Tracking Kentucky basketball roster moves 2.0: Two more players hit the transfer portal
It’s now been more than a month since Kentucky’s 2022-23 basketball season ended in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, and there’s still much to be sorted out regarding what the Wildcats’ roster will look like by the time the 2023-24 season begins.
While some decisions have been made, others remain up in the air, and it appears that John Calipari (and UK fans) won’t get total closure on the stay-or-go deliberations of this past season’s Cats for another few weeks.
Here’s a look at the latest developments as Calipari sorts out next season’s roster.
Coming back
Ugonna Onyenso: A promising center prospect who showed flashes of elite shot-blocking ability, Onyenso was briefly in the transfer portal before confirming that he would come back to Kentucky for a second year. Onyenso made it clear last month that he wanted to remain in Lexington, and Calipari has said he’s looking forward to having him back. The 6-foot-11 post player projects as a possibly elite defender at the college level and has been working on his offensive game. He could be a major factor on UK’s 2023-24 season.
Brennan Canada: The veteran walk-on from Mount Sterling was the first Wildcat to confirm that he would be coming back for next season. Canada, who was put on scholarship midway through the 2022-23 season and has long been an important practice player for UK, has already graduated from the university and will take his fifth year of eligibility, granted by the NCAA to all athletes who competed during the COVID-impacted 2020-21 season.
Leaving Kentucky
Jacob Toppin: After spending three seasons at UK — and emerging as one of the Cats’ key players as a senior in 2022-23 — Toppin has declared for the NBA Draft and will not use his final year of college eligibility. He’s not projected as a 2023 draft pick, but he’s likely to get a long look from pro scouts and should have plenty of chances to make his way onto a roster.
Cason Wallace: The top-ranked recruit in Kentucky’s 2022 class became the team’s starting point guard midway through the season and was one of the Wildcats’ driving forces, despite playing through injuries for much of his freshman year. He will forgo his final three seasons of college eligibility and is projected as a lottery pick in this year’s NBA Draft.
Sahvir Wheeler: The Southeastern Conference’s two-time leader in assists per game was leading that stat once again this season before missing the final 11 games of the 2022-23 campaign due to injuries. He announced his intention to transfer a few days after the end of UK’s season. Wheeler has already switched schools once in his college career (coming to Kentucky from Georgia two years ago) but will be immediately eligible next season as a grad transfer.
CJ Fredrick: The senior guard from Cincinnati has announced that he will enter the transfer portal and explore all of his options, including the possibility of a professional career, before next season. Fredrick has already spent five years in college — two completely lost to injury, the other three hampered by injuries. He turns 24 this summer, and it sounds like he’ll end up sticking in college and playing next season elsewhere. If he can stay healthy, his three-point shooting ability — 39.6 percent before a finger injury at UK in December; 46.6 percent in two years at Iowa — would be a big addition for another college program.
Daimion Collins: The former McDonald’s All-American played only 7.9 minutes over 25 games this past season following the unexpected death of his father a few days before Kentucky’s opener. Collins still possesses a ton of upside and has talked about the support system he’s found in Lexington, though he has entered the transfer portal and is likely to finish his college career closer to his family in Texas.
Testing the NBA Draft
Oscar Tshiebwe: UK’s leading scorer — and the nation’s leading rebounder — over the past two seasons has announced that he will enter the NBA Draft while leaving open his option to return to college for one more season. When UK’s 2022-23 campaign ended last month, it seemed a long shot that he would be back in Lexington for another year, but the chances of a return have increased since then. At this point, it’s looking like there’s a less than 50-percent chance that he gets drafted in 2023, and one more season at UK would bring a lucrative haul via name, image and likeness endeavors, as well as offer Tshiebwe a chance to further prove himself to pro scouts, especially on the defensive end. This decision could still go either way, though Kentucky is operating under the assumption that Tshiebwe will ultimately keep his name in the draft.
Antonio Reeves: Kentucky’s leading backcourt scorer from last season has already declared for the 2023 NBA Draft, but he’s also leaving his options open and a return to Lexington is still possible. At this time, it seems likely that Reeves would make more money through NIL opportunities at UK next season than wherever he’d play pro ball, and that ultimately will be a major factor in his decision. Before his dreadful finish to his first year at Kentucky — that 1-for-15 performance against Kansas State — the senior guard was a 41.4 percent three-point shooter and had emerged as a catalyst for UK’s offense. His return would be a big boost to the Cats’ scoring ability for the 2023-24 campaign, and — unless he gets some kind of guarantee from an NBA team — coming back to Lexington could be the most likely outcome.
