"Poor state" Kentucky will likely have a ton of money to spend next season, too.

Son_Of_Saul · Monday at 5:46 AM

UK evidently had $5 to 7 million to offer Kusturica, and they used some of that to help land Mitchell. We know Milan was in the $6 to 7 million range. Moreno is reported to have returned for around $3.5 to 4 million. Kepnang is likely around $1 million.

That's a ton of money to work with for next year if Pope has success this season, anywhere from $13.5 million to upwards of $19 million for those four players who go off the books. You likely return all of your guards (Diallo/Wilkins) and wings, add Hampton, and bring back a few critical role players in N'Diaye, McBride, Kam, Hawthorne, etc.

The part that BBN should get excited about is that this money was available about a pretty terrible season last season. The money is there and will likely always be there for Kentucky. People tend to forget that another "poor state" - Oklahoma with a similar average household income and population - has a pro NBA team. Their fans support the team because they're the only team in the state. I think in a similar way, the state of Kentucky has and will continue to rally around the Wildcats and treat them like an alternate pro team (which has been a reality in our history anyway).

You don't get the shared revenue like the Thunder do from the NBA, but you do get a similar fan support, if not more so. Being in the SEC certainly helps from a financial standpoint.

I know there had been questions about whether or not a state like Kentucky could compete in the wild west of the NIL, and it looks like that question has been answered with an emphatic, "yes", as well as be a top 3 player in the sport every year in terms of spending.

This should offer some confidence going forward. If UK can land the #1 portal class after a 22-14 season, it looks like our spending and support will never end for the basketball program, even in this current wild west landscape of NIL.

RunninRichie · Monday at 6:08 AM

Pope is out of excuses this year. He has to win big.

Wildcat_in_DC · Monday at 6:21 AM

you wont find more than 5-8 teams that spent the money UK has between last year and this year. either we are the dodgers or the mets.....thats for pope to determine.

Wunky · Monday at 6:49 AM

Wildcat_in_DC said:
you wont find more than 5-8 teams that spent the money UK has between last year and this year. either we are the dodgers or the mets.....thats for pope to determine.

When he was hired I said we need an FF within four years, mainly because Cal left a mess. Felt like that was reasonable and still do. If he does it in three, I’ll be very impressed. If he can’t do it in four, then I think it’s time to look elsewhere, and no hard feelings. The resources will never be a problem at UK.

TFCat11 · Monday at 7:30 AM

Pretty good war chest, but still well below the likes of Duke. Arkansas, Illinois, Texas, and maybe a couple of others. But right now, I’m just excited to watch the team Pope just assembled, because on paper, it’s a 3rd weekend level team, with an E8 being the floor.

Wildcat_in_DC · Monday at 7:53 AM

Wunky said:
When he was hired I said we need an FF within four years, mainly because Cal left a mess. Felt like that was reasonable and still do. If he does it in three, I’ll be very impressed. If he can’t do it in four, then I think it’s time to look elsewhere, and no hard feelings. The resources will never be a problem at UK.

totally agree. you cant spend 60M+ plus over a 3 year span and have little to nothing to show for it.

bigblueinsanity (the real) · Monday at 7:53 AM

We are a poor state. We happen to have a major benefactor who is unfortunately aging. Finding more money is j batts biggest job. Going to be tough considering UL had a two year head start.

That is just one of the many reasons stein was such a homerun hire. He can help get into some Louisville money we couldn't before. Ya it wont be whales but it will be some big fish that together can make up a whale.

jedwar · Monday at 7:58 AM

Amazon Football GIF by NFL On Prime Video

Johnnie Africa · Monday at 8:04 AM

Unfortunately Kentucky is a “poor state” with lots of children that are undoubtedly suffering. I’m as happy as the next guy that we can pay the college players competitively but this thread is also somewhat off putting when you start to really think about it.

