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Matt Jones Shares Positive Kentucky Basketball Update, There is a “New Energy”

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Reed Sheppard and Antonio Reeves celebrating Kentucky's gold medal win at GLOBL JAM
UK Athletics

Like many fans in recent years, Matt Jones and Kentucky Sports Radio (KSR) have been critical of John Calipari and the Kentucky men’s basketball program. Considering that Kentucky has only won just one NCAA Tournament game in the last three seasons, the results do warrant criticism.

Jones has never shied away from expressing exactly how he feels regarding the Cats, during the good times and the bad times too. On July 26th’s edition of KSR, Matt Jones revisited what he calls “The State of UK Basketball Conversation”.

In early June, he talked about how Kentucky basketball was in “disarray”.

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Originally, Jones had three primary reasons for why UK basketball was in bad shape:

  1. A lot of people within the program had “taken things for granted and maybe weren’t doing a lot of the work that needed to happen”.
  2. UK was behind in terms of their style of play.
  3. John Calipari “ruined, or at least let go stale” relationships, which hurt the program.

Amidst the positive momentum following GLOBL JAM, Jones’ tone has flipped, and he says there is a “new energy” within the program, giving some credit to the incoming freshmen.

“I think a lot of these freshmen have great mentalities and sort of have excited even the older guys and some of that fun,” Jones said. “That has been so characteristic of Cal’s program for so many years. It’s kind of back and there’s a new energy.”

“I’ve been told they’ve kind of turned around that there’s a new energy in that building, built in part by the new coaches, but in part by the new players who have come in with a lot of energy, and a lot of those things are better now.”

That “new energy” has included subsequent offseason changes, which are already making a difference.

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NIL Wake Up Call

One of the more significant changes is with NIL. After missing out on two transfers they had prioritized, multiple players to the second round of the NBA Draft (or even undrafted), and potentially Antonio Reeves to the transfer portal, John Calipari was hit with a reality check.

Calipari has often told players, “Don’t be tripping over nickels on the way to the NBA.” While that philosophy works for top recruits with the potential to make $10+ million annually in the NBA, it has not proven to be as effective on players below that.

To change that, Calipari launched “The La Familia Club” which others have called a “non collective, collective”.

Starting to be organized back in January, The La Familia Club is an annual investment from former players and boosters, to provide a way to pay student-athletes beyond traditional marketing avenues. It is estimated to raise more than double any other program’s collective.

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Jones credits La Familia for the return of Antonio Reeves and the landing of Tre Mitchell from the transfer portal, which based on their play at GLOBL JAM, will prove valuable this season.

Taking an Approach to Modern Basketball

Alongside the criticism of Kentucky’s postseason results, has been the criticism of John Calipari’s offense, specifically the lack of spacing and shot selection.

If you look at a shot chart in the NBA, 90 percent of a team’s shots will be taken in the paint or from three. That is due to analytics proving those are the two best shots on the floor.

That has not been the case for Kentucky, as they have been amongst the top in mid-range jumpers taken. Last season, Calipari even went as far as saying that the mid-range shot is one they play to get, following a game where more than half of Kentucky’s shots were from mid-range.

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Summer practice reports have revealed that Calipari has somewhat gone away from that philosophy and even wanting to “eliminate long twos”. During the Wildcats’ trip to Canada for GLOBL JAM, that was evident.

In Kentucky’s first outing against Team Germany, the Wildcats shot just two long two-point shots, and just 8 of the Wildcats’ 74 total shots were mid-range jumpers. Looking at the shot chart, there was a clear focus on shots at the rim or from three.

Jones cites the hirings of John Welch and Chuck Martin as potential catalysts for this. While that could be the case, Calipari also has a roster that can play this style for the first time in a while.

Even Calipari himself said he wants this year’s team to shoot “27 threes a game”. Clearly, Calipari has had a shift in his basketball philosophy.

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Time will tell how these changes will help the program make a deep run, but there is a lot of positive momentum in Kentucky’s favor. Just look at this tweet (aka “X” now). John Calipari wearing shades, the team hanging out at Drake’s house, the caption.

Men's Basketball

Milan Momcilovic and Malachi Moreno Earn Conference Preseason Honors

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Photo via Chet White | UK Athletics

On Monday, Oct. 12, Kentucky’s Milan Momcilovic and Malachi Moreno both earned All-SEC preseason honors, with the Iowa State transfer selected to the Preseason All-SEC Second Team and the returning sophomore selected to the Preseason All-SEC Third Team.

Momcilovic is entering his senior season with the Wildcats, looking to follow up his junior campaign after reigning as the undisputed best shooter in college basketball. He averaged 16.9 points per game last year, with his shooting splits reading 50.6/48.7/87.8.

Leading the Cyclones to a No. 2 seed and being selected to All-Big 12 Second Team, it’s safe to say that this isn’t the first time that Momcilovic has been left off of the top list, making the Kentucky superstar hungry to prove the haters wrong on a much larger stage.

