Former Kentucky players Hagans, Montgomery, Sestina, Whitney undrafted

Three former Kentucky stars heard their name called on 2020 NBA Draft night. Four did not.

Ashton Hagans, EJ Montgomery, Nate Sestina and Kahlil Whitney went undrafted Wednesday.

Three ex-Cats were selected: Tyrese Maxey (21st to the Philadelphia 76ers), Immanuel Quickley (25th to the Oklahoma City Thunder, then reportedly traded to the New York Knicks) and Nick Richards (42nd to the New Orleans Pelicans, then reportedly traded to the Charlotte Hornets).

The top options for Hagans, Montgomery, Sestina and Whitney are seeking a free agent deal for an NBA team’s training camp, playing in the NBA G League if the coronavirus pandemic doesn’t cancel its season, or playing professionally in another country.

Hagans has already reportedly agreed to a two-way NBA/G League deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Sestina previously signed with a team in Russia.

Hagans

Hagans averaged 11.5 points, 6.4 assists and 3.9 rebounds during his sophomore season in Lexington. He shot 40.4 percent from the field and 25.8 percent from three-point range.

Hagans has spent his offseason working out at Impact, a training center in Las Vegas.

His trainer, Joe Abunassar, said those workouts have been “amazing.”

“One of the things we really work on here is slowing down. … He’s so intense,” Abunassar said. “I think from an offensive perspective, maybe over-penetrate a little bit. Once we slowed him down and got him to just take his time, it made a huge difference.”

Abunassar said Hagans compares well to Avery Bradley and Tony Allen, two backcourt defenders who played (Allen) or are playing (Bradley) NBA careers of more than 10 seasons.

“Very good defender who’s offensive game got better and better as he matured in the league,” Abunassar said of Bradley. “Avery is a guy Ashton can play a lot like.”

Montgomery

Montgomery declared he was going pro after two seasons at UK. He averaged 6.1 points and 5.4 rebounds as a sophomore after posting 3.8 points and 4.1 rebounds as a freshman.

“At 6-10 with perimeter skills, athleticism and an ability to block shots, someone is going to get a big-time prospect with EJ,” UK Coach John Calipari said when Montgomery announced he was leaving UK. “His skill set is where the game is going. EJ has always had those tools, but what I’m so proud of is how he progressed, not only through his two seasons here but especially the last month of the season.”

Whitney

Whitney left the team in the middle of his freshman season. He announced his departure from the Cats on Jan. 24 after playing just 12.8 minutes per game while averaging 3.3 points and 1.7 rebounds.

According to a recent report on Forbes.com, Whitney considered transferring to Michigan or Illinois but the ongoing coronavirus pandemic led him to opt for the draft instead.

“I would say just the overall fit for my game (wasn’t there),” Whitney told Forbes.com about his time at UK. “Coach Cal played a smaller lineup with three guards and that just hurt my (playing) time a lot and I could never catch a good rhythm and get comfortable. I was playing not to make mistakes, and in basketball you can’t do that.”

When Whitney announced he was leaving UK, Calipari lamented that he would no longer get to coach him.

“This is tough for me because Kahlil is a tremendous person who is going to do great things,” Calipari said, according to a news release by the school. “I certainly don’t want to see him go because I wanted to continue to coach him, but I understand his decision and, as we always do here, will support him in whatever way we can. ...

“I hope he goes on and does his thing and makes us all proud.”

Sestina

Sestina transferred to UK after spending most of his career at Bucknell.

Even though he went undrafted, Sestina already knows his pro future. In September, he signed to play in Russia for Nizhny Novgorod.

“I’m super excited about it,” Sestina told the Herald-Leader shortly after that announcement. “It’s an opportunity to really kick-start my professional career, and hopefully turn it into a long, prosperous one.”

Sestina averaged 5.8 points and 3.8 rebounds during his lone season in Lexington. That came after he averaged 15.8 points and 8.5 rebounds the prior season at Bucknell.

This story was originally published November 19, 2020 at 12:28 AM.