for my column I wrote about Bryce HopkinsKentucky transfer Joe will lead Providence against his former team in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on Friday night.
This inspired me to research and rank 15 players who left UK under John Calipari and went on to play for other college programs.
1. Johnny Jujang
After averaging 2.9 points per game in 28 games as a freshman at UK in 2019-20, the 6-foot-6 guard returned home to UCLA, where he helped the Bruins to the Final Four in 2021. Jujang averaged 16.0 points per game. on the season and scored 28 points in UCLA’s 51–49 East Region title game win over Michigan, then had 29 points in a 93–90 overtime loss to Gonzaga in the Final Four.
After averaging 15.6 points per game last season for UCLA, Jujang Makes the Jump to the NBA, Not drafted, he is now with the Utah Jazz.
2. Kyle Wiltzer
The 6-foot-10 forward from Portland played two seasons at Kentucky, averaging 5.0 points per game off the bench for the 2011-12 title team, then 10.2 in 2012-13. He started 10 games that season before transferring to Gonzaga. After sitting out 2013–14 under the old transfer rules, Wiltzer averaged 16.8 points as a junior and 20.4 as a senior for the Zags. he helped gonzaga 2015 South Region Finals where Gonzaga lost to Duke, Wiltzer now plays in the Chinese Basketball Association.
3. Bryce Hopkins
Going 6-6 out of Oak Park, Illinois, he could move up to No. 2 by the end of his college career. Last season, Hopkins averaged only 2.1 points and 6.5 minutes. This season in Providence, Hopkins was a first-team All-Big East selection. After averaging 16.1 points and 8.5 rebounds for the 21–11 Friars. He is one of five finalists for the Karl Malone Award, given to the nation’s top power forward.
4. Charles Mathews
The 6-6 guard from Chicago averaged just 1.7 points and 10.3 minutes per game for Calipari in 2015-16. He left to join John Beilein at Michigan, where he averaged 13.0 points in 2017–18 and 12.2 points in 2018–19. He started all 75 of his games as a Wolverine, including the 2018 NCAA title game which Michigan lost to Villanova. Mathews is currently playing in the G-League.
5. Keon Brooks
After developing into a team leader over three seasons at Kentucky, Brooks moved to Washington as a graduate transfer, The 6-7 forward from Fort Wayne, Indiana, averaged 4.5, 10.3 and 10.8 points per game as a Wildcat. He averaged 17.7 points and 6.7 rebounds for the Huskies this season, going 16–16 overall and 8–12 in the Pac-12.
6. Ryan Harrow
Harrow did not have an enjoyable season at Kentucky. After averaging 9.3 points per game at North Carolina State in 2010-11, the 6-2 point guard from Marietta, Georgia transferred to Kentucky. He averaged 9.9 points per game for the 2012–13 Wildcats, who finished in the NIT. After that, Harrow returned to Georgia State, where he averaged 17.8 points as a junior and 18.3 as a senior. His senior year, the Panthers knocked Baylor in the NCAA tournament before losing to Xavier. Harrow is currently playing in France.
7. Quad Green
The 6-foot-point guard from Philadelphia averaged 9.3 points and 2.7 assists per game for the Wildcats in 2017-18. He left the program in February 2019 after playing in just nine games that season, none of them as a starter. Green ended in Washington where he averaged 11.6 points and 5.3 assists per game in 2019–20 after becoming eligible in mid-season. He averaged 15.4 points as a senior in 2020–21. He most recently played for Oklahoma City in the G League.
8. Marcus Lee
Went 6-9 out of Antioch, California, played three seasons at Kentucky. He averaged 2.4 points and started four games on the 2013–14 team as a freshman, then averaged 2.6 points as a sophomore and 6.4 as a junior. For his senior season, Lee transferred to California, where he averaged 11.4 points and 7.2 rebounds for the Golden Bears. Lee has played professionally in Greece, Italy, Turkey and Australia.
9. Gemral Baker
The 6-5 guard from Menifee, California, sat out the 2017-18 season after knee surgery, then averaged just 2.3 points per game in 2018-19 at Kentucky. He transferred to Arizona, where he averaged 5.7 points in 2019–20 and 12.0 in only 12 games the following season. From there, Baker moved to Fresno State, where he averaged 8.6 points in 2021-22 and 12.5 this season. Baker scored 43 points on March 4 in the Bulldogs’ win over Chicago State. Fresno finished the year at 11–20.
10. Devin Askew
It took some time for Askew, but the 6-3 guard from Sacramento, California, has hit his stride with his third college program. Askew started 20 of 25 games in 2020–21, but averaged only 6.4 points per game at UK. He transferred to Texas, where he averaged only 14.9 minutes and 2.1 points per game. After one year in Austin, he moved closer to home at the University of California, where he averaged 15.5 points and 3.0 assists in 13 games for the Golden Bears. he missed the rest of the season with a sports hernia injury,
11. Dontai Allen
The 6-6 sharpshooter from Pendleton County played 41 games as a Wildcat, averaging 5.4 points per game in 2020-21 and 2.2 in 2021-22. After transferring to Western Kentucky, Allen started 11 of 26 games and averaged 9.3 points per game this season. During one February, he scored 20-or-more points in three of WKU’s four games.
12. Cameron Fletcher
During the 2020–21 season for the Cats, Fletcher played in only nine games as St. Louis went 6–6, averaging 1.7 points per game. He transferred to Florida State where he averaged 6.8 points per game last year. This season, he started nine of 10 games for the Seminoles, averaging 10.8 points per game. before injuring his knee in early December, He missed the rest of the campaign.
13. Darnell Dodson
A member of Calipari’s first team at Kentucky, Dodson started seven of 35 games, averaging 6.0 points per game. 6-7 swingman from Greenbelt, Maryland, transferred to Southern Miss. He played just one season in Hattiesburg in 2011–12, averaging 11.2 points per game. Dodson recently played in Argentina.
14. Stacey Poole
The 6-4 swingman from Jacksonville played one season at Kentucky, averaging 0.3 points in 16 games during the 2010-11 campaign. He left for Georgia Tech, where he played 41 games off the bench over two seasons. Poole averaged 1.5 points per game in 2012–13 and 3.4 points per game in 2013–14.
On paper, I like the NCAA tournament draw of Kentucky basketball. On the court, not so much.
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