ESPN has Kentucky listed outside of the National Championship favorites grouping

Should Kentucky be in the National Championship favorites group?

Mar 23, 2025; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope reacts during the second half in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

ESPN put out an article where they ranked each team in different category based on their ceiling this season, and Big Blue Nation will not be happy about where the Wildcats were ranked.

The top category was National Championship favorites, and the four teams in this category, according to the writers of this article, Jeff Borzello and Myron Medcalf, were Purdue, Florida, Houston, and UConn.

The next category was Final Four contenders, and this is where the Wildcats were ranked. The teams that joined Kentucky in this category were BYU, St. John's, Louisville, Michigan, Duke, Texas Tech, and Arkansas.

Oct 14, 2025; Birmingham, Alabama, USA; Kentucky head coach Mark Pope speaks at SEC Media Day in the Grand Bohemian Hotel. | Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Here is what Borzello and Medcalf had to say about Pope's team "Kentucky spent millions to add talent around the SEC Preseason Player of the Year Otega Oweh, headlined by Arizona State transfer and projected top-five pick Jayden Quaintance, whose expected return to the court later this season after suffering an ACL tear in February could elevate the Wildcats into the title favorites tier."

At least Borzello and Medcalf went on to say that Kentucky could be in the favorites tier with Jayden Quaintance back on the floor, but some fans feel they deserve to be on this list now after what they did to Purdue on Friday.

There is absolutely no shot that anyone could have watched that game vs. #1 Purdue on Friday and left thinking the Wildcats shouldn't be grouped in with the rest of the favorites to win it all this season.

Obviously, it was an exhibition game, but the Wildcats were shorthanded and dominated the Boilermakers from start to finish. Purdue was doing their best to win this game, knowing Braden Smith played 32 minutes, Fletcher Loyer played 31 minutes, and Trey Kaufman-Renn played 28 minutes. The Boilermakers played to win this game, and Kentucky looked like the better basketball team.

Oct 14, 2025; Birmingham, AL, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope talks with the media during SEC Media Days at Grand Bohemian Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images | Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

Kentucky still has more to prove, but they showed on Friday that this is a top five team in the nation, and with a healthy Quaintance, the Wildcats very well could be the best team in college basketball.

Having a team that is well-balanced on both sides of the floor is crucial, and Kentucky has that. KenPom has the Wildcats ranked inside the top ten on both offense and defense, which is a must for a team to win six games straight in the NCAA Tournament.

Kentucky should be in the favorites group, but Pope's team has more to prove, but he will get the job done.