Kentucky expected to be involved with BYU star Rob Wright III

Could this be the one for Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats? Arguably the most talented scoring guard in the country among those expected to return to college basketball has entered the portal, BYU star Rob Wright III deciding to explore his transfer options — and UK is expected to be a player in this one, multiple sources tell KSR.

The 6-1 sophomore out of Delaware averaged 18.1 points, 4.6 assists and 3.5 rebounds per contest on 47/41/82 splits for the Cougars alongside likely No. 1 draft pick AJ Dybantsa (25.5 PPG, 6.8 RPG). They were a three-headed monster with standout guard Richie Saunders (18.0 PPG, 5.8 RPG) before he went down with a season-ending torn ACL in February. BYU would finish with a No. 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament before being upset by No. 11 seed Texas in the opening round, ending the year with a 23-12 record.

Wright was an absolute scoring machine this season in Provo, hitting the 20-point mark on 11 different occasions with two 30-point performances — including a 39-point effort. He started his career at Baylor, averaging 11.5 points, 4.2 assists and 2.1 rebounds on 41/35/80 splits in year one. Coming out of high school, the four-star prospect was ranked No. 28 overall and No. 2 among point guards in the 2024 Rivals Industry Ranking.

He was ranked No. 9 overall and No. 4 among point guards in the On3 Portal Rankings transferring from Baylor to BYU and immediately becomes one of the top players available this cycle, regardless of position.

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Kentucky got return commitments from Malachi Moreno and Kam Williams while Jaland Lowe, Denzel Aberdeen, Mo Dioubate, Andrija Jelavic, Brandon Garrison and Jasper Johnson have all decided to enter the portal. The Wildcats are still waiting for final answers from Collin Chandler, Trent Noah, Braydon Hawthorne and Reece Potter regarding their respective futures.

With Lowe, Aberdeen and Johnson out, Pope is starting completely fresh at the point guard position going into year three. He added a solid depth piece in four-star Mason Williams — son of new assistant coach Mo Williams — but they’re still on the hunt for a top option at PG1.

Rob Wright III absolutely fits the bill and is someone to keep a very close eye on, BBN.