Kentucky needs players from the portal. These are now the most intriguing options
Kentucky landed its first player out of the college basketball transfer portal with a commitment from Washington point guard Zoom Diallo on Wednesday afternoon.
That’s a great start for the Wildcats, but they’ll need a lot more to fill out the 2026-27 roster.
Mark Pope is still pursuing No. 1-ranked high school recruit Tyran Stokes, who could bring some star power to UK’s program next season, though — whatever happens with that recruitment — the Cats will have to secure a few more players from the portal, too.
That process could stretch out for several more weeks, with big-name players like Iowa State’s Milan Momcilovic and Santa Clara’s Allen Graves expected to go through the NBA draft process before making any concrete decisions on their basketball futures. The deadline to withdraw from the 2026 draft and retain college eligibility is May 27.
The transfer portal will also remain open for new entries until Tuesday night, so there’s a good chance that some other star-level players could jump in over the next few days. With UK still searching for at least a couple of starter-level additions and in need of even more talent to fill out its 2026-27 rotation, the Cats’ coaching staff is monitoring portal activity closely.
The list of Kentucky targets is an evolving one, but these are the most intriguing, realistic transfer options on the Wildcats’ board heading into what should be another busy weekend.
Donnie Freeman
Current school: Syracuse
Last season: 16.5 ppg, 7.2 rpg
247Sports ranking: No. 15 overall (No. 6 PF)
Status report: Freeman arrived on UK’s campus Tuesday, making him the third portal visitor — and first non-point guard — to see Lexington during this cycle. Kentucky’s staff moved quickly to make Freeman feel like one of its top priorities in this transfer class as the Cats look for a starting 4 to pair with Malchi Moreno, who is testing the draft process but expected to return to Lexington.
Freeman doesn’t have great numbers from the perimeter — 30.2% on 86 attempts in 23 games last season — but he shoots and makes enough from deep to keep defenses honest, and he could also improve from long range with more space to work with in his junior season. He is a 77.5% free throw shooter for his college career.
The 6-9, 205-pound forward does boast elite athleticism and looks to be one of the best rebounders in the transfer portal. He was top 25 in defensive rebounding rate among all high-major players last season. Freeman is also a former McDonald’s All-American with untapped potential that makes him an NBA draft possibility down the road.
There’s a UK connection here: assistant coach Mikhail McLean worked with him during his time on the Bahamas national team staff, and he’d be his position coach in Lexington. UConn’s Dan Hurley made Freeman a top target early in this cycle, but Alabama might now be the Cats’ top competition.
Freeman has dealt with injury issues over his first two seasons in college. He played only 14 games as a freshman due to a foot injury and missed nine more games this past season with another injury to the same foot — a Syracuse spokesman said the two injuries were unrelated — before returning to play the entire ACC schedule.
Alex Wilkins
Current school: Furman
Last season: 17.8 ppg, 4.7 apg
247Sports ranking: No. 41 overall (No. 7 combo guard)
Status report: One of the most intriguing mid-major players in the portal, Wilkins carried Furman to an NCAA Tournament appearance as a freshman and scored 21 points with four assists to help the Paladins give eventual national runner-up UConn a scare in the first round of March Madness last month.
The 6-5 guard from Massachusetts shot 32.8% on 198 3-point attempts last season, but he appears to be a legitimate threat to improve greatly on those numbers. Wilkins was the focal point of opposing defenses, and his numbers on open looks and catch-and-shoot 3s show signs of “knockdown shooter” potential. He went 15 for 30 from deep over Furman’s final five games, including a 4-for-8 showing against UConn.
Wilkins is also a willing and potentially elite passer, with nice vision and an assist rate that ranked top 40 nationally last season (top 10 among players whose teams made the NCAA Tournament). Again, he did that as a freshman, and with Pope making it clear he wants as many “creators” as possible on the 2026-27 roster, Wilkins looks like a good fit for Kentucky’s desired approach offensively going into next season.
As a starter-level player with some positional flexibility and a profile that shows room for considerable growth, Wilkins is drawing interest from across the high-major spectrum. And he’s visiting Lexington this week.
DeSean Goode
Current school: Robert Morris
Last season: 15.2 ppg, 8.7 rpg
247Sports ranking: No. 71 overall (No. 18 PF)
Status report: There hasn’t been a lot of UK buzz surrounding Goode in recent days, though he has had contact with the Wildcats’ coaching staff and — as of Friday morning, at least — didn’t seem to be a lock to commit elsewhere.
The 6-8, 230-pound forward from Fairmont, West Virginia, has one of the most intriguing skill sets in the portal. He won’t wow anyone with his quickness or athleticism, but he uses his body in smart ways to create space and scoring opportunities.
Goode earned Horizon League Player of the Year honors as a sophomore this past season and was an all-freshman selection in the league while playing for IU Indy the year before that. He shot a staggering 57.1% from 3-point range — albeit on just 63 attempts — for Robert Morris and was efficient as a scorer from all over the floor.
It appears that he will be playing for a major program next season, and it’ll be interesting to see what he does in that environment, especially if he finds a college home that allows for more open 3-point looks.
Kansas hosted Goode for a visit earlier this week, and a trip to Lexington could be coming soon. St. John’s is among the other schools linked to his recruitment, which will be well worth monitoring.
Sebastian Rancik
Current school: Colorado
Last season: 12.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 2.0 apg
247Sports ranking: No. 97 overall (No. 24 PF)
Status report: Rancik was in town for a Kentucky visit Thursday, as sure a sign as any at this point on the calendar that he’s a serious target for Pope and the UK coaching staff. The 6-11, 220-pound forward from Slovakia could fill the role left behind by Andrija Jelavic, who departed for Ohio State via the transfer portal, and would fit into Kentucky’s frontcourt rotation for next season.
Rancik shot 33.1% on 118 3-point attempts as a sophomore at Colorado and was also an 86.0% free throw shooter on 129 attempts this past season, making a major jump from his freshman year (69.0%) in efficiency at the line while taking nearly double the number of shots. He’s a solid, though not spectacular, rebounder, and he can create for himself and others off the dribble with enough of a handle to bring the ball up the court on his own.
He wouldn’t be the splashiest recruit for Kentucky, but Rancik would serve as a solid addition to a rotation of three or four bigs and plays a perimeter-oriented style that should fit well with what Pope has had success doing in the past.
Jalen Cox
Current school: Colgate
Last season: 17.9 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 5.3 apg, 1.7 spg
247Sports ranking: No. 175 overall (No. 36 combo guard)
Status report: Diallo will be in Pope’s starting backcourt next season — and returnee Kam Williams could be, too — but Kentucky is still looking for some depth at the guard spots as it continues to pursue at least one more starter-level player.
Cox, who has spent all three of his college seasons at Colgate, could fit the bill as a backcourt rotation player. He’s the type of “creator” Pope has said he wants more of for the 2026-27 roster, and Cox — at 6-3 and 180 pounds — was also one of the best defensive players in the Patriot League last season.
He shot well from 3-point range (36.5%) in 2025-26, though he didn’t shoot much (52 attempts in 31 games). Cox was a good scorer at the rim, however, and he can make shots in the midrange. He also shot 85.0% on free throws last season.
With just one more year of eligibility under the current NCAA rules, the Los Angeles native might be looking for a larger role than UK can promise for next season, but he’s worth monitoring as Pope continues to build his 2026-27 backcourt. Maryland has been viewed as a legitimate landing spot in recent days, but there’s been no commitment yet.
This story was originally published April 17, 2026 at 6:15 AM.
