Kentucky could still land a big name this offseason. These are the top options
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Kentucky’s top projected 2026-27 roster includes Moreno, Diallo, Wilkins and Kam Williams.
- Iowa State’s Milan Momcilovic is ranked No. 1 in the portal and draws UK interest.
- Kentucky has kept a roster spot and funds open while Tyran Stokes remains uncommitted.
With the closing of the transfer portal Tuesday night, college basketball coaches around the country now know exactly who will be available to fill out their rosters for the 2026-27 season.
Those looking for star-level players are likely to be left disappointed. The top of this year’s class is fairly underwhelming, and the options for such additions are dwindling.
But some big names are still out there, and Mark Pope is clearly interested in landing one.
As of now, the most highly touted players on Kentucky’s projected 2026-27 roster are Malachi Moreno, Zoom Diallo, Alex Wilkins and Kam Williams. Each of those players has the potential to break out in a big way next season, but none are considered to be anything close to established stars at this stage in their college basketball careers.
Pope showed in his first year on the UK job that he doesn’t necessarily need such a player to achieve a high level of success, but he still has a few spots to fill on his Year 3 roster, and adding a little star power at this stage in the offseason — as long as it’s the right fit — could go a long way toward building a real contender for 2027 while also calming a particularly loud segment of the fan base that has grown frustrated by Pope’s recruiting results.
The pool of possibilities is now set. Here’s a look at UK’s top options.
Milan Momcilovic
Clearly the consensus No. 1 transfer on Kentucky fans’ list, Iowa State junior Milan Momcilovic would be quite the recruiting coup for Pope heading into next season.
The 6-foot-8, 225-pound forward averaged 16.9 points per game for the Cyclones last season. More importantly, he shot 48.7% on 279 3-point attempts, making a case for himself as the best long-range shooter in college basketball.
Pope needs some more players, first and foremost, but he also needs some of those remaining roster spots to be filled by guys who can shoot. And no one can shoot better than Momcilovic, who would fit nicely as a perimeter-oriented player in a lineup that should see Diallo and Wilkins open up plenty of space on the floor with their driving and passing ability.
The Wisconsin native isn’t much of a rebounder for his size and doesn’t fit the “creator” role that Pope has been seeking this offseason, but those attributes can be taken care of elsewhere. ESPN ranks Momcilovic as the No. 1 player in the portal this spring, and 247Sports also has him as the top available transfer.
Momcilovic is going through the NBA draft process, and there’s been little reliable information on a possible portal destination as he seriously pursues that path. If the sharp-shooting forward isn’t guaranteed a first-round spot, expect him to come back to college for another season.
And if that happens, expect Kentucky to be among the many suitors willing to pay a big price for his services.
Allen Graves
Another potential star that Kentucky encountered during the NCAA Tournament last month is Santa Clara’s Allen Graves, and he remains one of the biggest curiosities in this transfer class.
The 6-9, 225-pound forward would be a natural fit for Pope’s needs at the 4 spot. He’s a capable passer who could keep things moving from the perimeter. He shot 41.3% on 92 long-range attempts as a redshirt freshman at Santa Clara last season. He uses his body well as a rebounder and interior presence, and the 19-year-old has acknowledged that there’s ample room to grow in that area as his strength and conditioning improves.
He’s also testing the NBA draft process, which has a May 27 withdrawal date for players looking to maintain their NCAA eligibility, but Graves’ potential college recruitment appears to be far less open than Momcilovic’s.
Since he entered the portal, the Louisiana native has continually been linked to Duke and LSU, though Kentucky has repeatedly popped up in conversations about his next stop, and the Herald-Leader has confirmed that UK is interested in the No. 4 overall player in the 247Sports transfer rankings.
With Duke already stacked in the frontcourt (and pretty much everywhere else across the positional spectrum), the Blue Devils could be out of the mix.
Meanwhile, new LSU coach Will Wade has been operating in silence during this portal season. So far, ex-UK forward Mouhamed Dioubate is the only transfer he’s added, but he’s expected to have vast resources to build his 2026-27 roster, and it’s a certainty that more roster announcements will be coming.
