Kentucky
Mark Pope shares his approach to continuing Kentucky's success in the NBA Draft
49 Kentucky players were drafted into the NBA during the John Calipari era. Despite having a couple of guards in Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham expected to hear their names called early later this summer — has the Wildcats’ NBA Draft tradition left with Calipari to Arkansas?
According to new head coach Mark Pope, he doesn’t think so.
“It’s been a mainstay of Kentucky basketball since the beginning of time,” Pope told local reporters. “I mean, my senior season (1996) we won a national championship and we had nine guys for that team going into play at least seven years in the NBA. Nine — that’s 75 percent if my math is right, so this brilliant relationship between Kentucky basketball and the NBA is something that’s been long-standing and I think it’s vital and important.”
Calipari had a first-round draft choice in every year that he was head coach in Lexington. Before that, Kentucky produced just six draft choices from 2000-2009. That group included legends of the program in Jodie Meeks, Rajon Rondo and Tayshaun Prince, but pales in comparison to what came after.
However, the NBA was very kind to UK in the 80s and 90s, seeing 29 Wildcats — including Pope in 1996 — hear their name called in the draft over those two decades.
“For us, it’s a manifestation of the success that we have here,” Pope continued, alluding to the eight national titles UK has won under five different head coaches across all eras of college basketball. “When you see teams win, and win at the highest level — it’s because they have good players and those players become great. Players that become great have a chance to play.
“Our relationship with the NBA — if we do well and our guys do well — it will continue in massive earnest, clearly like it did with Cal. Like it did with Tubby [Smith], with coach [Rick Pitino, Joe B. [Hall]. Hopefully we will continue down that road because it’s a really important part of what we do.”
It will be tough to surpass the 50+ former Kentucky players that Calipari will ultimately have drafted by the beginning of next season.
Mark Pope will look to keep the tradition going as Kentucky moves forward with its new head coach. As for year one, he has put together a team full of college veterans. Whether their game will carry over to the NBA isn’t as easy to predict as one of Calipari’s five-star recruits, but Pope’s squad will likely still get looks from NBA scouts simply from the name on the front of the jersey alone.
GRAYSON, Ky. (WSAZ) – New information has been released in the search for a missing woman at Grayson Lake.
According to game wardens with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, Marly Kinney, 19, of Ashland, was last seen at Grayson Lake on Wednesday afternoon.
They say search efforts are focused on the water at this time and include Kentucky State Police aerial support, drones, boats, and K9 assistance.
Crews suspend search for missing teen for the night
The search is now into its third day, with officials saying on and off rain has hindered their search and that a group of 50 volunteers are walking the banks of the lake to help in the search.
Search and rescue boats have been seen at the lake as well.
Officials say there are still many questions, including if Kinney is still alive and where exactly she went missing.
They also say they’ve been using a variety of equipment, including sonar and thermal detectors, as well as helicopters and underwater drones.
WSAZ received a statement from Kinney’s family Friday afternoon:
“We are very appreciative of the absolute surplus of support from law enforcement, search and rescue, 1st responders, and all of the community and its volunteers that are here with us and for us searching for Marly. We do not even know how to express our absolute gratitude to you all. We continue to have faith she will be found and brought back to us. We know we have the very best people doing all they can to bring her home.”
Anyone with information is asked to call 911.
We are still working to get more information.
Previous coverage can be found here.
Copyright 2026 WSAZ. All rights reserved.
13 things more likely to happen than winning the Powerball jackpot
Hoping to win the Powerball jackpot? Here are 13 things more likely to happen than becoming an instant millionaire.
The Kentucky Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at Thursday, June 25, 2026 winning numbers for each game.
Cash Ball
02-08-24-32, Cash Ball: 09
Check Cash Ball payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 3
Evening: 6-3-0
Midday: 9-6-0
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 4
Evening: 5-7-6-0
Midday: 5-2-6-6
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Millionaire for Life
03-13-14-34-45, Bonus: 01
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Courier Journal digital producer. You can send feedback using this form.
On Thursday, Kentucky’s home and away SEC opponents for the 2026-27 season were revealed and on top of learning the three opponents who they will play twice, there are some very intriguing matchups. In conference play, Kentucky will face six teams who are among the top 25 in many preseason rankings.
In SEC play, Kentucky will play Tennessee, Vandy and Ole Miss all both home and away. The home matchups include Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, LSU, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas A&M and Vandy. As for the road tilts, the Wildcats will face Florida, Georgia, Mississippi State, Missouri, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee and Vandy. Let’s take a look at some interesting developments from the schedule release.
John Calipari returns to Rupp Arena (again)
In Calipari’s first year with Arkansas, he got the best of Kentucky when he came into Rupp Arena and left with a 10-point victory, a game where you could really feel the tension all game long in the building from Kentucky fans, which translated onto the court with the players. Last season, it was Kentucky who shocked everyone when they stole one on the road against a top 20 Arkansas team after a rough up-and-down season up to that point. Now, the two will face off again as Kentucky will look to get the win in Rupp and make sure Calipari doesn’t get two in a row in the building. It’ll be another highly-anticipated showdown.
Kentucky hits the road at Texas
This is shaping up to be a major challenge for Kentucky next season and may even end up being one of the biggest games of the season. Texas is seen by many as a clear top 10 team, with some even having them within the top five and when you combine that with the fact that the game is on the road, the Wildcats will have their hands full. The Wildcats fell to the longhorns in the 2024-25 season, and it’ll be a much stiffer challenge this time.
Which game could be a trap?
We don’t have the game-by-game dates yet, so it’s hard to say with a lot of confidence, but opponent-wise, Georgia could really give Kentucky fits. In Pope’s first year, his team struggled handling the physicality of the Bulldogs and now, they’ve retained one of their best guards for another year and have added physicality through the portal. Mike White’s teams love to make opponents uncomfortable and they could do that once again down in Athens. Another sneaky team to watch is Oklahoma, who will have very good guard play. Kentucky will face both teams on the road.
Overall, it’s a pretty fair SEC schedule for a Kentucky team who has the capability of a return to being atop the conference once again. Mark Pope has such a system-fit squad and he can do some damage in the SEC.
Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and YouTube for the latest news.
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
-
Los Angeles, Ca27 minutes agoWatch Project Angel Food's 'Lead with Love' telethon on KTLA
-
Detroit, MI47 minutes agoMetro Detroit weather forecast, June 26, 2026 — 4 p.m. Update
-
San Francisco, CA57 minutes agoNewlyweds celebrate Pride-themed weddings inside SF City Hall as parade preparations underway
-
Dallas, TX1 hour agoAll Dallas restaurants firing up specials for July 4th and America’s 250th
-
Miami, FL1 hour agoHelping Venezuela: State Department deploys Miami-Dade search-and-rescue team
-
Boston, MA1 hour agoPhotos: Norway takes on France in high-powered World Cup matchup in Foxborough – The Boston Globe
-
Denver, CO1 hour agoDenver Transplant Games sets Guinness World Record for mos living donors, recipients in one place at one time
-
Seattle, WA1 hour agoHow to watch Egypt vs. Iran World Cup match in Seattle
