When Kentucky lost No. 1 overall recruit Tyran Stokes to Bill Self and Kansas earlier this offseason, the sky immediately fell on the blue and white residents of Lexington. Folks pinned Mark Pope for putting too much stock in one player when, at the end of the day, it was the Jayhawks' money and sideline prestige that ended up winning him over.
However, I'm not convinced that losing Stokes wasn't a blessing in disguise for Kentucky. I'll go even further and say that, when these two teams meet in November, Kentucky will have the upper hand precisely because that pursuit fell through. This isn't just my way of coping, I promise.
All the way back in June, ESPN had Kentucky (No. 17) ranked six spots ahead of Kansas (No. 23) in their way-too-early top 25. And that's just the beginning of the Cats' perceived advantage in this year's Champion's Classic.
Kentucky's Advantage Over Kansas
I do want to make clear that this is no knock on Stokes as a player; he's the top-ranked prospect this coming season for a reason. He's a bonafide NBA prototype who will win the Jayhawks a ton of games on his merit alone. But against the Wildcats, I don't believe he alone will be enough.
Shortly after Stokes committed to Kansas back in April, Kentucky returned Malachi Moreno and landed Milan Momcilovic. That one-two punch of expensive starters almost certainly wouldn't have happened together had Kentucky donated a hefty portion of their NIL share to Stokes.
Whether or not Moreno specifically would have returned is unclear, but had Momcilovic taken the college route after Stokes pledged to Pope, I have to think some folks would begin to believe Kentucky had taken the wrong path.
But beyond Momcilovic being particularly suited to Pope's three-point-first offense, Kentucky seemingly has a better rotation all around. Don't blame the messenger.
A Better Rotation All Around
Much like Kentucky, Kansas assembled a roster of transfers to situate around their top guy. Five-star guard Taylen Kinney is absolutely Self's secondary highlight, but past him, I don't see a position where Kansas has a real edge over Kentucky.
According to 247Sports, Kentucky's transfer portal class ranks all the way up at No. 3 nationally. Kansas, on the other hand? No. 27. Pope and his staff have managed to pull in three top-50 transfers, with Momcilovic widely ranking at No. 1 and No. 2, depending on where you look.
Kansas has just one on 247's list, in Keanu Dawes, and he hardly slots into contention at No. 48. Dawes is a solid player, as are fellow transfers Leroy Blyden Jr. and Christian Reeves. But the Cats are chock-full of promising names that I think overshadow the Jayhawks' own offerings.
This November 10 matchup could get out of hand for Kentucky if Stokes gets loose, no doubt. He's one of those rare pure hoopers that can pile on 20 points in the blink of an eye. But, if Pope's defense can secure the nation's top prospect to a fair extent, the Wildcats will have a real chance to bury Kansas' complimentary efforts with what they've picked up in the wake of missing on Stokes.
If any Jayhawks fan is reading this, you have permission to point back and make fun of me if Kansas wins. But, for the time, I'm planting my flag in defense of Mark Pope in thinking that Kentucky will be better as a result of this so-called "whiff."
Add us as a preferred source on Google