Chris Livingston: The wait will continue for a player who could play a major part in Kentucky’s 2023-24 season if he chooses to return. Livingston has declared for the NBA Draft but is leaving open the option to come back to Lexington for another year. He was a starter at UK as a freshman this past season, and — while he was a supporting player in year one — he’d likely play a much larger role in a potential second season with the Wildcats.
Waiting for a decision
Lance Ware: A three-year reserve forward, Ware was named a team captain by Calipari before the start of the NCAA Tournament and has been well-liked and respected by both his teammates and the Kentucky coaches. He’s expected to return for a fourth season in Lexington, but no announcement has been made yet.
Adou Thiero: A late addition to the 2022 recruiting class, Thiero — a still-growing, 6-6 wing — played more than many expected in year one and could see an expanded role as his game continues to develop going into his sophomore season of college basketball. He, too, is expected to be back at Kentucky for the 2023-24 season.
UK’s new recruits
Aaron Bradshaw: Few, if any, recruits in the 2023 class have as much long-term potential as Bradshaw, a versatile 7-footer who will come to Kentucky as a high-upside rim-protector and intriguing offensive prospect with an ability to stretch the floor with his jump shot. He still needs to gain strength in the post — and continue to develop his overall skill set — but he’ll likely be counted on to make a major impact as a college freshman.
Robert Dillingham: One of the top perimeter scorers in the class, Dillingham is a small (6-1ish) but electric offensive player who can score from all three levels and create for himself. There has been talk in recruiting circles that the North Carolina native might not make it to UK’s campus — he’s bounced around quite a bit throughout his prep career — but as of now he’s still fully expected to be in Lexington starting this summer.
Justin Edwards: A versatile, high-IQ small forward, Edwards should make an immediate impact on both sides of the court for Kentucky, and his talent floor as a college freshman is about as high as anyone’s in the 2023 class. He can score when needed, projects as a solid wing defender and has shown the willingness to be an unselfish player capable of sharing the spotlight with other potential stars. A recent 2024 NBA mock draft from ESPN projected Edwards at No. 4 overall.
Reed Sheppard: Kentucky’s Mr. Basketball and one of the most highly touted in-state recruits in recent memory, Sheppard is a 6-3 guard who can play on or off the ball and has proven himself as a solid scorer, passer and team-oriented defender against top competition in the 2023 class. He’s the lowest-ranked prospect in UK’s No. 1-rated class, though he’s still at No. 30 overall in the 247Sports composite. He should be able to give UK some meaningful minutes right off the bat.
DJ Wagner: The MVP of last month’s McDonald’s All-American Game will come to Kentucky with sky-high expectations. Wagner has spent most of his high school career as the No. 1-ranked player in his class and will end up at or near the top of the final 2023 ratings. He’s a dynamic combo guard who is expected to be UK’s starting point guard from day one, and — depending on how the Cats’ final roster looks — there’s a good chance Wagner will be leaned on as the driving force of UK’s team. ESPN already projects him as the No. 7 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.
The transfer portal
By the end of last week, the transfer portal was nearing 1,500 names.
That’s a lot to sort through, and college basketball players looking to find a new home actually have another month to join the portal and start talking to other schools. The window for players to enter their names in the portal closes May 11, though there is no hard deadline for transfers to make a final decision. So, some of these recruitments could stretch well into the spring.
Kentucky has already been linked to a number of possible additions — No. 1-ranked transfer Hunter Dickinson, among them — but UK is obviously still trying to figure out who will return from this past season’s roster, and there’s not a tremendous sense of urgency to close in on commitments right away with hundreds of additional players expected to join the portal in the coming weeks.
Depending on which current Wildcats do come back, UK could end up with several different areas of need for next season.
Dickinson — an All-America-caliber center with three seasons of experience at Michigan — has received the most buzz so far, and he has already planned an official visit to Kentucky after multiple meetings with Calipari.
This story was originally published April 10, 2023 at 6:30 AM.
