Connect with us

Men's Basketball

Kentucky Basketball Practice Update, Mark Pope Taking a Page From NBA Hall of Famer Larry Bird

Published

on

In his first season as the Kentucky basketball head coach, Mark Pope is making sure his players "understand the assignment".
Chet White | UK Athletics

Thirty-two summer practices are in the books for the Kentucky basketball team, and former Wildcat and teammate of Mark Pope, Cameron Mills, has been reporting on those practices this offseason. For his final summer practice report, Mills had three takeaways: 32 summer practices, team bonding, and coaching offense vs. defense.

32 Summer Practices

“I cannot emphasize enough the importance of 32 practices that Mark Pope’s new team got this summer,” Mills said. “Getting kids in here that understand, or at least the bandwidth to understand that they have a brand new offense to learn. A brand new defense to learn.”

While getting players in to learn their new system and the associated X’s and O’s, it is also important for the team to learn about each other on the court. Learn teammate tendencies and gain that “sixth sense” as Mills puts it.

Advertisement

Team Bonding

“Everything right now is about learning to be together and build a team. We have 13, 14 new guys this year. A whole brand new team that’s gotta learn how to gel. Coach Pope is trying to get them to gel as soon as possible.”

Pope isn’t limiting team bonding to just time on the court either. The players have golfed, bowled, and attended many UK events together this summer. In addition, the team took a “team building retreat” to Hazard to help the community, which was heavily affected by floods in 2022, and spent time together as a team. A little different from the team building of international trips in recent summers.

Coaching Offense vs Defense

Mark Pope is taking a page from his former NBA head coach Larry Bird. During Bird’s time with the Indiana Pacers, he had two assistant coaches, one specializing in offense and the other in defense. Pope is bringing that Kentucky with two modifications, those being two additional coaches thanks to the NCAA allowing up to five full-time assistants. Meaning there will be two coaches specializing in both offense and defense.

Pope’s offense is known for a lot of three-point attempts, and to prepare the players for that the staff has each player shoot 100+ threes per practice, with game speed and game cuts. Mills says it’s not just about volume, he also expects efficiency. “One through five, I can’t think of a single guy that can’t shoot at least 33 percent from the three-point line,” Mills said.

Advertisement

On defense, the staff is piping in road-like environments, forcing players to learn how to communicate verbally and non-verbally, which will help in SEC road games this season.


After a short break, the players are back on campus and will resume practice this week. While football season just kicked off, basketball season is just around the corner. Big Blue Madness is just six weeks away.

Advertisement

Men's Basketball

Kentucky Basketball Commit Impesses at McDonald’s All-American Game

Published

on

Kentucky basketball commit Malachi Moreno is a McDonald's All American
McDonald's All-American Game

Fresh off of winning a Kentucky Basketball State Championship Saturday night, Malachi Moreno had no time to rest. After winning the State Championship, Moreno flew out the morning after to Brooklyn.

Just a few short months ago, Moreno was selected to participate in the McDonald’s All-American game. Being chosen to play in this game is considered the highest honor a high school basketball player can achieve. However, he wasn’t content with just being chosen to play in this game. He wanted to show everyone that he belongs in this crowd with the best of the best.

Playing against the elite of the elite, there was never a moment in which Moreno looked as if he didn’t belong. Although Moreno and Team East didn’t come away with a victory, he looked nothing short of impressive all night long.

Advertisement

In only 16 minutes of game time, Moreno finished with 9 points, 5 rebounds, and 1 assist. He also added 2 blocked shots on the game. Moreno, who is listed at 6’10, moves very well for his size. He has an elite feel around the rim, which is tough to find for a young big man like himself. However, his best attribute may be his shot blocking ability, as shown here.

Moreno is a very gifted shot-blocker who has a knack for timing his jump when blocking shots. This will help him fill a much-needed role next season for a Kentucky team that at times struggled defensively, more specifically with blocking shots.

His night didn’t end there, he also showcased his ability to step outside and shoot the 3 ball.

He only attempted 11 3’s during his Senior High School season, finishing at 3/11 for 27.3%, but he proves here that if left open. He won’t hesitate to let it fly.

Advertisement

At the practices, On3 named him their second-best performer.

