I hate the whole out 3 starters stuff

rob_47 · Feb 15, 2026

The fact is is that our team has played better without Lowe in the lineup and honestly Moreno is better than Jq atleast in my mind a smarter basketball player at this point in time so as far as I am concerned the only one who I think was bringing value to winning basketball was Kam Williams.

I just think people throw that phrase out there without understanding the full context of it. Lowes style of play is the antithesis of winning basketball and Jq was never going to be this ready to play winning basketball player coming off an acl surgery. Moreno may not be better in time but we will see. The gap isn't that wide.

Cats4321 · Feb 15, 2026

Part of our problem early in the season was playing too many guys. It's hard to say that losing 3 players helped the team, but their loss has definitely been offset somewhat by other guys having defined roles.

Kyhoward1 · Feb 15, 2026

Out 3 players is how I would phrase it. All 3 could be big contributors and (2) Jaland and Kam were expected to from the start of the season. JQ was a calculated risk who, unfortunately, has not recovered to contribute. At present, our guys are playing well, but it would be nice to have these 3 available given foul trouble or further player injuries.

K_TIME · Feb 15, 2026

rob_47 said:
The fact is is that our team has played better without Lowe in the lineup and honestly Moreno is better than Jq atleast in my mind a smarter basketball player at this point in time so as far as I am concerned the only one who I think was bringing value to winning basketball was Kam Williams.

I just think people throw that phrase out there without understanding the full context of it. Lowes style of play is the antithesis of winning basketball and Jq was never going to be this ready to play winning basketball player coming off an acl surgery. Moreno may not be better in time but we will see. The gap isn't that wide.

100 percent agree

Lowe was a volume shooter, very inefficient and for some reason unwilling defenders…at Pitt and showed the same at Ky. If we bring him back it will signifying how even next season will be not elite

JQ…who knows. But when you pay a injured player..it’s your fault

Kam was the only one thet made sense…and his loss as allowed Jelly and Noah to play…and we less effective due to his injury

Anony Moose · Feb 15, 2026

JQ was always a giant risk and many believed he would never play a second here. So counting him in anything is simply fabricating the reality.

Lowe was like the 4th or 5th option we went after at PG. There's a reason we put him on the back burner to pursue other guys first. He wasn't and was never expected to be the major factor some are acting like. Losing Acaden Lewis was far more impactful than Lowe.

Kam was one who could have been a contributor, but Jelavic has pretty much filled that role in SEC play. He broke double digits scoring in 4 of 19 games. And 3 of those games were earlier in the season. He was an enigma.

Henogee1975 · Feb 15, 2026

It’s not necessarily that we lost those 3 guys inasmuch that we lost 3 players. JQ was never to be counted on apparently, so I wish we had gone after another big guy. Maybe we did? Lowe was another injury risk that was not a good shooter or defender, but he was all we could get apparently. If Kam would have broken his foot in December, nobody would’ve cared because he stunk. Then he started shooting and defending well after the new year. At that point it was a devastating loss.

cat tat2 · Feb 15, 2026

We are down 3 players but Kam was the only guy that was making any real contribution. JQ obviously wasn’t going to be ready anytime this season. Lowe got injured before the season started and wasn’t very good when he was available. We definitely need a PG next year, would love to see Kam and a healthy JQ come back. IMO

ukcats012 · Feb 15, 2026

rob_47 said:
The fact is is that our team has played better without Lowe in the lineup and honestly Moreno is better than Jq atleast in my mind a smarter basketball player at this point in time so as far as I am concerned the only one who I think was bringing value to winning basketball was Kam Williams.

I just think people throw that phrase out there without understanding the full context of it. Lowes style of play is the antithesis of winning basketball and Jq was never going to be this ready to play winning basketball player coming off an acl surgery. Moreno may not be better in time but we will see. The gap isn't that wide.

We play better without Lowe because the coaching staff had time to figure out how to win with the group we have. We’re not better without Lowe just because we are.

Lowe was never at full strength and when he was playing there was no clarity on who’d be available for any given game. That makes it impossible to gameplan. You basically need a gameplan for if Lowe played and if he didn’t. Guys don’t know their roles that way and things are constantly changing.

