Walk into Rupp Arena three hours before tipoff and you might witness a glimpse of Kentucky basketball’s future — long before the rest of the world sees it. Out on the floor, usually by himself except for a rebounding manager, is freshman forward Braydon Hawthorne, quietly crafting the early chapters of what Kentucky coaches and teammates believe could become a star-studded career.
He hasn’t played a second of college basketball yet. He may not for the rest of this season. But every early-arriving fan, every staff member, and every teammate who sees those pregame warmups recognizes the same thing: this 19-year-old is special.
A ROUGH DRAFT OF GREATNESS
Hawthorne’s routine looks like a rehearsal for something bigger. Wearing whatever he arrived in that night, he starts with casual, rhythmic shooting — smooth, calm, confident. Later, once he’s changed into his gameday gear, the intensity ramps up. Agility work. Ball-handling. Shooting off movement, off the dribble, off screens, from 30 feet out. His touch is soft, his stroke silky.
Misses almost look like flukes.
Senior teammate Otega Oweh sees what the fans see — and more.
“He’s super advanced,” Oweh said. “He’s young, too. Once he figures out his game — and himself — he’s gonna take that jump.”
That jump, Kentucky hopes, will be massive.
WHY REDSHIRT A FUTURE NBA TALENT?
The question has hovered around Hawthorne since the moment he arrived in Lexington: Why would a guy this gifted sit out?
He originally committed to West Virginia, where redshirting was already being discussed. But after a coaching change, his recruitment reopened. A final high-school season that launched him to No. 33 in the 2025 class only heightened the hype.
Still, when he signed with Kentucky — a deep, veteran roster — the redshirt conversation made sense. Eight games into the season, it’s still very much alive.
On his weekly radio show, head coach Mark Pope explained the dilemma.
“A redshirt is something you can’t get back,” Pope said. “He’s a terrific young talent with an incredibly bright future. Right now, there’s so much growth in him. Redshirting lets him be solely focused on developing without the distractions of games twice a week.”
Then Pope acknowledged the tension every coach faces:
“There’s also value in minutes. We just want to make sure we’re making the right decision before we burn it.”
Unlike football, where players can appear in a handful of games without losing a year, basketball is unforgiving. One second on the floor, and the redshirt is gone.
Pope has already decided that 7-1 freshman Reece Potter will sit this season. Hawthorne’s situation is more complicated. He’s too good to ignore — but also too important to rush.
BUILDING THE RIGHT FOUNDATION
Inside the program, the consensus is clear: Hawthorne’s potential is enormous, but the road to unlocking it isn’t short. The biggest challenge? His frame.
At 6-8 and just 170 pounds, Hawthorne has the skill of an NBA wing but the body of someone still growing into it. Freshman guard Jasper Johnson, who has openly said he needs more strength before chasing the NBA dream, weighs 10 pounds more despite being three inches shorter.
Oweh doesn’t sugarcoat it.
Asked if strength was Hawthorne’s biggest hurdle, he replied: “Yeah. Literally.”
But every practice rep brings him closer. Every possession against older, stronger Wildcats toughens him. And teammates genuinely believe that the long-term payoff will be worth the wait.
A QUIET LEADER BEFORE HE EVER PLAYS
Even without games, Hawthorne’s impact is real. Sophomore guard Collin Chandler says the freshman is already a spark for the team.
“He’s been the life of the team,” Chandler said. “His energy is the same every day. It brings light. Even if BBN isn’t watching him play, he has a lot of power.”
He’s also been showing out on the scout team. Before Kentucky faced North Carolina, Hawthorne played the role of UNC freshman Caleb Wilson — a projected NBA lottery pick. The real Wilson scored, but the Cats held him to 5-of-19 shooting. That preparation mattered.
Chandler admires more than Hawthorne’s skill — he admires his mindset.
“Human nature is focusing on, ‘Why am I not playing?’ Braydon fights that. He focuses on us, the collective we. He’s a great example of thinking beyond yourself.”
Chandler knows the struggle well. He spent two years on a church mission before finally earning minutes last season. His message to Hawthorne has been simple but powerful: control what you can control.
“Focus on getting better at the little things,” Chandler said. “He’s humble. He listens. He learns.”
THE COMPARISON THAT TURNED HEADS
In the preseason, Mark Pope made one of the boldest comparisons a Kentucky coach can make:
“There’s a whole bunch of Tayshaun Prince in this kid.”
Pope knew the weight of those words. Prince is a Wildcat legend. To even mention Hawthorne in the same breath signals the magnitude of the potential.
But Pope also knows the college basketball world has changed. Redshirting a possible NBA player — and keeping him afterward — is a gamble. A rare one. A risky one. But maybe the right one.
THE PATIENCE OF A STAR IN THE MAKING
Whether Hawthorne plays this season or not, one thing is clear: greatness takes time. The shots he takes before games are more than warmups — they’re blueprints. The extra reps, the quiet sweat, the long-term focus in a world demanding instant results — that’s where stars are made.
If Kentucky and Hawthorne choose patience, they may be rewarded with something special. Something worth the wait. A future centerpiece of the program. A new name etched into Rupp Arena history.
For now, he’s the brightest star fans haven’t seen yet.
But they will. And when that moment comes, Kentucky may discover that the year he spent waiting was exactly what built the player he was meant to become.
