Mark Pope shares his excitement for the guard tandem of Alex Wilkins and Zoom Diallo

Mark Pope has added two elite guards from the transfer portal who will start at the one and two next year for Kentucky. Those two players are Alex Wilkins from Furman and Zoom Diallo from Washington. Last year, as a true freshman at Furman Wilkins averaged 17.8 points, 4.7 assists, and two rebounds per game. The 6’5 guard shot 46% from the field and 32.8% from three.

Diallo also put up some impressive numbers for Washington, averaging 15.7 points, 4.5 assists, and 3.9 rebounds per game. The 6’4 sophomore guard shot 48.9% from the field and 31.5% from three.

Mar 11, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Washington Huskies guard Zoom Diallo (5) brings the ball up court against the Southern California Trojans during the second half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Big Blue Nation is very excited about these two guards and believes they are going to put up some really big numbers this season in Pope’s system. Good guard play is a must in the Pope system, and the Wildcats are going to have it this year with these two transfers.

Recently, Coach Pope asked Big Blue Nation for some questions, and he answered them via social media. One of the questions Pope was asked about was his excitement about Wilkins and Diallo, plus what his favorite aspect of each of their games is.

Pope responded by saying, “One of the top priorities for us going into the portal was finding creators, and these are two of the elite creators in all of college basketball. They are going to form a dynamic duo for Kentucky basketball. They are both over 30% assist rate. There’s only currently one other roster in the country with two players over a 30% assist rate. This is going to be awesome.”

Mar 20, 2026; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Furman Paladins guard Alex Wilkins (10) dribbles the ball against the UConn Huskies in the second half during a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

There has been some frustration this offseason around Kentucky basketball, but Coach Pope is right to be excited about these two guards. The Wildcats are going to have an elite one-two punch with Wilkins and Diallo. Both of these players are going to improve next year, and the sky truly is the limit for them.

Wilkins is a player that BBN believes can turn himself into a really good NBA player, but first, he has to take the jump from Furman to Kentucky. Wilkins could be the star player that Kentucky fans have been looking for with the elite upside that he possesses.

The frustration from fans is understandable, but BBN should be really looking forward to seeing this backcourt duo taking the floor in Rupp Arena this season.

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