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Starting Thursday, there won’t be any more potential basketball transfers on Kentucky’s campus.
This is the day that the NCAA’s “dead period” begins, and that means college coaches who have been searching the transfer portal for possible additions for next season — i.e. every college coach in the country — won’t be permitted to meet in person with recruits, on or off campus.
That won’t put a total pause on the portal madness — coaches, players, agents and anyone else with a stake in roster movement this offseason will still be permitted to work the phones, which will still be buzzing at all hours — but it does mean Kentucky won’t be hosting any recruits for campus visits.
The dead period will last through April 10, making April 11 the next day that college coaches will be permitted to bring recruits back on campus (and get on the road themselves to meet with potential additions off campus).
Once that recruiting period begins April 11, it will be open until the end of the month. Off-campus recruiting will shut down for good starting May 1, though campus visits will still be allowed for portions of May, June, July and August.
It’s a good bet, however, that the majority of Kentucky’s 2025-26 roster will be in place by the end of the April recruiting period, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Wildcats pick up some more commitments during the dead period.
As of now, UK’s only pledge out of the transfer portal is former Tulane wing Kam Williams, who committed to the Cats on the morning of Kentucky’s loss to Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament last week.
The Herald-Leader confirmed that UK hosted only two potential transfers on campus before the dead period kicked in Thursday. Those visitors were former Florida State forward Taylor Bol Bowen and former Indiana forward Mackenzie Mgbako.
Pope and his staff did recruit off campus over the past several days, however.
With the Kentucky coaches unable to meet with players in person during the dead period, they’ll be headed to San Antonio — the site of the Final Four — for the annual NABC convention for college coaches, an event that runs Thursday through Monday.
Kentucky head coach Mark Pope is working with his staff to build the Wildcats’ roster for the 2025-26 season.
Kentucky head coach Mark Pope is working with his staff to build the Wildcats’ roster for the 2025-26 season.
One of the first major transfer portal names linked to Kentucky in this cycle was former Georgia guard Silas Demary Jr. — a 6-foot-5 sophomore who would give Pope some of the size, physicality and defensive presence he’s looking for this spring.
Demary was such a serious immediate target for the Wildcats that several members of the UK coaching staff hit the road to pay him a visit within 24 hours of the Cats’ season-ending loss to Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament.
It doesn’t sound like Demary will end up at Kentucky.
As of Wednesday night, UConn had emerged as the favorite to land his commitment, with BYU and St. John’s as other potential options and the Wildcats seemingly no longer a serious landing spot. BYU, of course, was the program Pope coached for the five seasons before coming to Lexington, and St. John’s is now coached by Rick Pitino, who landed a commitment from former UK player Bryce Hopkins earlier in the week.
UConn won the national title in 2023 and 2024 before being ousted by Florida in the second round of this year’s NCAA Tournament last month. Coach Dan Hurley already has three McDonald’s All-Americans set to join the Huskies’ program for next season.
Kentucky is still searching for a starting point guard next season to replace Lamont Butler, who is out of NCAA eligibility. Backup point guard Kerr Kriisa entered the transfer portal Monday.
UAB forward Yaxel Lendeborg averaged 17.7 points, 11.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.7 steals per game for the Blazers this past season.
UAB forward Yaxel Lendeborg averaged 17.7 points, 11.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.7 steals per game for the Blazers this past season.
New transfer portal rankings
247Sports dropped its first official transfer portal rankings for 2025 on Wednesday.
The player in the No. 1 spot is former UAB forward Yaxel Lendeborg, who has one season of NCAA eligibility remaining, though he’s projected as a possible first-round pick in this year’s NBA draft and is still exploring a possible jump to the pros.
Lendeborg met with Mark Pope this week and has now had multiple conversations with the UK coaching staff since entering the transfer portal. A 6-foot-9, 240-pound forward from Pennsauken, New Jersey, he averaged 17.7 points, 11.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.7 steals per game for the Blazers this season, making 25 3-pointers at a rate of 35.7%.
His skill set — a big forward who can bring the ball up the floor and facilitate in the halfcourt — would be an ideal fit for Pope’s system, though Auburn has long been seen as a potential favorite, other major programs are in pursuit, and the NBA will remain an option.
Lendeborg, who played in junior college before moving to UAB, was also named the American Athletic Conference defensive player of the year following each of the past two seasons.
Kentucky commitment Kam Williams was listed at No. 25 in the 247Sports transfer rankings.
Both of Louisville’s early transfer commitments were highly placed on the list, with Adrian Wooley at No. 5 and Ryan Conwell at No. 12.
Mackenzie Mgbako, who visited UK on Wednesday, is No. 58 in the expanded 247Sports rankings.
Louisville, Tennessee updates
Are two of Kentucky’s biggest rivals on the verge of getting richer?
Louisville already has Adrian Wooley and Ryan Conwell — both backcourt players — in the fold for Pat Kelsey’s second season as the Cardinals’ head coach.
Tennessee appears to be closing in on former Maryland point guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie, who is No. 6 in the 247Sports transfer portal rankings. Gillespie met with the Vols’ coaches Wednesday — before the dead period began — and Rick Barnes will be looking to bolster his backcourt with the loss of 1-2 punch Zakai Zeigler and Chaz Lanier from this past season’s team.
And one of those two programs is likely to land another coveted portal player.
Former Virginia guard Isaac McKneely — the No. 14 transfer in the 247Sports rankings — has already visited Tennessee and Louisville, and those two teams are viewed as the favorites (likely in that order) for his commitment.
McKneely has shot 233-for-552 from 3-point range (42.2%) over his three years at Virginia, and he’s trending toward being a potential thorn in Kentucky’s side for the 2025-26 season.
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