Now that he’s out we can double down on the guys we know we have and put stuff together specifically for that. There’s continuity week to week and don’t have to change the gameplay on a whim if Lowe was feeling better.

The one half this year where both Lowe and JQ played at a high level we looked pretty damn good. There’s zero reason to believe Pope couldn’t have also figured out great gameplays if Lowe or JQ were healthy and playing all year long. We won when Amari Williams was our PG. Pope would have figured out how to win with Lowe.

We are better without Lowe and JQ because Pope made that happen. That wasn’t just a foregone conclusion or a simple case of addition by subtraction.

UKortho · Feb 15, 2026

rob_47 said:
The fact is is that our team has played better without Lowe in the lineup and honestly Moreno is better than Jq atleast in my mind a smarter basketball player at this point in time so as far as I am concerned the only one who I think was bringing value to winning basketball was Kam Williams.

I just think people throw that phrase out there without understanding the full context of it. Lowes style of play is the antithesis of winning basketball and Jq was never going to be this ready to play winning basketball player coming off an acl surgery. Moreno may not be better in time but we will see. The gap isn't that wide.

It’s something that is used to prop up Pope. An excuse. Just like Pope could recruit better if not for JMI. Pope is going to finish the year the same as he finishes every year- 10-12 losses. He is going to overpay for some non starters and we will see the same thing happen next year. He is not a coach that can recruit and compete at an elite level. BYU is glad he is gone.

Johnny_Jeepers · Feb 15, 2026

Imagine how DANGEROUS this team would be if we had everyone healthy.

Hell, we might've been able to get as high as a six seed!!!

Cats192 · Feb 15, 2026

rob_47 said:
The fact is is that our team has played better without Lowe in the lineup and honestly Moreno is better than Jq atleast in my mind a smarter basketball player at this point in time so as far as I am concerned the only one who I think was bringing value to winning basketball was Kam Williams.

I just think people throw that phrase out there without understanding the full context of it. Lowes style of play is the antithesis of winning basketball and Jq was never going to be this ready to play winning basketball player coming off an acl surgery. Moreno may not be better in time but we will see. The gap isn't that wide.

Moreno is better than a rusty, less than 100% JQ.

If JQ was 100% healthy and able to play to his ceiling, he'd be one of our best players, by far our best defensive player.

Lowe is a very talented basketball player. He wasn't always meshing with the system, but usually that sort of stuff improves with time. He way also frequently in and out of the lineup. Hard to find any continuity/chemistry with the shoulder situation.

And Kam was obviously giving us a lot of good stuff on both ends.

You can feel how you like about being down 3 starters. I think if we're honest, none of us would ever willingly choose to be down 3 starters. I think if we're honest, we believe the problems with those players get better with better health and increased continuity.

Trinity45 · Feb 15, 2026

rob_47 said:
The fact is is that our team has played better without Lowe in the lineup and honestly Moreno is better than Jq atleast in my mind a smarter basketball player at this point in time so as far as I am concerned the only one who I think was bringing value to winning basketball was Kam Williams.

I just think people throw that phrase out there without understanding the full context of it. Lowes style of play is the antithesis of winning basketball and Jq was never going to be this ready to play winning basketball player coming off an acl surgery. Moreno may not be better in time but we will see. The gap isn't that wide.

In part I will agree with you on Lowe, can't say about JQ not even tape on that one, but losing Williams right when he was just starting to jell with this group and get hot sucks.

Reggie Noble · Feb 15, 2026

Cats192 said:
Moreno is better than a rusty, less than 100% JQ.

If JQ was 100% healthy and able to play to his ceiling, he'd be one of our best players, by far our best defensive player.

Lowe is a very talented basketball player. He wasn't always meshing with the system, but usually that sort of stuff improves with time. He way also frequently in and out of the lineup. Hard to find any continuity/chemistry with the shoulder situation.

And Kam was obviously giving us a lot of good stuff on both ends.

You can feel how you like about being down 3 starters. I think if we're honest, none of us would ever willingly choose to be down 3 starters. I think if we're honest, we believe the problems with those players get better with better health and increased continuity.

Lowe played two seasons at Pitt before joining the Cats and couldn’t shoot and was highly inefficient during those two years. He is exactly who he has been since day one at Pitt.

