Men's Basketball

Practice Report: October 11th, 2021

Published

4 years ago

October 12, 2021

Photos by Chet White | UK Athletics

Yesterday, the media, NBA scouts, and Dominique Hawkins had the opportunity to take a closer look at the 2021-22 Kentucky basketball team (just wanted to clarify since we are a football school now). My first impression, I seen a better basketball product yesterday than at nearly any time last season, with the exception of the Florida/Keion return game.

Let’s take a dive into yesterday’s practice.

Injuries

The most notable news from yesterday’s practice was Sahvir Wheeler’s injury.

Towards the end of practice, transfer guard Sahvir Wheeler suffered a left ankle injury. While the severity of the injury has yet to be announced, Wheeler was helped to the bench, not putting any weight on the ankle/leg initially. Later, he was helped to the locker room, putting minimal weight on the ankle but walking with the help of others.

Lance Ware did participate in Sunday’s UK Pro-Day, but yesterday Ware only took part in pre-practice shoot-around, not in any part of practice.

CJ Frederick and Jacob Toppin participated in parts of practice, but were limited as they did not participate in any contact drills.

Daimion Collins

A five-star McDonald’s All-American coming out of high school, Collins is a freakishly long and bouncy big man. With that being said, temper your expectations.

Collins has the tools to be a great player and while I believe he will make an impact, especially with his 7’5 wingspan (third-longest in the Cal era and just 3/4 in. shorter than Anthony Davis), I do not anticipate for it to be soon.

Collins seemed to play a bit timid in practice, which will improve as he puts on more muscle, but more worrisom was seeing his thought process with some defensive rotations. The positive part, this can be corrected with good coaching and we have some of the best.

Shooting and A Rejuvenated Offense

I know it’s just a practice and we have heard it from Calipari a hundred times in the past, but this team can shoot the ball.

Kellen Grady, Dontaie Allen, Davion Mintz, CJ Frederick, and TyTy Washigton. That is a list of five consistent perimeter threats on this team and that is something that no other team in the Calipari era has ever heard. With that being said, that list doesn’t include the perimeter threats in the frontcourt.

In terms of the frouncourt shooting, don’t expect Tshiebwe and Collins to contribute much in that category, but Bryce Hopkins, Keion Brooks, and Jacob Toppin were shooting with confidence. At one point, Hopkins made 18 of 20 threes in the five-minute shooting drill.

Leadership

This is undoubtedly the most experienced team Cal has had at his time at Kentucky and there are several players that could fit the role of leader. The three that stood out today were TyTy Washington, Keion Brooks, and Bryce Hopkins. They were the first ones to pick up their teammates.

That’s not to mention Sahvir Wheeler and Kellen Grady who had leadership roles with their previous teams and are capable of being leaders in their own right.

With so many players with leadership skills, I expect this team to hold each other accountable to a level we have not seen before with Cal. Furthermore, If one player is having a bad night, it is good to know that we have others that can lead and pick the team up.

Other Notes

I am not sure if Coach Rob Strong or Sahvir Wheeler was the shortest man on the court.

Spurs’ scout was very old fashioned, as he was the only scout evalutaing the players with pen and paper only on the sideline for practice today.

The football team is the focus of the Commonwealth at the moment, but basketball season and the Kentucky Revenge Tour is just under a month away as the Cats will play Duke on Nov. 9th.

Men's Basketball

CBS Sports: Kentucky Has “ended pursuits” in Transfer Portal Following Aberdeen Commitment

In the wake of yet another addition to Kentucky’s incoming roster, CBS Sports reports that Coach Pope and staff may have closed the portal.

Published

1 day ago

April 23, 2025

Lane Mills

Mark Pope and staff may have everything they need from the transfer portal.

Chet White | UK Athletics

Following another flurry of transfer portal additions in his second year at the helm, it appears that Mark Pope and staff are satisfied with their sophomore haul. The portal in Lexington may be officially closed for the 2025-26′ season.

Right after Kentucky received the surprising commitment of Denzel Aberdeen, Matt Norlander, an analyst for CBS Sports, posted the following on X (Twitter):

“Barring any portal defections, Kentucky has ended its pursuits of all other portal targets, sources told CBS Sports. Getting Aberdeen today [April 21] meant they’ve moved off Andrej Stojakovic, Rylan Griffen, etc. Otega Oweh going through pre-draft process-but I expect him back in Lex”.