Will Graves be among that group of incoming players? Or does UK still have a shot? We’ll find out soon.
Tounde Yessoufou
The final day of the transfer portal window didn’t feature one last big wave of additions to the list of those switching schools like many around the sport were expecting, but Baylor forward Tounde Yessoufou did hit the portal Tuesday, and he immediately became one of the most coveted transfers in the country.
The 6-5 wing from Benin — he played his high school ball in California — averaged 17.8 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.0 steals while starting all 34 games for the Bears as a freshman last season. He can’t be counted upon to add much in the shooting department — 29.3% on 181 3-point attempts at Baylor — but he’s an elite athlete who finds ways to score and has tremendous upside as a defender.
Yessoufou has also entered the NBA draft, and he could climb into the first-round conversation there, so a return to college is not guaranteed. If he does come back, however, there will be interest on UK’s end, and Pope pursued him as a high school prospect the first time around.
Even before Yessoufou entered the portal, UCLA was being talked about as a potential leader in his recruitment. Yessoufou also went into the portal with a “do not contact” tag, which doesn’t necessarily mean he knows his next move — that’s often simply a “don’t call us, we’ll call you” designation to limit the flood of inquiries — but it’s worth noting.
Tyran Stokes
He’s not a transfer portal player, but any discussion surrounding potential high-profile additions to Kentucky’s 2026-27 roster will have to include Tyran Stokes up to the point that he actually makes a college decision.
And who knows when that might come.
Stokes, the apple of Pope’s recruiting eye for more than a year now, has left everyone guessing for what seems like an eternity. Kansas and Kentucky have been the two constants in his recruitment, though others have come and gone as possibilities — Oregon is the most popular alternative at the moment — and this one is likely to remain a circus until he commits.
Kentucky has sacrificed other high-profile recruitments and kept a roster spot — as well as the necessary funds to fill it with Stokes — open for the nation’s No. 1 prospect. There has been increased speculation that a decision could come as soon as this week, though such talk has happened at many points along the way, and there’s still no resolution as May approaches.
Stokes would add instant star power to UK’s starting lineup and offer some redemption for Pope, who has gone all out to bring the top recruit to Lexington. But with a commitment surely coming at some point soon, there’s not much reason to think Kentucky is the favorite.
A miss would be bad optics for Pope, but he’ll keep chasing this one until the very end, whenever that might be.
An international addition
First off, it would be a surprise at this point if Kentucky doesn’t add an international player for its 2026-27 roster. Expect at least one to end up with the Cats this offseason.
Whoever that is won’t be a household name — and would likely be a virtual unknown to most college basketball fans — but that doesn’t mean he can’t be a true difference-maker next season.
Recent seasons in the sport have shown how much international players can impact winning for top teams, and the Herald-Leader has been told that Pope and his staff are looking at several potential options in this cycle.
One name that keeps popping up this week has been Senegalese forward Ousmane Ndiaye, a 6-11 player who turned 22 years old last month and has been playing this season in Italy’s top league. Ndiaye moves spectacularly well for his size and is clearly confident as a shooter. (Hit YouTube for the video evidence there.)
Stefan Joksimovic, a 6-7 wing from Slovenia, could also be an option. Joksimovic, who doesn’t turn 18 years old until November, has been the subject of early speculation for the 2027 NBA draft, though it’s not clear where he’ll be playing basketball next season. He’s currently in Spain’s top professional league.
Luigi Suigo — a versatile, 7-3 player from Italy — declared for the 2026 NBA draft Wednesday, though he’s not widely projected as a first-round pick this year and continues to be talked about in college basketball circles. Kentucky showed some interest in him last year, but he decided to stay in Europe, where he played for the same Serbian team that produced Andrija Jelavic.
Those are just three possibilities from an international class that will yield many more names in the coming weeks. Expect to hear UK linked to a few more before this cycle is finished.
