Kentucky is still waiting on the right fit for its final roster spot, and Mark Pope says the new NCAA eligibility ruling has only widened the possibilities.
A judge’s decision last Friday forced the NCAA to allow all previous seniors to receive a fifth year of eligibility without having to apply for a waiver, and the ripple effect has already reached Lexington. Kentucky now has names on its radar as it looks to fill the 15th and final spot, with Mark Mitchell, Keyshawn Hall and Jaxon Kohler among the transfers being pursued.
Pope has made it clear he won’t force the issue. He said multiple times that Kentucky would only use that last opening if the player was the “right” guy, and the program spent more than a month waiting to see what the NCAA would do with the 5-for-5 rules before making its next move.
“It’s interesting to be this far into summer and still uncertain about what the rules even are. It certainly opens up some opportunities for us that we kind of have been anticipating and sitting on and waiting for.
So, we’ll see how things play out. I love this group.
We’re ready to go build this team into a competitive team and if we have the opportunity to add another piece that helps us, we will.”
Hall appeared to signal Thursday night on social media that Kentucky and St. John’s are battling for him.
Pitino and St. John’s seem to have the edge there, especially after losing forward Dillon Mitchell to the NBA, who recently signed a contract with the Boston Celtics.
For now, though, Pope sounds encouraged by what he already has in place. After a full summer of practices, he said the 14-man group has taken real steps forward.
“We’ve made massive progress through the summer,” Pope said. “Our ball-protection has gotten better and better, our understanding of what that means and how to do it has gotten better.
Guys have gotten better about making plays for each other. We’re understanding some new defensive concepts with ball-screen, some transition defensive concepts we installed.
Mostly, the guys are getting to know each other and understand what our language is like and what our culture is like and what living to the standard every single day is like.”
Kentucky isn’t acting like it has to add that 15th player, but the door is open. And if the right transfer lands in Lexington, Pope’s team could go from solid to something much more dangerous.
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Kentuckys Final Roster Push Just Got Tense For Mark Pope
Kentuckys late roster chase picked up another layer of intrigue as Keyshawn Hall, a transfer with SEC experience, moved onto the radar in a serious way. Hall has already taken part in a Zoom call with the Wildcats, and his social media activity has only added to the sense that this is becoming a two-horse recruitment, with Kentucky and St. Johns both pushing hard while Mark Pope works through the final stages of roster building.
For Kentucky, the timing matters because Hall is one of several names still in play as the Wildcats try to lock down their last spot. Jaxon Kohler and Mark Mitchell remain among the other transfer targets on the board, but Halls presence in the mix gives the process a different feel now that Rick Pitino and St. Johns are also fully engaged. Pope still has options, but the closing stretch of this recruitment suddenly looks a lot less straightforward. [Read more 🡒]
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Bryant showed last season why he matters so much to what comes next, finishing with a career-high four interceptions and 76 tackles while giving the secondary a steadying presence. In a transition year, that kind of production is only part of the story, because Kentucky also needs Bryant to be the kind of dependable voice who helps the defense absorb Batemans message quickly and hold the group together. [Read more 🡒]