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Moreno is returning for his sophomore season after earning All-SEC Freshman Team honors last year, looking to show the Big Blue Nation everything he learned throughout the draft process and that he has changed this summer.

The Kentucky native was thrown into the fire, earning 30 unexpected starts for the Wildcats. He developed as the season went on, ending the 2025-26 campaign averaging 7.8 points per game and 6.3 rebounds per game.

With both Momcilovic and Moreno as staple players on this year’s roster, the SEC has slated Mark Pope’s team to finish seventh in the conference this season, finishing behind Florida, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama and Vanderbilt.

The full lists of the All-SEC Teams can be found below:

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First Team

  • Rueben Chinyelu (Florida)
  • Juke Harris (Tennessee)
  • Thomas Haugh (Florida)
  • Josh Hubbard (Mississippi State)
  • Tyler Tanner (Vanderbilt)

Second Team

  • Amari Allen (Alabama)
  • Alex Condon (Florida)
  • Milan Momcilovic (Kentucky)
  • Jordan Smith Jr. (Arkansas)
  • Matas Vokietaitis (Texas)

Third Team

  • PJ Haggerty (Texas A&M)
  • Malachi Moreno (Kentucky)
  • Tahaad Pettiford (Auburn)
  • David Punch (Texas)
  • Billy Richmond III (Arkansas)

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Men's Basketball

Otega Oweh Shows Flashes in First NBA Preseason Appearances

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Photo via Getty Images

Former Kentucky standout Otega Oweh took another step in his basketball career on Tuesday night, making his NBA preseason debut with the Oklahoma City Thunder and taking on the New Orleans Pelicans.

Oweh came off of the bench and played 28 minutes, finishing with six points, six rebounds, two steals, one block and an assist. The former Wildcat struggled offensively, shooting only 3-of-9 from the field and missing all four of his free throw attempts.

Despite the shooting struggles, Oweh showed flashes of his defensive ability and physicality that made him a fan favorite during his two seasons in Lexington.

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The Pelicans escaped with a 116-110 win, leaving the Thunder with a 0-1 record. The next night wouldn’t draw a different result, with Oweh’s team losing by two and only playing the beloved superstar a total of 16 minutes.

Due to foul trouble, this would be the only minutes he would receive, ending the game with two points on three shots.

Oweh was selected with the 41st overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft by the Thunder after averaging 18.6 points per game during his senior season at Kentucky, joining former Wildcats Cason Wallace and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Although his preseason debut wasn’t the offensive performance he might have hoped for, Oweh will have more than enough opportunities to prove himself as he looks to earn a role in a professional rotation.

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Men's Basketball

Kentucky Competes at Annual Pro Day Inside of Rupp Arena

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Photo via Marissa Gilchrist | UK Athletics

Kentucky held its annual Pro Day on Tuesday, Oct. 6, where NBA scouts were able to watch the team go through individual drills and a live game-like scrimmage. There are plenty of takeaways that stood out during the two hour practice. Let’s dive into it:

1.) Franck Kepnang Shows Off in the Paint

The first thing that stood out was transfer big man Franck Kepnang, with the seven-foot big from Washington dominating in the paint. Starting with the individual drills, he showed his size and ability to get downhill off of a pick-and-roll.

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The bigs went through a finishing through contact drill, and the new Wildcat seemed unfazed by the pads being pounded against him. With Moreno and Kepnang running the paint together, it will make it very difficult for opposing teams to stop both of them.

2.) Ousmane N’Diaye Has High-Scoring Performance

Overseas big Ousmane N’Diaye was another standout in front of the NBA scouts. In the first six-minute “quarter”, N’Diaye led all scorers with eight points.

He showed off his ability to score at all three levels, hitting multiple threes and also demonstrating his ability to score in the paint. N’Diaye wasn’t playing the five spot, which really allowed his team to stretch the floor and help with spacing.

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With Moreno, Kepnang, N’Diaye and Reece Potter all standing at seven-feet tall, Mark Pope has the opportunity to run a four-big lineup all while each player hones a different skillset. Having this much size will pay dividends come time for conference play.

3. The Forwards Do a Little Bit of Everything

A few other players who performed well were Milan Momcilovic and Braydon Hawthorne. Momcilovic played very unselfish during the inter-squad scrimmage, looking to first get his teammates involved and not forcing his game whatsoever.

He did hit a nice step-back 3-pointer at the buzzer in the second “quarter”, highlighting his 10-point performance. Hawthorne had some great looks from beyond the arc and did a phenomenal job getting his teammates open, driving and distributing the rock.

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He finished with six points and one assist.

Overall, the whole team appeared molded together and played as a unit rather than just isolation ball, which is a great sign in early October. There is no shortage of individual talent on this roster, and that was evident on Tuesday, with leaders and experience at every position.

The wait is almost over BBN. Kentucky will take the court in its first exhibition game on Friday, Oct. 16, when Little Rock comes into town. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET and will air live on SEC Network+.

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