Jaland Lowe Career Stats - NCAAM - ESPN

Complete career NCAAM stats for the Kentucky Wildcats Guard Jaland Lowe on ESPN. Includes points, rebounds, and assists.

www.espn.com

chroix · Feb 15, 2026

They held us back. Just wasn’t the usual way. If this team had had this makeup from the jump I bet we win a couple of the out of conference games we dropped. The ambiguity of who the lead guard and primary big man would be really seemed to have some negative effects.

chroix · Feb 15, 2026

Reggie Noble said:
Lowe played two seasons at Pitt before joining the Cats and couldn’t shoot and was highly inefficient during those two years. He is exactly who he has been since day one at Pitt.

But with the added bonus of now he only has one arm.

UKortho · Feb 15, 2026

Johnny_Jeepers said:
Imagine how DANGEROUS this team would be if we had everyone healthy.

Hell, we might've been able to get as high as a six seed!!!

This is something that the “Pope is MY coach” folks miss. We have played better with these players out.

Cats192 · Feb 15, 2026

Reggie Noble said:
Lowe played two seasons at Pitt before joining the Cats and couldn’t shoot and was highly inefficient during those two years. He is exactly who he has been since day one at Pitt.

Jaland Lowe Career Stats - NCAAM - ESPN

Complete career NCAAM stats for the Kentucky Wildcats Guard Jaland Lowe on ESPN. Includes points, rebounds, and assists.

www.espn.com

Right. But he had zero talent at Pitt.

I think you can help him better assimilate into a team with talent--if he actually gets to play games with them.

We knew his previous issues and play style before the season. I think most of us thought those things would improve under Pope. He just...didn't really get to play under Pope with any kind of consistency.

We can spend all day going back and forth about Lowe. But at the end of the day, the bigger point--no serious person thinks we'd rather be down 3 starters than have them.

K_TIME · Feb 15, 2026

ukcats012 said:
We play better without Lowe because the coaching staff had time to figure out how to win with the group we have. We’re not better without Lowe just because we are.

Lowe was never at full strength and when he was playing there was no clarity on who’d be available for any given game. That makes it impossible to gameplan. You basically need a gameplan for if Lowe played and if he didn’t. Guys don’t know their roles that way and things are constantly changing.

Now that he’s out we can double down on the guys we know we have and put stuff together specifically for that. There’s continuity week to week and don’t have to change the gameplay on a whim if Lowe was feeling better.

The one half this year where both Lowe and JQ played at a high level we looked pretty damn good. There’s zero reason to believe Pope couldn’t have also figured out great gameplays if Lowe or JQ were healthy and playing all year long. We won when Amari Williams was our PG. Pope would have figured out how to win with Lowe.

We are better without Lowe and JQ because Pope made that happen. That wasn’t just a foregone conclusion or a simple case of addition by subtraction.

Ok…it was half of St. John’s game your basing this off of

Lowe was terrible in every other games

Ky resurgence was when the floor stretched wjtb Aberdeen chandler snd Kam with Oweh attacking downhill…and Moreno controlling the paint better

Lowe would have allowed teams to clog up the lane…an the ball stops too much when Lowe dribbled to infinity

UKWildcats1987 · Feb 15, 2026

We have 3 quote unquote starters out but when you have so many different guys start it doesn't have as much meaning as losing a guy that started all 15 games and went out.

TFCat11 · Feb 15, 2026

The 335th D1 team has “starters”, but that doesn’t mean that they are UK level starters! The 3 “starters” that are out, only one is an actual starter, and that’s Williams.

Lowe is a ball dominant backup PG, and JQuit is 3rd string behind Moreno and Garrison, as he should be, so I’m not sure where these full time goalposts movers are getting “3 starters” from…

Anyway…

bgoad72 · Feb 15, 2026

Thank you for posting this OP. I have been thinking the same thing. 3 “starters” out excuse is getting very tiresome. Especially in the thread yesterday with UKcowboys making that excuse on 30+ responses.
Jq is a what if. Lowe never made us better. Kam is also a what if. Was playing g better, but first half sucked donkey ba*%s.
Ive never counted any of them as starters.