“Malachi Moreno flew to the McDonald’s All-American events this morning straight off winning a Kentucky state championship last night. This scrimmage was his first participation of the week, and he made his presence felt immediately. Moreno has legit size, listed at 7-foot-0, with good length. He also has good hands, which helps his play around the basket. Moreno is a strong rebounder, cleaning up the boards in traffic. He also had a game-clinching block at the rim, putting it off the backboard. Offensively, he plays as a roll man and out of the dunker spots. It found his spots and played within himself, and he had some very loud finishes.

Moreno is one of three exciting freshmen joining the Wildcats next season; alongside him are 4-stars Jasper Johnson and Acaden Lewis. These three highlight an exciting new young core for Mark Pope and company.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

BB Recruiting

Kentucky Has Contacted Nation’s Leading Scorer, Four-Star Transfer Jaron Pierre Who Is “Definitely” Interested in the Cats

Published

on

Jacksonville State transfer Jaron Pierre has been contacted by Kentucky.
Jacksonville State Athletics

There are more than a thousand players in the transfer portal, meaning names are flying left and right. As of April 1st, Kentucky has one commitment in Kam Williams (Tulane), and is projected to land top 25 transfer Magoon Gwath (San Diego State).

That said, the Kentucky staff has been in contact with more than a dozen players, and there is another notable player to add to that list.

KY Insider can report that Kentucky has contacted Jaron Pierre from Jacksonville State. Pierre is currently a four-star transfer prospect and ranked as the 34th ranked prospect in 247Sports‘ transfer portal rankings.

Advertisement

At Jacksonville State last season, Pierre scored more points than anyone else in college basketball (777 points), averaging 21.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 3.8 assists while shooting 38.2% from 3-point range (9.0 attempts per game). He scored 30 points or more in six games, and only had one game where he did not score in double digits. His impressive play earned him Conference USA Player of the Year honors.

Pierre also had prior stops at Southern Miss and Wichita State, where he spent two years at each school, and will be going into his sixth season of college basketball. Pierre has also declared for the NBA Draft, but is not currently projected on any mock drafts.

While still early in his recruitment, Pierre tells KY Insider that he is “definitely” interested in Kentucky, but no Zoom meeting or visit has been scheduled.

“I love it Big Blue Nation,” Pierre said of the Kentucky program. He also really liked what Mark Pope was able to do in his first season in Lexington. “He was able to pick up right where it left off.”

Advertisement

The level of competition is always a question when evaluating a mid-major talent, but Pierre’s athleticism jumps off the page and a 38.2% clip from three on nine attempts per game is nothing to slight at.

Continue Reading

Men's Basketball

Kentucky Receives Predictions for 7-Foot, Top 25 Transfer Magoon Gwath

Published

on

7-footer Magoon Gwath, a top 25 transfer prospect, is predicted to commit to Kentucky.
San Diego State Aztecs

Magoon Gwath, the 7-foot freshman from San Diego State, has received a crystal ball to Kentucky. No, ladies and gentlemen, this is not an April Fools prank.

Gwath entered the transfer portal on Mar. 24 after he averaged 8.5 points per game, 5.2 rebounds per game, and 2.6 blocks per game for the Aztecs. His play earned him Defensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year honors in the Mountain West Conference. Kentucky was one of the first schools to contact Gwath, and Lamont Butler is even reported to be helping recruit Gwath to Kentucky.

At approximately 12 p.m. on April 1st, Travis Branham, a 247Sports Basketball Analyst, awarded the big man with a crystal ball prediction that has Gwath becoming a Wildcat. On3’s Joe Tipton has also chimed in, following Branham’s prediction and mentioning Michigan as a top destination as well. 

Advertisement

This isn’t a guess, this is a calculated report. Now, Mark Pope and his staff will await the decision of Gwath in the coming days.

According to 247Sports transfer rankings, Gwath is the No. 22 transfer portal player in the country, ranking fourth among centers. The class of 2023 recruit was unranked, and due to a foot injury, was redshirted for the 2023-24 season.

With a 7-foot, 205-pound frame, Gwath needs to fill out some to help with his strength. However, he is an elite shot-blocker with good defensive instincts. On the offensive side, he has good vision for his size, which Mark Pope loves, and is comfortable putting the ball on the deck with his face-up game.

With the departure of Amari Williams and Andrew Carr in the frontcourt, the addition of Gwath would be major for the Pope and the Wildcats.

Advertisement

Get familiar with Gwath’s game BBN.

Continue Reading

Trending