Bowfreak. · Monday at 9:08 AM

Johnnie Africa said:
Unfortunately Kentucky is a “poor state” with lots of children that are undoubtedly suffering. I’m as happy as the next guy that we can pay the college players competitively but this thread is also somewhat off putting when you start to really think about it.

Kentucky does have poor people and children suffering. Poor people with children are suffering everywhere and it is so much more complicated than money. There are many things that lead to poverty and keep people poor with finances only being one of several factors.

*Fox2Monk* · Monday at 9:51 AM

Son_Of_Saul said:
UK evidently had $5 to 7 million to offer Kusturica, and they used some of that to help land Mitchell. We know Milan was in the $6 to 7 million range. Moreno is reported to have returned for around $3.5 to 4 million. Kepnang is likely around $1 million.

That's a ton of money to work with for next year if Pope has success this season, anywhere from $13.5 million to upwards of $19 million for those four players who go off the books. You likely return all of your guards (Diallo/Wilkins) and wings, add Hampton, and bring back a few critical role players in N'Diaye, McBride, Kam, Hawthorne, etc.

The part that BBN should get excited about is that this money was available about a pretty terrible season last season. The money is there and will likely always be there for Kentucky. People tend to forget that another "poor state" - Oklahoma with a similar average household income and population - has a pro NBA team. Their fans support the team because they're the only team in the state. I think in a similar way, the state of Kentucky has and will continue to rally around the Wildcats and treat them like an alternate pro team (which has been a reality in our history anyway).

You don't get the shared revenue like the Thunder do from the NBA, but you do get a similar fan support, if not more so. Being in the SEC certainly helps from a financial standpoint.

I know there had been questions about whether or not a state like Kentucky could compete in the wild west of the NIL, and it looks like that question has been answered with an emphatic, "yes", as well as be a top 3 player in the sport every year in terms of spending.

This should offer some confidence going forward. If UK can land the #1 portal class after a 22-14 season, it looks like our spending and support will never end for the basketball program, even in this current wild west landscape of NIL.

Any coach here will always have enough resources to win a ship period. It’s up to them to recruit the right players and then coach them to said title.

*Fox2Monk* · Monday at 9:53 AM

Johnnie Africa said:
Unfortunately Kentucky is a “poor state” with lots of children that are undoubtedly suffering. I’m as happy as the next guy that we can pay the college players competitively but this thread is also somewhat off putting when you start to really think about it.

It’s off putting no matter where you look at it. Even in huge cities how many homeless are there? Athletes make money everywhere where most people live check to check.

preacherfan · Monday at 12:48 PM

*Fox2Monk* said:
It’s off putting no matter where you look at it. Even in huge cities how many homeless are there? Athletes make money everywhere where most people live check to check.

I was thinking the same thing. I just got back from Los Angeles and sometimes the stark contrast just feels so wrong. I was in a car sitting at a traffic light and as I looked around I saw 3 different luxury model cars sitting at the intersection and right on the corner was a homeless encampment.

What always amazes me about LA is how dirty the entire city is and how bad the roads are. You can walk past houses that are worth mega millions and a few minutes later be stepping over homeless people who have just collapsed or fallen asleep on the sidewalk. It is very depressing.

*Fox2Monk* · Monday at 2:22 PM

preacherfan said:
I was thinking the same thing. I just got back from Los Angeles and sometimes the stark contrast just feels so wrong. I was in a car sitting at a traffic light and as I looked around I saw 3 different luxury model cars sitting at the intersection and right on the corner was a homeless encampment.

What always amazes me about LA is how dirty the entire city is and how bad the roads are. You can walk past houses that are worth mega millions and a few minutes later be stepping over homeless people who have just collapsed or fallen asleep on the sidewalk. It is very depressing.

That’s California in a nutshell.

BookofMormon · Monday at 2:36 PM

Son_Of_Saul said:
UK evidently had $5 to 7 million to offer Kusturica, and they used some of that to help land Mitchell. We know Milan was in the $6 to 7 million range. Moreno is reported to have returned for around $3.5 to 4 million. Kepnang is likely around $1 million.

