a catch on the perimeter and actually turning it into a post-possession, where he's really skilled at finishing there.”
Momcilovic’s role may go beyond simply spacing the floor. In a recent interview with the UK Sports Network, he said Pope told him to take about 10 threes per game, and that if his efficiency improves, it would mean he isn’t firing enough.
That confidence seems to go both ways. Pope said Momcilovic has already shown something on defense in live play during the first couple of weeks of practice.
“On the defensive end, courtesy of TJ (Otzelberger) and the great work that Iowa State does in developing defensive players, he's shown some real acumen on the defensive end in the first couple weeks here in live play. But the thing I like most about Milan is, he's got this inherent confidence to him.”
The shot volume alone makes this an eye-catching fit. Momcilovic attempted 7.5 threes per game last season at Iowa State, and if Pope gets the kind of green light he wants, Kentucky’s single-season threes record could be in play. The source even points to the possibility of Momcilovic pushing toward a record set by Steph Curry.
For Kentucky, that kind of addition is exactly why Momcilovic has been talked about as the offseason move that could help shape a deep tournament run.
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The fit is obvious enough: Kentucky wants Momcilovic to be the offenses top perimeter weapon, the kind of player defenses have to chase off the line from the opening tip. If the volume climbs the way the Wildcats hope, it would give Pope a defined long-range threat to build around and add another layer to a roster that still has to prove how dangerous it can be in SEC play. [Read more 🡒]
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Minchey also comes with a bit of unfinished business. He was close at Notre Dame, where he narrowly missed out on winning the starting job, and now he gets the chance to reset in an offense designed by coaches with a growing reputation for developing quarterbacks. Kentucky does not need him to be a finished product on day one, but it does need him to be part of the reason fans start believing this group can be different. [Read more 🡒]