Top assistant on Mark Pope’s coaching staff will not return for 2026-27 season
Another member of Mark Pope’s coaching staff has confirmed that he will not be with the Kentucky men’s basketball team for the 2026-27 season.
Alvin Brooks III, who spent the past two years as UK’s associate head coach — making him the top assistant on Pope’s staff — posted a message on his Instagram account Saturday afternoon thanking Pope, UK athletics director Mitch Barnhart and UK President Eli Capilouto for his time in Lexington.
Brooks, 46, signed a two-year deal when he was hired in April 2024, and that contract was set to expire this summer. He made $825,000 during the 2025-26 season.
“My family and I truly enjoyed our time in Lexington — relationships that will last a lifetime,” Brooks wrote in his post. “Grateful for the players, staff, and everyone who poured into us over the past two years. We trust God’s plan and are looking forward to what He has in store next.”
Pope will be looking for at least two new assistant coaches this offseason.
Earlier in the week, Kentucky lost Jason Hart, who will be the associate head coach at SMU next season. Hart is rejoining head coach Andy Enfield, under whom he worked for eight seasons at Southern Cal earlier in his career.
Brooks has not announced where he’ll be headed next. He was at Baylor for eight seasons before coming to Kentucky, and he had the title of associate head coach under Scott Drew there. The Bears won the NCAA title in 2021 with Brooks on staff, and Drew was Barnhart’s first target to be Kentucky’s head coach after John Calipari left for Arkansas two years ago.
Baylor finished with a 16-16 record and 6-12 mark in the Big 12 this season. It was the first time in eight years the Bears failed to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.
Brooks had the reputation as one of the best recruiters in college basketball when he joined Pope’s staff in 2024, but Kentucky has struggled mightily with high school recruiting so far during the Pope era.
UK had no commitments from the 2026 class until Friday, when four-star point guard Mason Williams committed to the Cats. Kentucky is still in the running for No. 1 overall recruit Tyran Stokes, but most of Pope’s roster additions for next season are expected to come from the transfer portal.
Changes to Pope’s coaching staff were expected after UK finished with a 22-14 record during a 2025-26 season that fell well short of expectations. The Cats lost to Iowa State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Both Brooks and Hart were on expiring contracts after signing two-year deals in 2024.
UK assistant coaches Cody Fueger and Mark Fox are also on contracts that expire this offseason. Mikhail McLean is the only member of Pope’s staff who is signed through the 2026-27 season.
Pope has already added to his staff this offseason, too, bringing in Keegan Brown as the team’s director of roster management. Brown, who worked for Pope in all five of his seasons as BYU’s head coach, will help the UK staff with identifying potential roster additions moving forward.
Kentucky will have at least two assistant coaching positions to fill this offseason, however. The NCAA transfer portal opens April 7, and players have already started announcing their intentions to switch schools when that date comes.
Jaland Lowe became the first UK player to do so Saturday, and the Cats are expected to add a few players from the portal this offseason.
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This story was originally published March 28, 2026 at 3:50 PM.