That's a ton of money to work with for next year if Pope has success this season, anywhere from $13.5 million to upwards of $19 million for those four players who go off the books. You likely return all of your guards (Diallo/Wilkins) and wings, add Hampton, and bring back a few critical role players in N'Diaye, McBride, Kam, Hawthorne, etc.

The part that BBN should get excited about is that this money was available about a pretty terrible season last season. The money is there and will likely always be there for Kentucky. People tend to forget that another "poor state" - Oklahoma with a similar average household income and population - has a pro NBA team. Their fans support the team because they're the only team in the state. I think in a similar way, the state of Kentucky has and will continue to rally around the Wildcats and treat them like an alternate pro team (which has been a reality in our history anyway).

You don't get the shared revenue like the Thunder do from the NBA, but you do get a similar fan support, if not more so. Being in the SEC certainly helps from a financial standpoint.

I know there had been questions about whether or not a state like Kentucky could compete in the wild west of the NIL, and it looks like that question has been answered with an emphatic, "yes", as well as be a top 3 player in the sport every year in terms of spending.

This should offer some confidence going forward. If UK can land the #1 portal class after a 22-14 season, it looks like our spending and support will never end for the basketball program, even in this current wild west landscape of NIL.

Money is helpful, but it's not everything. A competent coach with a system and plan is ultimately the most important

I'n not convinced hoarding a bunch of high priced transfers is the winning formula year over year. Smashing a bunch of dudes together with unique agenda's annually build doesn't build "team". Let's see this year. The more I look at the roster on paper, the more I think they should be competing for the SEC title.

chroix · Monday at 3:14 PM

I always feel bad for the less fortunate but basketball is not what made them poor.

Buckwheat Otay Is Dead · Monday at 3:50 PM

Bowfreak. said:
Kentucky does have poor people and children suffering. Poor people with children are suffering everywhere and it is so much more complicated than money. There are many things that lead to poverty and keep people poor with finances only being one of several factors.

UK will always have money for basketball no matter who coaches them. UK and Kentucky are two different situations. And as far as poor kids, LA, Chicago, and NYC have millions as in multi millions compared to Kentucky.

Bowfreak. · Monday at 4:25 PM

Buckwheat Otay Is Dead said:
UK will always have money for basketball no matter who coaches them. UK and Kentucky are two different situations. And as far as poor kids, LA, Chicago, and NYC have millions as in multi millions compared to Kentucky.

No doubt.

bigblueinsanity (the real) · Monday at 4:47 PM

Buckwheat Otay Is Dead said:
UK will always have money for basketball no matter who coaches them. UK and Kentucky are two different situations. And as far as poor kids, LA, Chicago, and NYC have millions as in multi millions compared to Kentucky.

We will but we wont be the big financial dawg we once were. Before, only a handful of schools spent big on basketball. Now several schools are. That directly coincides with our slide.

Dont believe me, just look at our last coaching search. Pope was way down the list but no one else would've said yes, except maybe Pearl.

UK never stopped spending or caring. Now they just have alot more company and are yet to figure out how to win with a level basketball playing field.

Anon794131 · Monday at 5:36 PM

Poverty has many factors: poorly educated parents, grandparents, etc. Children not monitored at young ages and "run wild" as teens. Parents that never read or cannot read to their children. Chaotic home life with no father and multiple male figures wandering around. Generation of poverty and lack of stable family life, etc. There is a reason that educated folks that grew up in those neighborhoods, move far away with their families.

BlueVelvetFog · Monday at 6:37 PM

So where is it all the money coming from. The Crafts?

TarHeelInCharlotte · Monday at 6:45 PM

Son_Of_Saul said:
UK evidently had $5 to 7 million to offer Kusturica, and they used some of that to help land Mitchell. We know Milan was in the $6 to 7 million range. Moreno is reported to have returned for around $3.5 to 4 million. Kepnang is likely around $1 million.

