The Kentucky Wildcats are gearing up for the postseason, with the SEC Tournament starting later this week and the NCAA Tournament beginning later next week. It’s never too early to take a look at some positions Kentucky should target in the offseason, so let’s dive in.
As far as stay or go expectations, Kentucky will be losing Lamont Butler, Andrew Carr, Amari Williams, Ansley Almonor, Jaxson Robinson, and Koby Brea all to graduation. The expectation for now is that Kerr Kriisa will return for another year after taking a medical redshirt this season to be able to have a full season in blue and white next season. Kentucky should go after an elite point guard if they want to be one of the more elite teams, because a lot of the best teams in college basketball are made up of elite guards. Incoming Freshmen Jasper Johnson and Acaden Lewis will need another elite experienced guard surrounding them.
A position that is absolutely a priority is the five-spot. With Kentucky losing their best big men after this season, they will need to go and target some of the best big men in the portal, mostly ones that fit Mark Pope’s system, which can help Malachi Moreno develop. Assuming Brandon Garrison returns, another big man in the portal would go along way for the frontcourt to help them out. Amari WIlliams struggled with physicality early on, but once he found his footing, he as played like one of the more better big men in college basketball, believe it or not. Replacing him will be tough, but the transfer portal is the perfect place to find pieces that fit into your system perfectly, The Wildcats will also need to find another stretch-four, like Andrew Carr can do. Although he hasn’t showcased his stretch ability too much, he still has some really good things in his arsenal offensively.
All in all, Kentucky should go into the offseason prepared to look for an elite guard in the transfer portal to go with Kriisa and the incoming freshmen, and very much a talented big man to replace Carr and Williams down low, which will let Moreno develop as the season goes on.
