Mark Pope has landed an elite forward in the portal who has Kentucky ties

Mark Pope's most important position to fill in the transfer portal was the frontcourt, and he just landed a big fish in Jayden Quaintance. Last season, Quaintance played for Arizona State, where he averaged 9.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 2.6 blocks per game.

Quaintance was previously a Kentucky signee before Coach Calipari left for Arkansas, and he decided to play for the Sun Devils. Now Big Blue Nation will finally get to see Quaintance in the blue and white.

The 6'10 Quaintance was leading college basketball in blocks per game before going down with an ACL tear in March. Quaintance's 7'5 wingspan is a big reason why he swatted so many shots at Arizona State, and he will do the same in Lexington.

Quaintance is expected to be able to return from the ACL injury before the start of the season if all goes to plan.

When it comes to NBA upside, Quaintance, with a solid season in Lexington, will be a lottery pick without question. Because of his age, Quaintance had to spend two years in college before heading to the league, so this will be his second year playing college hoops.

Quaintance will be near the top of NBA Mock Drafts all season long and will be the first lottery pick of the Pope era.

This was a massive get for a Kentucky frontcourt that was looking to add some more players via the transfer portal. If Mark Pope keeps up this pace in the portal, Kentucky will be a top ten team in the preseason rankings.

Despite enrolling at Arizona State at 16 years old, Jayden Quaintance was named to the Big 12 All-Freshman and All-Defensive teams.

The projected top-5 pick is an elite shot-blocker, a strong passer, skilled creating his own shot or finishing out of PNR, and has a 7'5 wingspan https://t.co/JC5rICVNwq pic.twitter.com/tgnuOf5bQs
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) April 8, 2025