That's a ton of money to work with for next year if Pope has success this season, anywhere from $13.5 million to upwards of $19 million for those four players who go off the books.

Wait, do you think the players give back the money when they leave UK?

The NIL coffers don't just magically refill by the same amount every time a player turns pro or graduates. Someone from the program has to fundraise to get more NIL money each season.

If the boosters are happy and can afford it, they'll give money. If the economy has hit them, they may give less. If they suddenly decide they want a coach gone, they can refuse to donate at all.

TarHeelInCharlotte · Monday at 6:46 PM

TFCat11 said:
Pretty good war chest, but still well below the likes of Duke. Arkansas, Illinois, Texas, and maybe a couple of others. But right now, I’m just excited to watch the team Pope just assembled, because on paper, it’s a 3rd weekend level team, with an E8 being the floor.

BYU may have the biggest NIL chest. It's absurd what their boosters are willing to spend to get players.

gobigblue812_rivals29381 · Monday at 7:01 PM

The true reality is if top flight schools with rich alumni bases like Notre Dame, Stanford, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, etc were to put the full court press on for donations, UK would be far back in the rear view mirror.

chroix · Monday at 7:46 PM

gobigblue812_rivals29381 said:
The true reality is if top flight schools with rich alumni bases like Notre Dame, Stanford, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, etc were to put the full court press on for donations, UK would be far back in the rear view mirror.

And yet here we are.

Wayne Dougan · Tuesday at 2:48 PM

Johnnie Africa said:
Unfortunately Kentucky is a “poor state” with lots of children that are undoubtedly suffering. I’m as happy as the next guy that we can pay the college players competitively but this thread is also somewhat off putting when you start to really think about it.

Our poor live better than 99.99999% of the population that existed 7000 BC. They should have ZERO complaints.

gobigblue812_rivals29381 · Tuesday at 2:51 PM

chroix said:
And yet here we are.

Luckily those schools don't put much effort into NIL compared to the resources they could tap into.

Johnnie Africa · Tuesday at 3:01 PM

Wayne Dougan said:
Our poor live better than 99.99999% of the population that existed 7000 BC. They should have ZERO complaints.

That seems both like an exaggeration as well as something difficult to prove.

chroix · Tuesday at 3:16 PM

Johnnie Africa said:
That seems both like an exaggeration as well as something difficult to prove.

Read an interesting article about how long it took before the move from hunter gatherer to agrarian society was a net positive for humans. Took a lot longer than most people would think and caused a significant decline in lifespans and longevity that took thousands of years to recover from and didn't happen until the late 1800s. Since then the benefits are through the roof but up until then you were probably better off living off the land in a lot of ways. Definitely in the US.

Johnnie Africa · Tuesday at 3:23 PM

chroix said:
Read an interesting article about how long it took before the move from hunter gatherer to agrarian society was a net positive for humans. Took a lot longer than most people would think and caused a significant decline in lifespans and longevity that took thousands of years to recover from and didn't happen until the late 1800s. Since then the benefits are through the roof but up until then you were probably better off living off the land in a lot of ways. Definitely in the US.

A decent portion of the population in 7000 BC were fisherman. They would wake up with the sun, go fishing, poop in the ocean, then go back to their hut and bang their wife. Could be worse.

Johnnie Africa · Tuesday at 3:25 PM

chroix said:
Read an interesting article about how long it took before the move from hunter gatherer to agrarian society was a net positive for humans. Took a lot longer than most people would think and caused a significant decline in lifespans and longevity that took thousands of years to recover from and didn't happen until the late 1800s. Since then the benefits are through the roof but up until then you were probably better off living off the land in a lot of ways. Definitely in the US.

Have you read the book sapians? Just started it, basically a history of human kind. Not going to lie it’s a little drier than I anticipated but I’m going to try and power through the beginning. Some interesting stuff in there already though.

Major_Tom · Tuesday at 3:26 PM

*Fox2Monk* said:
That’s California in a nutshell.

