Will Jayden Quaintance suit up again this season for the Kentucky Wildcats?

Will we see Jayden Quaintance back on the floor in a Kentucky uniform?

Dec 20, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Kentucky Wildcats forward Jayden Quaintance (21) shows emotion against the St. John Red Storm in the second half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Heading into this season, the player Kentucky fans were most excited to see in the Blue and White was Arizona State transfer Jayden Quaintance. The big man was once committed to Kentucky as one of the top bigs out of high school, but decided ASU was the best fit for him.

After a solid freshman campaign playing for the Sun Devils, Quaintance hit the portal to look for a new school, but the big caveat surrounding him was the injury. Towards the last few weeks of the season during his freshman year at Arizona State, Quaintance tore his ACL. Some teams were scared to take Quaintance, knowing he was coming off this surgery.

Pope still took a shot on Quaintance, which made a ton of sense, knowing he is a player most believe will go in the top five of the NBA Draft. After a long and grueling recovery process, Quaintance finally made his season debut for the Wildcats when they took on St. John’s in Atlanta. He was incredible in this game, scoring ten points to go with eight rebounds and two blocks.

Jan 7, 2026; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats forward Jayden Quaintance (21) fives a teammate during the second half against the Missouri Tigers at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images | Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

After this win over Rick Pitino, Quaintance went on to play three more games for the Wildcats but since the loss to Missouri, he has been out with knee swelling. Some of the updates have Big Blue Nation worried about his status for the rest of the season.

Coach Pope listed him as day-to-day in a recent press conference but said that he is in full shutdown mode right now when it comes to practice. Some are starting to worry that Quaintance might shut it down for the rest of the season and get ready for the NBA Draft.

Jan 7, 2026; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats forward Jayden Quaintance (21) congratulates guard Jaland Lowe (15) during the second half against the Missouri Tigers at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images | Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Kentucky seems to be finding a groove on the floor, but having its lottery pick back certainly would not hurt. Fans were critical of Quaintance’s play during his time on the floor, but he was coming off a big-time surgery and never really got the time to settle back into the game.

One takeaway from the offseason is that Quaintance loves to play ball. He literally is always walking around with a basketball. I, for one, am a firm believer that if he were healthy enough to be on the floor, he would be on the floor. While I do hold these beliefs about Quaintance, it is impossible not to worry that he might shut down for the season to prepare for the next level. This will be something for Kentucky fans to monitor over the next few weeks.