With the addition of Aberdeen, the Wildcats’ roster ballooned to near-max capacity for next season. Seeing two of the team’s walk-on players, Grant Darbyshire and Walker Horn, enter the transfer portal seemed to all but confirm this suspicion, too.

Losing One of Our Own

That is, until last night. With less than two hours remaining for players to do so, Travis Perry shocked much of the Big Blue Nation by throwing his name into the hat. This came just weeks after a string of comments from the Kentucky-native point guard seemed to confirm his return for a sophomore season.

Though all the same, given Kentucky’s bulk of back-court additions this offseason, his departure makes sense for the sake of playing time alone. The Lyon King will be sorely missed.

So while the Kentucky staff may still be very much content with their current roster, with hundreds of players remaining in the portal and an unexpected spot on the roster coming open, another grab is far from out of the question.

Who Coach Pope and company would go after is entirely unclear, as that potential player would likely have to accept a minimized role off the bench for a stretch of his time in Lexington. If anything, the logical replacement would be a direct fill-in at the PG2/PG3 spot in Perry’s absence.

Either way, the ‘Cats are set to come into next season as one of the most exciting teams in college basketball with a ceiling far out of view. Mark Pope continues to prove his prowess in the transfer market, too, easing the worries of Wildcats fans and closing the door on many supposed “insiders” who’ve spent the last month suggesting otherwise.

Men's Basketball

REPORT: Travis Perry Enters Transfer Portal

Published

2 days ago

April 22, 2025

Tristan Pharis

Kentucky basketball Travis Perry talks about growing more comfortable on the court.

Jordan Prather | IMAGN

The transfer portal has been kind to Kentucky in the Mark Pope era. Last season, the staff was able to build a Sweet Sixteen roster almost exclusively from the portal, and this offseason have put together a top-five portal class.

While the portal giveth, it also taketh. Just hours before the deadline to enter, Kentucky native and fan favorite Travis Perry has entered the transfer portal, per multiple reports.

Coming to Kentucky as the state’s all-time high-school scoring record holder, fans were excited to see how his career would unfold in Lexington.

Not expecting to play much freshman, he was called upon due to injuries and played some key minutes for the Wildcats into the postseason. He averaged 2.7 PPG and .6 APG on 32% shooting from three.

Looking at the depth chart, it was difficult to see where Perry would get much playing time next season, leading to his decision to enter the portal.

Perry has yet to release an official statement, but all the best to him in his future.

Men's Basketball

Top Transfer Guard Denzel Aberdeen Commits to Kentucky

Former Florida guard Denzel Aberdeen commits to Kentucky, likely closing the transfer portal for next year’s roster.

Published

2 days ago

April 22, 2025

Lane Mills

UF Athletics

Another day, another “boom.” Denzel Aberdeen has officially committed to Kentucky for the 2025-26’ season.

A soon-to-be senior guard fresh off his championship win with Florida, Aberdeen spent his first three years of eligibility in Gainesville. Now, following an apparent conflict in the Gators’ rotation, he’s swapped teams in the southeast.

At 6 ‘5”, 190, Aberdeen spent much of this past season beating defenders off the dribble and making them pay at the rim. His speed and size made him a nightmare off the bench for opposing teams, and for the short stretch of play that he started during the year, Florida didn’t miss a beat.

In 19 minutes, Aberdeen averaged 8 points, two rebounds and one assist per game. His consistent contribution to the Gators’ title run made him one of the most coveted transfers in the cycle this season, and given his big blue commitment just days after entering the portal, Mark Pope clearly wasted no time in Kentucky’s pursuit.

Aberdeen slots in as yet another addition to what was already one of the strongest portal classes going into next season. His SEC experience and combo-guard intangibles make Aberdeen one of the most exciting portal players to come through Lexington in a long while, reinforcing Kentucky’s back court to what may be the final degree.

Whether or not Mark Pope is officially done for next season, nobody is sure, but this commitment only further cements the fact that he knows exactly what he’s doing. Just like the fanbase behind him, Coach Pope seems to never sleep.