It’s capitalism in a nutshell. Unchecked it creates income inequality over time. The 5th largest GDP in the world is likely to exhibit its best and worst characteristics. There are small towns that actually have higher rates of homelessness than large urban areas. But it’s less noticeable because rural homelessness tends to hidden away while urban areas have infrastructure that exposes it.

Johnnie Africa · Tuesday at 3:39 PM

Major_Tom said:
It’s capitalism in a nutshell. Unchecked it creates income inequality over time. The 5th largest GDP in the world is likely to exhibit its best and worst characteristics. There are small towns that actually have higher rates of homelessness than large urban areas. But it’s less noticeable because rural homelessness tends to hidden away while urban areas have infrastructure that exposes it.

I’d have to push back there. Capitalism shouldn’t lead to homelessness if executed properly. Income inequality is something impossible to avoid in any situation where you have varying degrees of ability anyway unless you are restricting or taking away from those at the top. I would wager the vast majority of homeless are people with psychological disorders or substance abuse issues. If someone is truly motivated and hardworking avoiding homelessness in the US shouldn’t be a huge feat. In some cases homeless people in communist countries such as Cuba will flee to a capitalist country like the US for better opportunities.

chroix · Tuesday at 3:43 PM

Johnnie Africa said:
Have you read the book sapians? Just started it, basically a history of human kind. Not going to lie it’s a little drier than I anticipated but I’m going to try and power through the beginning. Some interesting stuff in there already though.

It’s on Spotify as an audiobook. I’m about half way through it. Hard to go straight through like you said but super interesting stuff.

Goingfor9 · Tuesday at 3:52 PM

TFCat11 said:
Pretty good war chest, but still well below the likes of Duke. Arkansas, Illinois, Texas, and maybe a couple of others. But right now, I’m just excited to watch the team Pope just assembled, because on paper, it’s a 3rd weekend level team, with an E8 being the floor.

If Mitchell plays an elite 8 would be a failure. I mean, it would be proof that Pope’s not gonna get us to a final four.. don’t get a roster much deeper stack than this one in this day and age. The issue will be these players mesh chemistry. Last year we had all of that going into the season. Everyone was stoked but then the reality came in that our team didn’t know how to get along pope didn’t know how to help them get along. Those that left I mean, they left like the plague was found in memorial Colosseum.. and we spent the most last year on a team. There are alot of questions and ff is the floor. We can’t keep spending and ending with a mediocre seasons. The uk coaches that have won titles sans Rupp made the elite eight THEIR FIRST SEASON! Pope is in his third and with this roster making a regional final and losing would unpalatable. It would beg the question whether pope is capable. Whether he really understand the assignment and whether he is capable. At some point the bar has to be set and we have to say we need a ff coach. Not a former player who has such a good roster he can’t get out of the first weekend.

Son_Of_Saul · Tuesday at 3:54 PM

gobigblue812_rivals29381 said:
The true reality is if top flight schools with rich alumni bases like Notre Dame, Stanford, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, etc were to put the full court press on for donations, UK would be far back in the rear view mirror.

I keep hearing that, and yet I see UK dropping $45-$50 million combined on NIL for basketball the last two years alone while the others are mostly nowhere to be found.

So when does that theory of yours finally materialize? Additionally, why on earth would those supposed rich donors at the programs you listed give to basketball when football is the sport most of them crave elite status in?

gobigblue812_rivals29381 · Tuesday at 6:10 PM

Son_Of_Saul said:
I keep hearing that, and yet I see UK dropping $45-$50 million combined on NIL for basketball the last two years alone while the others are mostly nowhere to be found.

So when does that theory of yours finally materialize? Additionally, why on earth would those supposed rich donors at the programs you listed give to basketball when football is the sport most of them crave elite status in?

Sigh...

I said IF they wanted to. Do you disagree they wouldn't have a much bigger NIL?

