Mitchell Not Coming to UK

megablue

Heisman
Oct 2, 2012
16,409
17,015
113
Classic RR....

Before adding Mitchell.."We have a Top 15 team "

Lose Mitchell.."We are the worst team in tge SEC and likely miss the Big Dance"
We should still be a competitive team in the conference and nationally, although the loss of Mitchell clearly hurts.
N'Diaye, McBride, Hawthorne and Noah will simply have to step up ... we'll soon see what happens.

Question: Will we roll with fourteen (14) or is there time to pick up a fifteenth player ... assuming he can be expected to provide major help ??
 
Aug 20, 2026
5
13
3
Man it’s really amazing how no matter what he tries to do, mark pope fails

I mean this one isn’t exactly his fault but it’s just another time he got the fanbase’s hopes up for no reason. The guy cannot catch a break and he straight up doesn’t have enough talent to keep his job at UK after this year
I don’t know, it kind of is his fault. He can’t recruit players of Mitchell’s caliber when he has to go against actual coaches. He got Momcilovic because he withdrew so late in the process that everyone else had already spent their budget, and he only got Mitchell because no one wanted to deal with the legal nonsense (for good reason, clearly)
 
Jan 30, 2004
105,956
13,905
78
We should still be a competitive team in the conference and nationally, although the loss of Mitchell clearly hurts.
N'Diaye, McBride, Hawthorne and Noah will simply have to step up ... we'll soon see what happens.

Question: Will we roll with fourteen (14) or is there time to pick up a fifteenth player ... assuming he can be expected to provide major help ??
Noah lol
 

Drcatfan

All-Conference
Apr 14, 2015
1,441
1,653
61
For anyone that says this isn't Pope's fault. The recruiting and development of a roster is 100% Pope's responsibility. I would argue Pope did a mediocre job assembling a roster and Mitchell was almost a gift that landed in his lap.

I just hope a 19-11 record with a tourney bid and 2nd round exit is not considered "good enough" to keep saying one more year.
 

RobEStacy

Senior
May 21, 2007
859
831
93
Part of me is glad this happened now.... Because we would have played the whole season always wondering if another judge was going to overturn the TRO, and every game he played in would have been forfeited.... Pope took a chance.... And The SEC AND NCAA screwed it up.... He has a decent roster for this year, Mitchell was just extra.

It's gotten to the point.... I hate college sport now.. It's a shell of what it was. Wish congress would step in and lay some laws down..or the power conferences break away and form there own league. And get away from the joke of the NCAA.
 

DudahUK

Heisman
Jul 23, 2020
8,519
13,097
113
Nothing to do with him being from the SEC just that he didn't enter the portal in the spring. Aberdeen is still eligible and gonna play, he entered the portal on time. However this is an example of interleague team switching that's allowed.
It has everything to do with him being from the SEC. He’s been granted an extra year by the courts(so far) and the SEC transfer rule is what was holding him up from playing at UK. Hence his movement back to Missouri. Right?
 
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UKCowboys

All-American
Oct 14, 2019
5,050
9,576
113
We should still be a competitive team in the conference and nationally, although the loss of Mitchell clearly hurts.
N'Diaye, McBride, Hawthorne and Noah will simply have to step up ... we'll soon see what happens.

Question: Will we roll with fourteen (14) or is there time to pick up a fifteenth player ... assuming he can be expected to provide major help ??
We obviously have money. Does Cade Tyson move the needle? IDK. I think we were the courts play out and roll with what we have, but if the players win, there will likely be someone available that can play
 

cornbreadnmilk

All-American
Nov 5, 2025
1,697
6,455
113
Part of me is glad this happened now.... Because we would have played the whole season always wondering if another judge was going to overturn the TRO, and every game he played in would have been forfeited.... Pope took a chance.... And The SEC AND NCAA screwed it up.... He has a decent roster for this year, Mitchell was just extra.

It's gotten to the point.... I hate college sport now.. It's a shell of what it was. Wish congress would step in and lay some laws down..or the power conferences break away and form there own league. And get away from the joke of the NCAA.
A decent roster is all some UK fans hope for now.
 

DudahUK

Heisman
Jul 23, 2020
8,519
13,097
113
Part of me is glad this happened now.... Because we would have played the whole season always wondering if another judge was going to overturn the TRO, and every game he played in would have been forfeited.... Pope took a chance.... And The SEC AND NCAA screwed it up.... He has a decent roster for this year, Mitchell was just extra.

It's gotten to the point.... I hate college sport now.. It's a shell of what it was. Wish congress would step in and lay some laws down..or the power conferences break away and form there own league. And get away from the joke of the NCAA.
Alabama didn’t have any games forfeited last year.
 

JPFisher

Heisman
Jul 24, 2013
6,863
13,364
113
People will say this wasn’t Popes fault. I’d say if he hadn’t whiffed on every major target, we wouldn’t have needed Mitchell.
Which PF did we whiff on? The guy who went to St. John's and blew his ACL or a whatever tendon it was to shreds? That's the only one I can remember and it was a blessing in disguise. Seems like the PFs were lacking in the portal this year.
 
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Cats_2010

Heisman
Jan 8, 2010
11,907
20,359
103
When Cal first arrived all we had was smooth sailing for the first several years. Recruits lined up in droves to play here, we won a lot and were consistently on the top of the college basketball board and in the conversation. Things went South with Cal and a change was rightfully made.

But it really has been just the opposite with Pope after assembling his first team which did come together nicely especially under the circumstances. But multiple injuries derailed our season and it has been downhill since then. His fault or not, things have been a total **** show with him in charge and the buck stops at the top. He will get a 3rd season but anything less than a stellar season should lead to a coaching change. UK basketball was not built to be a circus but that is exactly what we have become under Pope.
 
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