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Men's Basketball

UK Kicks on Court: 2018-2019 Season

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It’s no secret that this Kentucky team loved their shoes, and we seen just how superstitious they were it came to them.

Who wouldn’t be, if you played at Kentucky and had access to the newest and most exclusive shoes on the market?

Let’s take a look at some of the best shoes of the season.

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FYI: Most of the custom shoes are done by Billy Hobbs of True Blue Customs, check his work out here.

Tyler Herro Custom Nike Off-White Hyperdunk

The Nike Off-White Hyperdunk is one of the most limited and popular pairs of basketball shoes in several years. Tyler Herro put his “Kentucky/Boy Wonder” spin on it to make it my Kentucky Basketball “Sneaker of the Year”.

Johnny David’s Custom Senior Day Nike Kobe Proto 1

On senior day, Johnny David paid homage to his hometown of Pittsburgh with a custom pair of Kobe Proto 1’s that feature the Pittsburgh Pirates and Pittsburgh Penguins logos.

Tyler Herro Custom KD 10

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Tyler Herro had these shoes custom made for his high school senior night but brought them out again for Big Blue Madness.

Ashton Hagans’ Custom Nike Kobe AD Exodus L’s Down vs UofL

We remember Ashton Hagans throwing the L’s down sign as the clock ticked down in the KFC Yum Center, but he had even better way to troll the Cards. Hagans was prepared to wear this pair of custom Kobe AD’s that featured an “L’s down” on the tongue, said “No Mercy” on the side, and referenced all of Kentucky’s national championship years. However, the officials would not allow Hagans to wear the shoes beyond warmups.

Breast Cancer Awareness

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Pink shoes were seen just about every game this season. Ashton Hagans wore the “Aunt Pearl” KD 11 for many games. Nick Richards wore a Kobe AD custom with “mom is a survivor”. PJ Washington wore a pair of Nike Zoom Rev II TB Promo Kay Yows, in honor of his grandmother, Susie Tucker, who was battling breast cancer earlier in the season.

Keldon Johnson Custom Jordan Why Not Zero.1 “Purge”

Keldon Johnson’s Big Blue Madness entrance included the Purge siren and a Purge mask, and to go along with the Purge them Keldon had these custom shoes made.

Coach Cal 60th Birthday Custom Nike Air Monarch “Dunkin Donuts”

Cal celebrated his 60th birthday back in February and what better way to celebrate than with a custom pair of shoes? True Blue Customs created a custom “Dunkin Donuts” version of the Air Monarch ( aka old dad shoes). The shoe also features Cal’s Dunkin Donuts order with the “1 cream, 1 sugar” on the back of each shoe.

Mrs. Cal Roshe Run

Mrs. Calipari was not forgotten as she was gifted a custom pair to represent Brad Calipari and the Calipari name. ?

“Mismatched” Kyrie 4’s

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I lost count of how many times I was asked, “why are they wearing two different shoes?” This season. The eye-catching shoes are sold in this “mismatched” colorway and they were definitely an early season favorite for the team.

Self-Lacing Nike Adapt

Yes, Nike brought the “Back To the Future” auto-lacing technology to basketball. While they are certainly innovative, the team wasn’t a big fan of them as they only for one half of basketball due to a “loose” feeling.

Nike Kyrie 4

True Blue Customs teamed up with Nike ID and UK Athletics to create these custom Kyrie 4’s for the team.

PJ Washington Family Customs

One thing we’ve learned about PJ Washington is that his family plays a big part in his life. PJ had a custom pair of Kyrie 4’s and KD 10’s made to represent his family on the court.

PJ Washington’s Custom Air Jordan 11

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The Air Jordan 11 is one of the most popular Air Jordan models ever made. You gotta love the Big Blue twist on this custom model made for PJ Washington, that features a #25 on the back.

Nike PG 2.5

Aka the shoe Zion Williamson blew out, this shoe was a Nike player edition exclusive for the Kentucky Wildcats. The shoe was a favorite for Tyler Herro and PJ Washington.

Immanuel Quickley Custom Nike Kyrie 2

Immanuel Quickley rocked these custom Kyrie 2’s at Big Blue Madness. The shoes feature a “U” on the left shoe and a “K” on the right shoe.

Ashton Hagans Air Jordan 18 “Sport Royal”

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The Air Jordan 18 is the final shoe that Michael Jordan wore in his career. While it’s not one of the popular Air Jordan models, Ahston Hagans brought them out for Big Blue Madness.

Ashton Hagans Air Jordan 10 “Orlando”

If you haven’t been able to tell by now, Ashton Hagans is this years Sneaker MVP, and he brought out the Air Jordan 10 in an away game against Georgia.

Nike Kobe AD

This shoe was a favorite for nearly the entire team. This team exclusive version of the Nike Kobe AD featured Kentucky blue and white and the Kentucky logo on the back.

Ashton Hagans KD 4 “Battle Tested”

Is there any doubt about who is the sneaker MVP of this team? Hands down its Ashton Hagans who pulled out a rerealease of the KD 4 from last summer.

Zan Payne Air Jordan 4 Doernbecher aka “Superman”

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Everyone has talked about Brad Calipari’s off the court outfits, but what about Kenny Payne’s son, Zan? Zan sat out all season with a redshirt freshman, but in the UofL game he brought out some heat. The Doernbecher Air Jordan series was, originally released in 2011, is very limited and were designed by Hospital cancer patients. This particular pair was designed by Isaiah Scott a then, 11-year old nicknamed “Superman”.

Nike Lebron 16

THE signature Nike line, the LeBron 16. The LeBron 16 came out back in September and has really only been used by Reid Travis this season, who most likely enjoys the shoe due to his 6-8 240, LeBron like physique.

