Time to unleash Jasper Johnson? 'He's ready to go make a contribution, and we need him to.'

Jaland Lowe‘s long-term status is no longer in question, unfortunately. After going down in the opening minutes of Kentucky’s 24-point win over Mississippi State with a third shoulder dislocation of the season, Mark Pope announced Monday that the junior point guard would be shutting things down and undergoing season-ending surgery.

“We just finished a long meeting with Jaland Lowe — a really emotional meeting, actually,” he said. “… We have pushed the envelope on him in every way. … We searched, tried every possible reasonable scenario to have him continue on, but just made the wise and right decision today that he’ll go have surgery, so he’ll be out for the season. It’ll be multiple months — six months, give or take — rehab for him to get back to 100 percent health.”

It’s a brutal blow to the Wildcats, obviously, losing the Preseason All-SEC playmaker just nine games into his career in blue and white. He will apply for a medical redshirt in hopes of keeping two seasons of remaining eligibility in college.

For now, though, Kentucky has basketball games to win and someone will have to step up in Lowe’s absence the rest of the way. Could it be Lexington’s own Jasper Johnson taking over lead guard duties?

Denzel Aberdeen and Collin Chandler have done it in a pinch, but Pope singled out Johnson as the name to watch moving forward, saying, “It’s time for Jasper to step up and really start making a huge contribution.”

“Jasper’s ready,” Pope told KSR on Monday.

Johnson’s rookie season has had its fair share of highs and lows, the former mostly in weaker non-conference matchups and the latter in the name-brand competition games. He’s scored 22 points against NC Central and 11 apiece vs. Nicholls and Bellarmine with six games of four-plus assists. Against Louisville, Michigan State, UNC, Gonzaga, Indiana, St. John’s and Alabama, he’s combined for 20 total points.

Playing time has been inconsistent, at best, as has the shot volume. We haven’t gotten to see much of Johnson playing with the freedom and confidence that made him the prized five-star signee he was coming out of OTE.

Lowe’s absence opens the door for the former five-star recruit to make a greater impact, but Pope believes that would have been the case no matter the starting point guard’s injury situation. One way or another, Johnson’s time is here.

“He’s gone through a non-conference season, he’s worked really hard every single day. He’s showing on the court,” Pope said. “He was another guy where his numbers didn’t jump out and grab you in the game (against Mississippi State), but the force and the decisiveness that he played with in the game, both on the offensive and defensive end, I was really pleased with it.

“He’s ready to go make a contribution, and we need him to. Regardless of the health on our team, we need him to, because he brings a unique skillset. He’s improving and growing in a great way.”

How difficult has it been to keep Johnson engaged with his inconsistent role, knowing just how badly he has wanted to be out there and help make an impact? That comes with life in college basketball, especially when you have deep and talented rosters like this one.

Everyone has a different path and learning curve — Johnson’s was just windier and steeper to begin his freshman season as a Wildcat. Distractions typically come with those things, and avoiding them hasn’t been easy.

“One of the things I’ve been really proud of Jasper with is that he’s been pretty relentless. The key is — listen, the game tries to do the same thing to everybody. It tries to distract you from the only thing that really matters, which is getting better every day,” Pope said. “… The truth is, every single day you get distracted by anything, by wins and losses or by minutes or points or praise or accolades or criticism, right? Every minute that you get distracted is a minute that you’re not growing and that you’re falling behind and that you don’t have the opportunity to actually put yourself in a position to win. 

“I’ve been proud of Jasper. This has been a little bit of a zig-zag road for him — like it’s supposed to be. It’s supposed to be for a freshman, but he’s done a really solid job about staying focused on getting better.”

Up next? Turning that potential and growth into consistent on-court production, especially with a glaring hole at point guard and extended run now inevitable.

He overcame quite a bit in his first half-season in the blue and white, but it’s on Johnson to make sure the results were worth the wait. The ball is officially in the Lexington native’s court.

“He clearly has a huge ceiling, and he’s grown a lot this season, so he’s going to get an increased chance to have a massive impact on this team,” Pope said of Johnson shortly after announcing Lowe’s season-ending surgery. “We’re excited about it. He’s a special young man, a gifted, talented player, and we’re going to get to see him grow in front of the whole world.”

Ready or not, kid. It’s your time to shine.