I'm afraid to post this but here goes. I keep reading on here from people that Pope doesn't develop players. I disagree, and here are 4 examples that we have evidence for just in his 2 seasons at UK:
1. Otega Oweh. Pope took Oweh from an 11.4-point, 1.0-assist player at Oklahoma who wasn't a consensus NBA draft pick and developed him into an 18.6-point, 4.8-rebound, 2.7-assist All-SEC player who averaged 21.1 PPG in SEC games and had14 games of 20+ points IN SEC PLAY in 2025–26 (the most of anyone in the entire SEC)... who then became the 41st pick in NBA draft.
2. Amari Williams. Went from the CAA to SEC and somehow improved from 7.8 to 8.5 rebounds and 1.9 to 3.2 assists per game while shooting a career-best 56.1%. Pope turned him into a point center—his 115 assists were the most ever by a 7-footer at Kentucky—and after Kentucky, he was drafted No. 46. Pope expanded the offensive skill that made him much more interesting to the NBA: playmaking
Under Pope, Amari became only the second SEC player ever to record 375+ points, 300+ rebounds, 100+ assists, 40+ blocks and 20+ steals in a season and the first Division I player ever to do it in under 1,000 minutes....!
3. Koby Brea. Pope took Brea from an elite but mostly catch-and-shoot specialist at Dayton and expanded his game which ultimately led to him getting drafted. His two-point attempts jumped from 45 to 99 and his free-throw attempts from 16 to 35, while he still shot 43.5% from three. He then also became the 41st pick in the NBA draft.
4. Malachi Moreno. Pope took Malachi Moreno, roughly the No. 25 ish recruit in his class, and in one freshman season developed him into an All-SEC Freshman who led Kentucky in rebounding, blocks and FG%, averaging 7.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.5 blocks. He became a great playmaker. He could have stayed in the NBA draft but instead he decided to come back to Kentucky with ESPN already viewing him as a potential 2027 first-round pick. If NIL wasn't a thing, Moreno would be in the NBA right now.
1. Otega Oweh. Pope took Oweh from an 11.4-point, 1.0-assist player at Oklahoma who wasn't a consensus NBA draft pick and developed him into an 18.6-point, 4.8-rebound, 2.7-assist All-SEC player who averaged 21.1 PPG in SEC games and had14 games of 20+ points IN SEC PLAY in 2025–26 (the most of anyone in the entire SEC)... who then became the 41st pick in NBA draft.
2. Amari Williams. Went from the CAA to SEC and somehow improved from 7.8 to 8.5 rebounds and 1.9 to 3.2 assists per game while shooting a career-best 56.1%. Pope turned him into a point center—his 115 assists were the most ever by a 7-footer at Kentucky—and after Kentucky, he was drafted No. 46. Pope expanded the offensive skill that made him much more interesting to the NBA: playmaking
Under Pope, Amari became only the second SEC player ever to record 375+ points, 300+ rebounds, 100+ assists, 40+ blocks and 20+ steals in a season and the first Division I player ever to do it in under 1,000 minutes....!
3. Koby Brea. Pope took Brea from an elite but mostly catch-and-shoot specialist at Dayton and expanded his game which ultimately led to him getting drafted. His two-point attempts jumped from 45 to 99 and his free-throw attempts from 16 to 35, while he still shot 43.5% from three. He then also became the 41st pick in the NBA draft.
4. Malachi Moreno. Pope took Malachi Moreno, roughly the No. 25 ish recruit in his class, and in one freshman season developed him into an All-SEC Freshman who led Kentucky in rebounding, blocks and FG%, averaging 7.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.5 blocks. He became a great playmaker. He could have stayed in the NBA draft but instead he decided to come back to Kentucky with ESPN already viewing him as a potential 2027 first-round pick. If NIL wasn't a thing, Moreno would be in the NBA right now.
