'He Wished He Had a Fair Chance at Kentucky.' Providence Players Candid About Bryce Hopkins' UK Reunion
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Providence forward Bryce Hopkins used to play for Kentucky.
Did you know that? Have you possibly heard about that since the NCAA Tournament bracket was released on Sunday evening?
Believe it or not, it's true. After one season in Lexington, Hopkins packed his bags, hit the transfer portal, landed in Rhode Island and is now playing for the Friars.
Those same Friars will now play the Wildcats in the Round of 64 on Friday night inside Greensboro Coliseum.
Caught up to speed? Good.
Any question that has been asked about the storyline to either Hopkins, Providence coach Ed Cooley, Kentucky coach John Calipari or any player on UK, it's been cordial. Mutual showings of respect, nothing but love.
That was reiterated by the aforementioned parties on Thursday.
"He is a terrific player," Calipari said. "Being with us and part of our family and hated to see him go, but I understood. Still love him. He bounces it. He is physical. He can shoot the ball. He gets to the foul line. He is a terrific player."
"When we saw we were playing Providence, we have a group chat still from last year's team, and I texted in group chat. He texted back. We had a little fun with it. Yeah, we're excited to play them," UK forward Jacob Toppin said. "Providence, they're a really good team. Bryce, he is a really good player. We played against him, so we know he is a really good player."
"It's gonna be a big game, emotional game," Hopkins explained. "I just want to reinforce to my teammates that, you know, I'm playing for them and I'm planning to win. I'm not looking at it as a revenge game."
There was no need for anyone to muddy the waters in the first place. On the Kentucky side of things, the admiration for the former Wildcat feels real. When the bracket was revealed, Toppin rose from the couch in the living room of Calipari's house and exclaimed "B-Hop!"
Calipari sat in his foyer on Sunday night and explained to reporters how much he enjoyed having Hopkins on the team, as well as his love for the entire Hopkins family. No bad blood in the slightest.
Other Providence players carry a different perspective, however. Not one that paints Hopkins full of hate, but one that suggests he wasn't particularly happy about his situation in the Bluegrass a season ago.
When asked if he's spoken with Hopkins about his experience at Kentucky, senior forward Ed Croswell was candid:
“Bryce has explained to us, like, you know, he wished he had a fair chance at Kentucky, but he has moved past it, and he is at his happy home now, and Providence has taken him in. He has passed it, and now he is playing some of the best basketball of his career.”
Croswell is right. Hopkins leads the Friars in points (16.1) and rebounds (8.5) per game. He's the straw that stirs the drink for one of the best offenses in the nation. This all comes after he couldn't find consistent minutes at Kentucky.
Hopkins actually addressed some of his shortcomings for the Cats in an interview with The Athletic's Brian Hamilton back in February, pointing to how he was expected to play:
Not exactly an indictment on Kentucky, but also not encouraging when you hear Calipari utter the phrase "they're not machines, they're not robots" three times a month.
“I don’t really feel like he is worried about what happened at Kentucky," Providence guard Alyn Breed added. "I feel like he is more focused on this opportunity now, and I feel like he is going to take full advantage of it.”
Hopkins sat in the Providence locker room, surrounded by a pool of UK media, acknowledging the emotions he's feeling as Friday rapidly approaches — granted, the emotion becomes a little less natural when it's the 20th time he's been asked the same set of questions in the span of a week.
Some of those real feelings were reignited though, as he passed by a couple of his former teammates, Lance Ware and Sahvir Wheeler. He gave each a big hug and shared a laugh, saying "it's a family reunion."
Hopkins was the one who made the choice to move away from his family. Sitting on the bench and being a cheerleader more than a basketball player wasn't in the Oak Park, Ill. native's cards.
"I think some kids, when they enter the transfer portal, they're just looking for a new opportunity," he said. That's pretty much the biggest reason why I had transferred, is just looking for an opportunity to put myself in the best position to showcase my talents."
Now, little brother is all grown up in his new home with his new family. Hopkins has showcased his talents for 32 games in a Friar uniform, and now gets to do it on a national stage against...big brother. He may not be after satisfaction for the decision he made to leave over the offseason, but a Providence victory over Kentucky will provide just that.
The pregame story that's been created isn't a negative one, but one has to think that maybe, just maybe, Hopkins will hit the court with a full head of steam and do all he can to prove a point to Calipari and Big Blue Nation, giving everyone in blue and white a hard look at what they're now missing.
Kentucky and Providence will tipoff at 7:10 p.m. EST on Friday, March 17 inside Greensboro Coliseum.
East Region preview HERE.
WATCH: Calipari, Fredrick, Ware react to draw
More on Bryce Hopkins HERE.
More on the bracket reveal and Kentucky's draw HERE.
Kentucky needs to get healthy, fast. More HERE.
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