There are two different thoughts on this Kentucky basketball team from the national media. Some are all in on this team and believe they are going to be great; others don’t have a ton of confidence in Mark Pope’s team.

It appears that Jon Rothstein is one that isn’t big on this Kentucky basketball team after he ranked the Wildcats ninth in the SEC behind teams like Ole Miss and Texas.

The thing that continues to be confusing about people not liking this Kentucky basketball team is how Coach Pope’s team is a carbon copy of the types of teams that have been making runs in the NCAA Tournament over the last few seasons.

This team is full of players who have played a lot of college basketball and have a lot of experience playing under the bright lights of March Madness.

Part of the concern with Coach Pope is that he doesn’t have any NCAA Tournament success, which is true and a fair point, but he has also never had a team with this much talent.

When it comes to X’s and O’s, there aren’t many coaches better than Coach Pope, but the issue is he has never had an elite team. His team last season at BYU was really good, but the talent he has on his first Kentucky roster doesn’t even compare.

While some might not be believers, this Kentucky team is more than capable of having a really good season, and there is no doubt that they will finish better than ninth in the SEC.

Kentucky football’s 2025 recruiting class is nearly complete, but there are still a few talented targets out there left on the staff’s Big Board.

As of August 1, schools were allowed to extend official scholarship offers to rising high school seniors. The majority of Kentucky’s 17 commits in the 2025 cycle posted graphics or videos indicating the they had received official offers, even if it’s mostly a formality for them at this point. However, there were at least four prospects of note (two committed elsewhere) who also received official offers from Mark Stoops‘ program.

Who is still hearing from the Wildcats as we near the end of the summer? Let’s quickly break them down:

Andrew Marsh (WR) 6-1, 175 | Katy Jordan (Fulshear, TX)
4-star: No. 62 overall, No. 11 WR

• Kentucky’s new wide receivers coach, Daikiel Shorts, is looking to land a homerun in his first season on the recruiting trail. The Wildcats have already landed three pass-catchers in this cycle, but none are as talented overall as Andrew Marsh. Along with UK, Marsh announced official offers from Michigan, Southern California, Texas, Washington, Colorado, and Penn State. Kentucky was able to get him on campus for an official visit in June, but the Wolverines appear to be carrying momentum going into a potential decision later this month.

Maison Dunn (CB) 6-3, 180 | Tupelo (Tupelo, MS) Ole Miss commit
4-star: No. 340 overall, No. 34 CB

• Committed to Ole Miss since May, Maison Dunn announced official offers on August 1 from the Rebels, Kentucky, LSU, and Mississippi State. Defensive backs coach Chris Collins didn’t offer Dunn until a week after his commitment to Ole Miss, but plenty of ground has been made up during that time. Kentucky is clearly serious about trying to flip Dunn. The next step will be getting him on campus for an official visit this fall.

Mikkel Skinner (TE) 6-4, 220 | Riverside (Greer, SC) Cincinnati commit
4-star: No. 386 overall, No. 21 TE

• Mikkel Skinner committed to Cincinnati in June, but his stock has been on the rise ever since. He was offered by associate head coach Vince Marrow in July and then unofficially visited Lexington a couple of weeks later. Along with UK, Skinner announced official offers from Cincinnati, West Virginia, and South Carolina. Although he’s still committed to the Bearcats, this recruitment is far from over. If he ultimately schedules an official visit to Kentucky for the fall, he’ll officially be on flip watch.

Dejerrian Miller (WR) 6-3, 190 | Cardinal Ritter College Prep (East Saint Louis, IL)
3-star: No. 433 overall, No. 72 WR

• Dejerrian “DJ” Miller isn’t a new name for those who follow Kentucky football recruiting closely. He’s been on the staff’s Big Board since being offered a verbal scholarship in Dec. 2023. Miller even unofficially visited Lexington in April before taking his official visit in July. Fast forward to August and he announced official scholarship offers from UK, Ole Miss, and UCLA. It should be noted that Miller’s Top 8 from February included Kentucky, Michigan, Oregon, Tennessee, Missouri, Kansas State, Michigan State, and Miami (FL). The Wildcats have remained in the mix for a long time now.

There are certainly other 2025 recruits on the Kentucky staff’s mind, but these four receiving and announcing official scholarship offers tell us the Wildcats are serious about getting them to wear blue and white.