Kentucky basketball center rotation among most intriguing in the country

The first commitment in the Mark Pope era with Kentucky basketball really set the foundation for the rest of the roster -- and is one of the more intriguing big men entering the SEC this year.

That is Drexel transfer Amari Williams. Williams, a fifth-year senior, averaged 12.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game last season. He finished with 10 double-digit rebounding games and eight double-doubles. 

He was being courted by numerous high-major programs, but Kentucky had the opportunity for him to make a major impact on day one.

Despite rumors of a shaky commitment after the Wildcats started to add additional bodies up front, Williams stayed true to his pledge.

Now, Kentucky heads into the 2024-25 season with one of the most versatile front courts in the country.

Outside of Williams is former McDonald's All-American Brandon Garrison -- who played just one season at Oklahoma State. Add in fifth-year senior Andrew Carr and Ansley Almonor, you now have four players who bring a lot of skills to both ends of the floor.

But, it's the center duo of Garrison and Williams that is among the top duo's entering the year.

Isaac Trotter of 247Sports and CBS Sports released his 'Top 8 big man platoons' for this upcoming season and Kentucky's pair of centers hit the list.

"Mark Pope's sharp offensive system requires big men who can pass the rock. That's a huge piece of Williams' game. The fifth-year senior out of Drexel gives Pope a smart dribble handoff hub who can whip backdoor dimes or spray it out to Kentucky's cavalry of 3-point shooters. Garrison can also do a bunch of those things, too. Williams is the vet. Garrison is the young, rising sophomore," Trotter wrote. "Together, Kentucky should be able to have 40 minutes of a real playmaking big man on the floor who also has plenty of defensive chops. Williams' durability is a real question. He only played 30+ minutes twice last season, so Garrison is clearly poised to play early and often. Don't be surprised if this is close to a 50-50 split."

While Garrison is the younger of the pair, he has the most potential and clearly the higher upside.

He is a 6-foot-11, 245-pound big man who averaged 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks this season for the Cowboys. He shot 57.2 percent from the field.

"(He) crushed me at BYU last year and crushed Coach [Alvin] Brooks at Baylor last year,” Pope said of Garrison. “We’re unbelievably glad he’s on our team now."

While Kentucky will be run by its guards and wings, it's clear that in order to hit the ceiling and check off the goals that they want, it'll come down to the front court play -- and more importantly, this duo.