TFCat11 · Feb 15, 2026

UKortho said:
It’s something that is used to prop up Pope. An excuse. Just like Pope could recruit better if not for JMI. Pope is going to finish the year the same as he finishes every year- 10-12 losses. He is going to overpay for some non starters and we will see the same thing happen next year. He is not a coach that can recruit and compete at an elite level. BYU is glad he is gone.

The first two sentences here explain why some fans push the catchphrase, “3 starters out”, to a T

UKJenning · Feb 15, 2026

Pope bought an injury in JQ. Money wasted!

Lowe shot 26.6% from 3 last season at PITT and shot 20.8% for us this season.

He is a career 38% overall FG shooter. I think Aberdeen is an upgrade.

With Jelavic now hitting 3’s he brings more physicality that we need than Williams.

Yesterday Fla played 8 guys and we played 9 guys.

If we had those 3 guys I’m not convinced we would be any better. Maybe worse because JQ can’t shoot either.

KyWideWes · Feb 15, 2026

K_TIME said:
Ok…it was half of St. John’s game your basing this off of

Lowe was terrible in every other games

Ky resurgence was when the floor stretched wjtb Aberdeen chandler snd Kam with Oweh attacking downhill…and Moreno controlling the paint better

Lowe would have allowed teams to clog up the lane…an the ball stops too much when Lowe dribbled to infinity

You cannot have a high level team lead by a non-shooter, ball-dominate, poor defender. I like Kam (as depth and more at PF) but we needed more ball handling on the court and now Oweh has moved to the three with more success and opened up Chandler to get in a rhythm.

Son_Of_Saul · Feb 15, 2026

JQ was never a starter. Williams was rarely a starter. Neither of their talents are significantly better than the players that now get their minutes.

Lowe is the only one we truly miss, but like the OP mentioned, our team actually plays better without him.

Snarks · Feb 15, 2026

Agreed, JQ was just a bonus if he played and probably shouldn’t have been signed. Lowe is not very good. Only guy we miss is Kam. But, he wouldn’t play over Oweh, or Chandler

Son_Of_Saul · Feb 15, 2026

For the money we spent on JQ, Lowe, and Williams, we could have had Acaden Lewis and Caleb Wilson. Think about that.

C - Moreno - Garrison - Jelavic
F - Wilson - Mo - Jelavic
G - Oweh - Chandler - Noah
G - Chandler - Aberdeen
G - Aberdeen - Lewis

SenseMaker_Cats · Feb 15, 2026

JQ’s surgery was in March. He came back in 9 months. There’s nothing crazy about that. He was fully expected to play. There’s no bonus to it. I realize some of you are mad but good grief. JQ third string? This board is getting increasingly stupid.

Snarks · Feb 15, 2026

SenseMaker_Cats said:
JQ’s surgery was in March. He came back in 9 months. There’s nothing crazy about that. He was fully expected to play. There’s no bonus to it. I realize some of you are mad but good grief. JQ third string? This board is getting increasingly stupid.

Actually it is, most take at least a year to come back.

SenseMaker_Cats · Feb 15, 2026

Snarks said:
Actually it is, most take at least a year to come back.

I’ll type slower for you so you can follow along. You’re allowing your emotions to get in the way of intelligent discussion. It is not crazy in this day and age for someone to come back in 9 months.

AJG-15 · Feb 15, 2026

ukcats012 said:
We play better without Lowe because the coaching staff had time to figure out how to win with the group we have. We’re not better without Lowe just because we are.

Lowe was never at full strength and when he was playing there was no clarity on who’d be available for any given game. That makes it impossible to gameplan. You basically need a gameplan for if Lowe played and if he didn’t. Guys don’t know their roles that way and things are constantly changing.

Now that he’s out we can double down on the guys we know we have and put stuff together specifically for that. There’s continuity week to week and don’t have to change the gameplay on a whim if Lowe was feeling better.

The one half this year where both Lowe and JQ played at a high level we looked pretty damn good. There’s zero reason to believe Pope couldn’t have also figured out great gameplays if Lowe or JQ were healthy and playing all year long. We won when Amari Williams was our PG. Pope would have figured out how to win with Lowe.