Major_Tom · Tuesday at 9:09 PM

Johnnie Africa said:
I’d have to push back there. Capitalism shouldn’t lead to homelessness if executed properly. Income inequality is something impossible to avoid in any situation where you have varying degrees of ability anyway unless you are restricting or taking away from those at the top. I would wager the vast majority of homeless are people with psychological disorders or substance abuse issues. If someone is truly motivated and hardworking avoiding homelessness in the US shouldn’t be a huge feat. In some cases homeless people in communist countries such as Cuba will flee to a capitalist country like the US for better opportunities.

Can you define what you mean by “executed properly”?

I would agree that income inequality can’t completely be avoided. But it can be drastically minimized with proper anti-trust and ownership laws, progressive taxation, and investment in human capital. There exists no capitalist society on earth without social systems that correct for its flaws. Income inequality being a primary offender that needs correction. Denmark for example has a higher economic freedom index yet has lower income inequality because of its strong social policies.

Son_Of_Saul · 2026-08-26T06:24:15-0500

Major_Tom said:
Can you define what you mean by “executed properly”?

I would agree that income inequality can’t completely be avoided. But it can be drastically minimized with proper anti-trust and ownership laws, progressive taxation, and investment in human capital. There exists no capitalist society on earth without social systems that correct for its flaws. Income inequality being a primary offender that needs correction. Denmark for example has a higher economic freedom index yet has lower income inequality because of its strong social policies.

Ah, Denmark. Good ole Denmark. A country of 6 million homogeneous people where 87% of the population have descended from the same group of people for the last 12,000 years. Are we sure that much of their success doesn't extend from overwhelming common cultural values, some of the strictest immigration laws in the world, a homogenous population structure, and a general lack of an urban class cluster bomb that extends back to the Gilded Age?

I've always found comparisons to the Nordic countries and their economic/social systems to be the equivalent of someone comparing the teaching successes of a teacher (Nordic country system advocates) who runs a homeschool co-op with 6 kids from an affluent family structure giving condescending tips to an urban US teacher (US educational reality) who has a packed-out class with 36 students, half of whom have special education accommodations, while doing it as one teacher without even a paraprofessional to assist them.

Yes there are things we can learn from countries like Denmark, but from an institutional level, it's like comparing that homeschool co-op to the urban class and saying, "we can do that too if we just try harder and create better policies."

No we can't. Not until the desire for "urban renewal" is preceded with an American society that stops making excuses for inequality and starts prioritizing domestic accountability in terms of how we raise our children. Even if we had an entire culutural shift in terms of maximizing these priorities, I still think it would take two to three generations to cleanse our society of the old "who will save me" mindset that plagues the urban areas.

It doesn't look like we as a society are very interested in any of that. In fact, "the academy", and whatever is left of its soul, has made it their mission to crucify individuals like Booker T. Washington over the last 60 years merely because he prioritized self-accomplishment. Little wonder that urban education and poverty have maintained a bottom of the barrel status in that same span.

So since our supposed "leading academic minds" continue to drink the policy-as-salvation Kool-Aid instead of pushing all their chips in on individual work as the core principle of self advancement, I think we're cooked at the moment. Systems aren't going to change whether little Johnny goes to bed before 1 AM on a school night or whether or not he's eating a steady diet of Takis, french fries and Mountain Dew. That comes down to value priorities, and the urban value system is largely inadequate.

Wayne Dougan · 2026-08-26T08:56:57-0500

Johnnie Africa said:
That seems both like an exaggeration as well as something difficult to prove.

Yes, I agree. It was sarcasm for how a certain set of the population harps on how much better we have it today than 50, 100, 150 (insert time period) years ago whenever someone (rightfully) brings up a concern about their economic plight.

Example:
20 year old with dimming job prospects and $100K in student debt: "Burritos are $20 now. That sucks. We need to do something about affordability."

Ben Shapiro: "Eff you dude. Your great-great-grandfather was in the trenches in WW1. You have it soooooo much better now."

"Poor state" Kentucky will likely have a ton of money to spend next season, too.

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