Mark Pope says final scholarship up for grabs, 'massively important piece' for Kentucky

Mark Pope knew the job at hand when he took over the Kentucky basketball program just over two months ago. But, what he didn't expect was having to rebuild an entirely new roster ... from scratch.

It's been well documented the roster, or lackthereof, when Pope took over. With zero players coming back or coming in, it was a true starting over process.

But, he knew exactly what he wanted.

"You have to go find guys where the front of this jersey means something," Pope said last week on BBN Tonight. "You can do that in different ways. On one hand it can be with a young man who has been born and raised in Kentucky. Super skilled and talented and they just breathe this in every second of their life.

"But, the beautiful thing about kentucky is it can resonate with guys who have never lived in this state and don't know this state."

That's exactly what he did by making sure four-star point guard Travis Perry from Lyon County (Ky.) stayed with UK. Perry, who committed to Kentucky under John Calipari, wasted no time assuring Kentucky fans and Mark Pope that he would be sticking in Lexington.

Then, Pope later flipped the commitment of four-star wing Trent Noah -- a standout in his own right from Harlan County (Ky.).

But you can't just stick with players in the state or that grew up liking the program. Pope needed veterans on the roster to help build chemistry amongs the entire team. He landed some of the most experienced players in the transfer portal ... at numerous different positions.

"The second thing was winning," Pope added. "And we had to start with a couple of guys whose DNA is winning. At the highest level, in the biggest ways. Just veteran players. The construction of this roster was super fun and an incredible project."

Six players have played at least four years of college basketball.

Kentucky has 12 players on the roster -- 14 if you include two walk-ons. But, there is still one scholarship available if Pope and his staff want to use it. WIll they?

“We have one scholarship floating out there and we’ll see,” Pope said. “Whatever happens is going to be a little bit creative and it’s going to fit really, really well.”

Pope previously discussed his roster when he had three scholarships available and was open to what he was looking for when adding the final few pieces.

He's the same way with the final spot -- one that looks to be filled come the season. But, Pope isn't going to fill it just to fill it, stressing the importance of every spot on the team.

“It’s going to be a massively important piece,” he said of the final scholarship.

Whether you're from Kentucky, out on the west coast, in the northeast or overseas -- Mark Pope is going to add talent that fits. He is also going to add players over talent ... players that have the same mindset and goal in mind that the other 12 players and the entire staff have.

"If you're not here to come win a banner," Pope said profoundly. "Than this is not the right place for you."