Kentucky’s latest portal target would finally fix Mark Pope’s other big mistake

Kentucky’s $22 million roster didn’t come close to living up to the lofty expectations that price tag set last season. Injuries are a big reason why, but even fully intact, Mark Pope’s team had major flaws. 

For starters, Kentucky didn’t have the shooting it needed to operate Pope’s free-flowing five-out offensive attack. Pope over-indexed on adding the athleticism his first team in Lexington lacked. Still, that wasn’t his only misstep last offseason. The injury bug exposed the other: Kentucky didn’t have a point guard. 

Mark Pope's latest portal target would certainly solve that issue, as on Tuesday, Jack Pilgrim of Kentucky Sports Radio reported that the Cats are expected to be in the mix for BYU point guard Robert Wright III after he entered the portal. 

Wright was one of the top point guards on the move last offseason when he left Baylor for an NIL package reported to be worth $3 million. He’ll likely fetch another significant payday with two years of eligibility remaining after averaging 18.1 points and 4.6 assists for the Cougars. 

Robert Wright III is on Mark Pope’s radar to fill Kentucky’s desperate need at PG

Last year, the Cats paid up to land Jaland Lowe in the portal, an inefficient score-first guard from Pitt, who, like many of Pope’s pickups, struggled to knock down shots consistently. Still, he was a capable point guard, and Pope built much of the offensive system around the left-handed playmaker. 

It’s fair to question the viability of that plan, but we never really got an answer because Lowe suffered a season-ending shoulder injury just nine games into the year, after dealing with shoulder issues throughout that stretch. Without him, Denzel Aberdeen, who was the third guard for Florida a year ago, and who is off-ball, was forced into the point guard role. Freshman Jasper Johnson, who also proved to be better off the ball, also had his share of opportunities to run the offense. 

Aberdeen did a fine job, and Otega Oweh was a capable playmaker from the wing, but Kentucky played most of its season without a true point guard, and it looked like it. The Cats often fell into the trap of playing isolation basketball, the antithesis of Pope’s successful teams at BYU. 

Wright would immediately solve those issues. Even playing alongside AJ Dybantsa, maybe the best isolation scorer in college basketball this year, Wright managed to post a 24.2 percent assist rate. Plus, unlike Lowe, he’s a 41 percent three-point shooter. 

Kentucky doesn’t plan to unload the money cannon quite as aggressively as last offseason, but it will still spend about as much as any program in the country, and while it will be substantial, Wright would be worth the investment.