We are better without Lowe and JQ because Pope made that happen. That wasn’t just a foregone conclusion or a simple case of addition by subtraction.

I disagree….

Mark Pope said he has a Ferrari. I believed him.

2012 was the last year when Kentucky won a championship and the final year when Ferrari models with manual transmissions were manufactured the California (2012) and the 599 GTB Fiorano being the last V12 manual.

The new Kentucky teams use the dual recruiting HS and portal just like the new Ferraris use advanced dual-clutch gearboxes to manage high power output, hybrid systems, and improved acceleration times.

You need the right driver behind the wheel of Ferrari or a Kentucky team.

Took Pope all pre SEC and some SEC games to figure out that he doesn’t have the personal to run his traditional offensive scheme. That’s okay. Kentucky is not for everyone used our previous coach to say, just like the Ferrari is not for everyone.

Now we are scoring is because of iso for Aberdeen and Oweh , Chandler improved shooting is been recognized, and we are dumping more balls inside for Moreno.

we still not good enough in defense for the team potential. Pope has not clarified roles for certain players because he wasted half this season …. JJ, Jela prime examples, Garrison and Diabate could Contribute more if played right. Oweh is playing too many minutes and his efficiency goes down and Aberdeen still not making good decision when to shoot and when to pass. This team can play still much better.

Injuries are part of the life of a team. that’s why Kentucky spent 22 mil to build an injury proof team. We just had little mismanagement on our Ferrari build up and talent evaluation and we didn’t understand how to use the Ferrari…

Pope might learn how to drive the Ferrari , the question is can Pope fully unleash the Ferrari potential and win a championship in the modern era of double clutch recruiting or in a year or two…..we will be talking about Ferrari drivers are needed….

right now Kentucky is playing the lottery for 5 mil plus/ year for driving school class for Mark Pope. it is a high price tag for learning on the job, but when you have a Ferrari and a desire for championships all efforts are worth it. I just hope Mark Pope is the right driver.
it will make me feel much better if Kentucky hired an experience and connected GM to help Mark Pope wit’s the dual recruitment and NIL management, so Mark Pope can focus on just being the driver of Ferrari ….

Reggie Noble · Feb 15, 2026

Snarks said:
Agreed, JQ was just a bonus if he played and probably shouldn’t have been signed. Lowe is not very good. Only guy we miss is Kam. But, he wouldn’t play over Oweh, or Chandler

I believe Kam should have been playing the 4. Absolutely can’t have a primary ball dominant ball handler that can’t shoot. Didn’t like it when Cal used to do it., Wheeler, Briscoe, Hagans etc…

VC99 · Feb 15, 2026

rob_47 said:
The fact is is that our team has played better without Lowe in the lineup and honestly Moreno is better than Jq atleast in my mind a smarter basketball player at this point in time so as far as I am concerned the only one who I think was bringing value to winning basketball was Kam Williams.

I just think people throw that phrase out there without understanding the full context of it. Lowes style of play is the antithesis of winning basketball and Jq was never going to be this ready to play winning basketball player coming off an acl surgery. Moreno may not be better in time but we will see. The gap isn't that wide.

But you're also missing the context of why people say "out 3 starters." For one it's true and the team was built with these players in mind. That means the roster construction of the players we have left were influenced by and built off of 3 major players who we do not have. The guys we have on the floor right now were not supposed to play in certain roles, in certain lineups, etc. So yes, saying out 3 starters is very important context considering the team we are forced to play now.

VC99 · Feb 15, 2026

Son_Of_Saul said:
JQ was never a starter. Williams was rarely a starter. Neither of their talents are significantly better than the players that now get their minutes.

Lowe is the only one we truly miss, but like the OP mentioned, our team actually plays better without him.

Pope specifically moved JQ into the starting lineup ahead of Moreno and said "he understands the teams upside with JQ in the starting lineup."

Anony Moose · Feb 15, 2026

SenseMaker_Cats said:
I’ll type slower for you so you can follow along. You’re allowing your emotions to get in the way of intelligent discussion. It is not crazy in this day and age for someone to come back in 9 months.

Except it is. Which basketball players have done this?