Men's Basketball

How a Call with Mark Pope Led Denzel Aberdeen to Kentucky

After winning a national title at Florida, Denzel Aberdeen committed to Kentucky without ever visiting campus—thanks to a revealing three-hour call with head coach Mark Pope.

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Chet White | UK Athletics

As a junior, Denzel Aberdeen was a key part of Florida’s national title run. But a certain phone conversation convinced him to leave his home state and head north to Lexington in hopes of experiencing that feeling once again.

He had never set foot in Lexington before deciding to become a Kentucky Wildcat — and he didn’t need to. All it took was one phone call — three hours long, on Easter Sunday — with head coach Mark Pope to convince him that he belonged in blue and white.

“Our phone call lasted about three hours, to be honest,” Aberdeen said, meeting with the media in Lexington for the first time earlier this week. “A lot of it was just getting to know me and getting to know the school, the university, getting to know him (Pope), how their style was, a lot of film. Once I saw that, I was like this looks like a great guy to play for.”

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The two went on to discuss Aberdeen’s role at Kentucky in more depth, including how Pope envisions him fitting into Kentucky’s new system — a system that, according to Aberdeen, is very similar, if not better than the one he just left.

“We had a lot of great players at Florida, especially the tall bigs. Bigs that love to run there, and we have just as much here; our bigs love to run, they play defense, and they play at a fast pace. So I think the things that we’ve got here are just as good, or even better,” Aberdeen said.

Averaging 7.7 points and nearly 20 minutes per game off the bench for the Gators last year, it’s clear to see what Aberdeen brings to the team: experience, versatility, calmness in the backcourt, and championship pedigree. Pope’s phone conversation with Aberdeen wasn’t just impactful on the court — it also speaks volumes to what he is doing off the court in pursuit of the goal he laid out in his introductory press conference: to hang banners.

This phone call wasn’t just about Denzel Aberdeen. It was a glimpse into Pope’s player-first, transparent coaching approach, which could define his era at Kentucky — and potentially make this season a special one, with Aberdeen playing another key role in a deep NCAA Tournament run.

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“I know the goal is to win No. 9,” he said. “I know the fans want that, we want that, all the staff and coaches want that. That pushes us. We know what we gotta do when we come here and put on that Kentucky jersey. Just playing for the University of Kentucky is a big thing. Being here is a blessing, and I can’t look back.”

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Men's Basketball

La Familia’s Lexington Regional Bracket Revealed

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Israel Schill | KY Insider

Kentucky’s alumni team, La Familia, has officially unveiled the bracket for The Basketball Tournament’s (TBT) Lexington Regional.

The No. 1 seeded alumni will face off against Stroh’s Squad (Bowling Green) in the opening round on Friday, July 18 with a late 9:00 p.m. ET tip time.

The Lexington Regional will take place at Memorial Coliseum from July 18-22, where Kentucky will host a plethora of teams looking to grab some gold.

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Familiar teams, such as Eberlein Drive, who former Wildcat Archie Goodwin used to play for and who have been around since the beginning of TBT, will lead the bottom of the bracket. In the second round, Big Blue Nation may see a way-too-early SEC matchup, technically, with the Auburn Tigers’ alumni team, War Ready.

The name is definitely fitting, obviously a play on Auburn’s “War Eagle” call, but as a whole defines the type of play that the TBT unleashes against every competitor.

When asked about who the “alpha dog” will be on this year’s team, someone who is going to be ready to go to war, general manager Twany Beckham admitted he emphasized finding guys like that during the offseason.

“That was one thing, you know when we lost last year, I feel like that Ohio State team, I’m not gonna say punked us because our guys played extremely hard,” said Beckham before head coach Sean Woods budded in and said “they were more physical.”

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“When I sat down after the season was over last year I sad to myself, ‘I want nine to 10 dogs’, and I think we did that with this roster,” Beckham added.

The winner of the Lexington Regional will play the winner of the Louisville Regional in the quarterfinals on Monday, July 28, at 6 p.m. ET on FS1, the team also announced recently.

Below is the entire bracket for the 2025 tournament:

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Men's Basketball

Top Guard Prospect Taylen Kinney Takes Official Visit to Kentucky

Perhaps the most highly touted guard in the 2026-27 class, Taylen Kinney has begun his visit to Kentucky – Mark Pope is on the clock.

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Taylen Kinney takes his official visit to Kentucky.
USA TODAY NETWORK

Directly following his involvement with Mark Pope and Jasper Johnson at the USA U19 basketball camp, Taylen Kinney has taken an official visit to Kentucky.

One of the top guards in the nation, Kinney is a native of Newport, Kentucky. As a result, naturally, both Louisville and Kentucky are in strong pursuit — among pulls on both sides, one potential advantage Kentucky has over their in-state rivals is Kinney’s extensive past ties to the aforementioned Jasper Johnson.

The two blue bloods manned the backcourt together for the Overtime Elite RWE team during the 2024-25 season. With Johnson being the first to pull the trigger in taking on the blue and white, the onus is on Kinney to potentially rekindle the duo’s dominant guard play in a new setting.

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Given Jasper’s potential for multiple years in Lexington, the likelihood that he could impact Kinney’s recruitment is all the more tangible.

The 6-foot-2 floor general stayed firmly put in the 2026-27 class, despite rumors of a reclassification, ranking atop national lists across the board as arguably the best available at his position. And while a timetable for Kinney’s ultimate decision hasn’t yet shaken out, it’s clear that the blue and red rivals each hold a powerful stake in his recruitment.

Regardless of the rumors, if Mark Pope gets a guy on campus, there’s a solid shot the Cats can capitalize on a commitment. When one battle ends for Kentucky’s staff, the next begins — if nothing else, it’s clear that the team has already started working towards as solid a roster next season as they put together for the one that’s about to begin.

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