Tri-Countycat · Feb 15, 2026

JQ is athletic and could have helped us on defense and rebounding but I’m not sure that MM isn’t a more well rounded ball player.

Kyhoward1 · Feb 15, 2026

ukcats012 said:
We play better without Lowe because the coaching staff had time to figure out how to win with the group we have. We’re not better without Lowe just because we are.

Lowe was never at full strength and when he was playing there was no clarity on who’d be available for any given game. That makes it impossible to gameplan. You basically need a gameplan for if Lowe played and if he didn’t. Guys don’t know their roles that way and things are constantly changing.

Now that he’s out we can double down on the guys we know we have and put stuff together specifically for that. There’s continuity week to week and don’t have to change the gameplay on a whim if Lowe was feeling better.

The one half this year where both Lowe and JQ played at a high level we looked pretty damn good. There’s zero reason to believe Pope couldn’t have also figured out great gameplays if Lowe or JQ were healthy and playing all year long. We won when Amari Williams was our PG. Pope would have figured out how to win with Lowe.

We are better without Lowe and JQ because Pope made that happen. That wasn’t just a foregone conclusion or a simple case of addition by subtraction.

Agree 100%

Don’t know how anyone can judge Jaland based on the small sample size and the fact he was often not practicing and was never at 100%. Collin was not playing well early in the season but is indispensable now. I think Jaland, if he returns next season, may take a similar leap, we just don’t know. I don’t believe he is the “antithesis to winning”, but if CMP determines he does not fit the system, I am sure he will have that conversation with Jaland.

JQ apparently is having swellness that is normal after ACL surgery. He would have significantly improved our defense and rebounding given time to get acclimated. He could have helped us in the UF game as we were overpowered by their big men. UF does not beat us without their bench performing well.

CMP has done an outstanding job IMO. Take 3 role players off any team and that team is different.

UKCowboys · Feb 15, 2026

rob_47 said:
The fact is is that our team has played better without Lowe in the lineup and honestly Moreno is better than Jq atleast in my mind a smarter basketball player at this point in time so as far as I am concerned the only one who I think was bringing value to winning basketball was Kam Williams.

I just think people throw that phrase out there without understanding the full context of it. Lowes style of play is the antithesis of winning basketball and Jq was never going to be this ready to play winning basketball player coming off an acl surgery. Moreno may not be better in time but we will see. The gap isn't that wide.

And Pope was already shifting to a reduced rotation because of the struggles. So we would have a more talent rotation. Not having the guys early on hurts because it cost us a couple of games. Difference between 17-8 and 19-6.

You know what's worse than listening to people complain about 3 guys out?...HAVING 3 guys out...

Kyhoward1 · Feb 15, 2026

UKortho said:
It’s something that is used to prop up Pope. An excuse. Just like Pope could recruit better if not for JMI. Pope is going to finish the year the same as he finishes every year- 10-12 losses. He is going to overpay for some non starters and we will see the same thing happen next year. He is not a coach that can recruit and compete at an elite level. BYU is glad he is gone.

BYU has an incrementally better record than UK with arguably the best player in the nation in addition to Richie Saunders and a very good point guard.

We are competing at a very good, not elite level and not at the level expected at the start of the season, I agree. But CMP has lifted this team that could have thrown in the towel! Players have apparently bought in and are playing hard. Not the 1996, 2012, or 2015 caliber team, but at present a team that is greater than the sum of their parts. Hopefully we close out the regular season on a winning streak and go into the SEC tournament as a tough out. UF is the best team in the SEC but not invincible. GBB!

Cowtown Cat · Feb 15, 2026

UKortho said:
This is something that the “Pope is MY coach” folks miss. We have played better with these players out.

Because we now have some continuity and we know who we are gonna have, game to game. This really isn’t that hard to figure out, IF you’ve played team sports for a long time. The staff would always need two or three different game plans, not knowing which players would be available and which ones wouldn’t be available.

People who claim we are better without our best ball handler, passer and driver are just lost. We are very limited with ball handlers. People who claim we are better without a healthy JQ, just insane to me. A healthy JQ would’ve been one of the best interior defenders in all of college. People who claim we are better without our best 3 and D guy are also lost.

I hate the whole out 3 starters stuff

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